Court tomorrow help please

Scottpr

Good evening,n00b here so apologies if this is an already answered question, I have had a quick search but not found anything really relevant.

Anyhow, I am in court tomorrow (30th April) for a private parking ticket in a Tesco car park.


I am a delivery driver, parked on the side of the road, as there is no loading bay provided, and have been issued a penalty for this.

I didn't appeal directly to the parking company as I wasn't aware I had a ticket until it was too late to appeal (no ticket was left on the windscreen)

Just after any knowledge that I can take in with me, do I have any legal recourse? any particular arguments I can use?

Any help appreciated, thank you

Redx

I do not believe the parking company issued any PENALTY

any paperwork would have been a PARKING CHARGE NOTICE , or PCN for short (an invoice)

your defence and witness statements and exhibits were your arguments , you cannot just rock up in court and start giving out the stuff in ambush, they wont allow it

any legal recourse was listed in the defence you made months ago , plus any skeleton argument you put in within the last week or two (plus anything in your WS and exhibits)

its not just a case of rock up on the day and start putting these things forward at that time

Scottpr

Redx wrote: »

I do not believe the parking company issued any PENALTY

any paperwork would have been a PARKING CHARGE NOTICE , or PCN for short (an invoice)

your defence and witness statements and exhibits were your arguments , you cannot just rock up in court and start giving out the stuff in ambush, they wont allow it

any legal recourse was listed in the defence you made months ago , plus any skeleton argument you put in within the last week or two (plus anything in your WS and exhibits)

its not just a case of rock up on the day and start putting these things forward at that time

ok well perhaps my wording is incorrect, penalty or pcn its all the same to me!

I am a complete noob at this so are you telling me I can't now go to court tomorrow and present a defence? I should of done this previously?
I apologise if i'm being dumb, I know absolutely zero about this kind of stuff

I appreciate your help

BrownTrout

You logged a defence when you got the claim
What about your witness statement......

Scottpr

BrownTrout wrote: »

You logged a defence when you got the claim
What about your witness statement......

I logged a defence yes, but I don't believe I made a witness statement

I'm beginning to think i'm well and truly screwed

onlyfoolsandparking

Did you Acknowledge the Court claim (known as doing an AOS) and if so did you submit a defence, witness statement etc?


I'm not one of the experts on here regarding Court but if you haven't done any of the above you could be in for a rough ride BUT nothing wrong with you going in and trying to explain what happened (if Judge gives you the chance) after all its not Crown Court and your not on trial.


You might get a few tips (not guaranteed to work or help you I fear) if you post more detail about how you've ended up in Court and what your response to the Court claim was (or was not).

Coupon-mad

You KNEW you had to file a WS and evidence if you read the court letter properly.

You are in the same boat as this person - pray for a miracle for you both:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/75757152#Comment_75757152

Turn up - see the tips posted there. At least fight against the fake 'costs' as explained. Do not decide you are screwed but yep, you've mucked this up. See the other thread - do what I told them to do and look for the flaws in the other side's evidence and fight against it, then fight against the costs as a last gasp if you appear to be losing.

Maybe you will both be granted an adjournment to sort it...then another hearing. trouble is you normally get clouted for costs if you agree to that, as the extra hearing is your 'fault' not the Claimant's.

Which parking firm, Horizon maybe?

Did they send YOU a WS and evidence pack in early April. Or not? If they did, they have the upper hand but go along armed with the info I gave to that other person.

Scottpr

onlyfoolsandparking wrote: »

Did you Acknowledge the Court claim (known as doing an AOS) and if so did you submit a defence, witness statement etc?


I'm not one of the experts on here regarding Court but if you haven't done any of the above you could be in for a rough ride BUT nothing wrong with you going in and trying to explain what happened (if Judge gives you the chance) after all its not Crown Court and your not on trial.


You might get a few tips (not guaranteed to work or help you I fear) if you post more detail about how you've ended up in Court and what your response to the Court claim was (or was not).

Yes I acknowledged the court claim online through the money claim website.

My defence was simply that I am a delivery driver and was parked up making my deliveries (there is 12 businesses and and 40+ flats above tesco all served by the same car park with no loading bay) and was in and out in around 15 minutes. I wasn't parked in a bay but simply on the road (no yellow lines but a small sign quite high up) as no loading bay is provided.

I didn't hear anything about the fine for around 2 months after the incident, by which time it was too late to appeal, when i got a letter saying they are taking me to court. I emailed them and tried to appeal but they dismissed it out of hand and said they want payment in full or they will take me to court.

Hope this explains everything

Coupon-mad

You might get a fair Judge, given those circumstances, he/she might throw it out.

Please can you answer my TWO questions at the end of my post?

onlyfoolsandparking

Then follow the advice given by Coupon mad and click on the blue link she kindly provided you.


You might lose in a big way but its all about damage limitation at this late stage. You are certainly not screwed but you are likely to end up paying the scumbags (which of course none of us here ever like to see) but if you do lose and are ordered to pay by the Judge then make sure you pay that amount IN FULL within 30 days, it will then all go away.


Damn expensive lesson for you but don't make it a 1000 times worse by refusing to pay or leaving it longer than the 30 days I mentioned.


Have a good read of the NEWBIES section so you can hopefully avoid ever being in your present situation again because if you are a delivery driver the chances are high you will receive another PCN from the scammers in the future.

Scottpr

Coupon-mad wrote: »

You might get a fair Judge, given those circumstances, he/she might throw it out.

Please can you answer my TWO questions at the end of my post?

Apologies I have replied once but it seems to have disapperead

Company is Parking Control Management UK LTD

I received a letter for court stating: Unless the claimant does by 4:00pm on the 2 April 2019 pay to the court the trial fee of £80.00 or file a properly completed application (i.e one which provides all the required information in the manner requested) for help with fees, then the claim will be struck out with effect from 2 April 2019 without further order and, unless the court orders otherwise, you will also be liable for the costs which the defendant has incurred.

I received a witness statement from gladstones solicitors on the 9th April but nothing since from the court