PCN Scotland - rental car

MunroMonkey

Hi,


Please excuse me for any grammatical errors made, I am not a native English speaker, nor am I a British citizen. I would like to ask you for advice concerning a PCN. Thanks to the valuable information found on here I have been able to help myself so far.


The facts:
- Rental car from Europcar (in Scotland)
- 1 PCN from Euro Car Parks for staying 30 minutes at a petrol station (60/100 GBP)
- Europcar provided my details to Euro Car Parks, now asking a 40 GBP admin fee


I decided to appeal to Euro Car Parks (as a hirer/lessee) as it concerned a rental car. I have not received a reply so far.
To dispute the admin fee I sent to Europcar:

Dear Sir,


I hereby write to formally dispute the above detailed invoice issued to me by Europcar as an administration charge for your handling of a "PCN" that you had received from Euro Car Parks in respect of the above detailed vehicle.

As detailed in the accompanying letter, a £40 administration charge will be deducted from my credit card on the 15th day following this letter. The documentation that you have provided in support of this transaction is a speculative and unenforceable invoice from a private company for a “Parking Charge Notice” for the xxth xx 2019.

The invoice issued by Euro Car Parks is not a Penalty Charge Notice, nor is it a fine, nor any kind of notification of traffic offence. It has not been issued by any UK authority and was not issued as a result of a contravention of any current UK traffic legislation. It is therefore not covered under the terms of my rental agreement with Europcar and Europcar has no authority to charge my credit card for any fee as there was no requirement on Europcar to take any action on receipt of this invoice.

For the avoidance of doubt, you do not have my authority to take payment of this administration charge from me and I reasonably require within the next seven days your written confirmation that this charge has been cancelled in full.

I shall continue to reserve all rights including those bestowed upon me by the Consumer Rights Act 2015.

Thank you for your cooperation and I look forward to receiving your response.


Yours faithfully,

Europcar replied:

In your case you have been charged with a traffic violation invoice and charged the administration fee in accordance with our terms and conditions of hire section 9.3. As it refers to been a private parking company we are guided by the he following:

If a driver has incurred a parking charge notice from a private parking enforcement firm, and the vehicle is owned by a hire company, the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 allows the fine issuer to request the hirer details from the registered keeper of the vehicle. If the request is not acted upon, the issuer is legally allowed to pursue the matter through the courts.

Given this change in the law, and the stance of the BVRLA (the vehicle rental sector's governing body), Europcar must therefore treat fines issued by private operators in the same way as those issued by councils; they must either pay the fines, or provide the details of the hirer, and if the latter course of action is taken, a valid, signed hire agreement must be supplied.

There is a commonly held belief that private parking enforcement firms do not have the power to enforce their charges, and this belief is strengthened by the fact that they often will not pursue individual drivers through the courts. However, as a large fleet operator, Europcar is more likely to be taken to court over unpaid parking charge notices, and must therefore ensure that the correct process is followed at all times.

The British Parking Association and Independent Parking Committee are the governing bodies of private parking enforcement firms, and it is only by being members of one of these that they are able to request owner/keeper details from the DVLA. This means that they risk suspension if they do not follow the prescribed code of conduct, which would prevent them from requesting details from the DVLA. They are therefore incentivised to act fairly and within the code, as complaints to the BPA and IPC can threaten their membership.

In short, as long as issuers are members of the BPA or IPC, they are allowed to issue and enforce parking charge notices on private land. Europcar's policy is to treat these notices in the same way as those issued by local authorities.

Please consult the listing menbers on the link below:

http theipc.info/aos-members/p

I am afraid based on this information above the administration fee charge is correct and will be maintained

I trust this satisfies your query.

Of course, I am not satisfied with this reply. I was also pretty surprised that POFA is used as a reason for justifying the admin fee, because I thought I finally understood that POFA does not apply in Scotland.


What is a smart thing to do now? Go hard against it? Or just wait for Euro Car Parks to reply, hope they will cancel and then get back to Europcar for a refund?


