Counterclaim advice needed, please. Claim Form Received from Northampton CCBC. Bizarre PCN case!

[Deleted User]

Write to the court with the DQ request a new date.

JungTheForeman

Went to Court on Friday. All went well; claim dismissed by the judge. In truth it was a bit of a whitewash. Unfortunately, the judge gave no order for costs. But, hey, great news!

Many thanks to all the experts who have contributed over the months, and for all the great advice on this forum. Your invaluable help throughout was very much appreciated!

Redx

well done


Another one bites the dust !!

Umkomaas

Any chance of more details on what the Judge said? On what grounds was it dismissed? Did Britannia field an advocate? What did he/she say?

How did your time in court unfold, from arrival to judgment?

Some of this could be used to change behaviours in terms of parking at the hospital, we can help in that respect once we are clearer about what the judgment said.

JungTheForeman

Arrived at court about 30 minutes early. The advocate (paralegal) for Britannia (BW Legal) was already there - she was also on another case, although not on behalf of Britannia (I can't recall the name of the other parking company she was representing). Incidentally, the defendant for that other case didn't show - possibly he/she bottled it at the last hurdle.

Court receptionist pointed out the BW Legal paralegal when I arrived. The paralegal offered a 'consultation' in one of the private rooms. I agreed. Sat down, and she asked if I wanted to 'make an offer / proposal' rather than face the judge. I said that I would be willing to accept just half of my submitted costs if Britannia agreed to discontinue prior to the hearing. She wasn't amused!

Went before the judge on time. Basically, he pretty much tore into the advocate from the off: "This is just bizarre; why have you taken this case as far as this?" I spoke very, very little throughout the 45 or so minutes - just confirmed a few of the facts detailed in my witness statement.

I think this was a bit of an unusual case from the outset. I've had a permit for the car park in question for a number of years, but it was out-of-date because the hospital hadn't yet issued me with my new one (there were very valid and undisputed reasons as to why). Essentially, the judge was swayed solely by my salary slip from July 2017, clearly showing the £30.00 deduction that I paid for car parking for that month.

This unfortunate set of circumstances regarding the parking permits led to Britannia licking their lips and dishing out PCNs like confetti back in 2017. As far as I know, only three of us saw it through to the end. For two of my hospital colleagues, Britannia discontinued their claims just three days prior to the respective court dates. I was the only one who actually went before a judge.

The sad thing is that many of my other colleagues paid the b*stards - some early on, others much later at the 'threatening court action' stage. Britannia must have still made a small fortune. Many of these work colleagues were chuffed for me when I told them what happened at court. Others (who had forked out hard earned money) were understandably gutted that they hadn't seen it through.

I guess that Britannia (and other parking companies) rely on people being terrified of going before a judge. My advice to anyone else is simple: don't be. I actually quite enjoyed it, but that was probably only because my defence was, in my mind, very strong.

Once again, many thanks for all of your fantastic support throughout!

Coupon-mad

Very well done! ANOTHER ONE BITES THE DUST!