Any advice is highly appreciated.

The_Slithy_Tove

100% correct that their response is completely irrelevant as POFA does not apply. There was no change in the law with respect to this particular case.

You need to get back to them and specifically rebut everything that is incorrect in their response. Starting with the POFA bit (they even use the word "fine"). Only the driver is liable, so the EuropCar could never be liable for this.

Then quote exactly their Ts&Cs again, and ask them who is this mythical "authority" that issues this "not-a-FINE"?

As for

In short, as long as issuers are members of the BPA or IPC, they are allowed to issue and enforce parking charge notices on private land. Europcar's policy is to treat these notices in the same way as those issued by local authorities.

They can think they can treat them how they like, but it does not make them in any way the same as FINES issued by local authorities. Unless their Ts&Cs explicitly state that such things will be treated the same, they cannot do so.

MunroMonkey

Thank you for your quick reply.

They can think they can treat them how they like, but it does not make them in any way the same as FINES issued by local authorities. Unless their Ts&Cs explicitly state that such things will be treated the same, they cannot do so.

Unfortunately, their T&C state:

We may charge you for various services that we will carry out as a result of incidents that may occur during the Hire Period and/or how you used the Vehicle.
Such charges include, but are not limited to, the following:
9.3.1. Relating to Fines and Penalties
Where the term ‘issuing body’ is used in this section
9.3.1 it can apply to any, or all, of the following organisations:
• police or other enforcement agencies or other issuing authorities where a driving offence or suspected driving offence has been committed during a Hire Period; and
• either a public or a private enforcement agency that are entitled to issue parking charge notices and associated fines where a purported or actual breach of contract has arisen.
9.3.1.1. You are responsible for and will pay all charges arising
from:You are and will remain primarily liable for such charges and you consent to us notifying such organisations of our personal details to effect a transfer of liability.
The Third Party Administration Charge will only be refunded if you can provide supporting evidence to show that the issuing authority (i) has rescinded the fine or penalty; and (ii) confirms that the original charge did not apply in any event.

Does this mean Europcar is entitled to charge me for whatever invoice they receive, on the basis of the T&Cs? Does not seem I have a leg to stand on (even though the POFA part remains sheer nonsense)

Fruitcake

First of all, well done. Your grasp of the English language in general, and this issue in particular is excellent. I wish more posters here had your level of knowledge and understanding.

Now to business:

In your case you have been charged with a traffic violation invoice

No you haven't. It can't be both a traffic violation and an invoice. No traffic violation has occurred and those words are not, indeed cannot be used on the PCN.

and charged the administration fee in accordance with our terms and conditions of hire section 9.3.

Quote their own wording from their Ts and Cs, and point out again how a private invoice is none of these. Double check the wording on both the written Ts and Cs and their website as sometimes it is different. Choose the one which best supports your case.

As it refers to a private parking company we are guided by the following:

If a driver has incurred a parking charge notice from a private parking enforcement firm, and the vehicle is owned by a hire company, the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 allows the fine issuer

It is not a fine. The owner is not liable. The registered keeper or day to day keeper (hirer) are not liable because the PoFA does not exist in Scotland because it was never enacted there.

to request the hirer details from the registered keeper of the vehicle. If the request is not acted upon, the issuer is legally

Lawfully. It is not a criminal offence but an alleged breach of contract.

allowed to pursue the matter through the courts.
Given this change in the law,

What law? The PoFA does not exist in Scotland.

and the stance of the BVRLA (the vehicle rental sector's governing body),

It is a trade association, not a regulatory governing body and has no powers

Europcar must therefore treat fines issued by private operators

Private operators cannot issue fines. The BVRLA makes no such instruction and does not say the word "must" in their guidelines, which are not mandatory upon the hire operator.

in the same way as those issued by councils; they must either pay the fines,

They are not fines and there is no mandatory requirement in law to pay the invoice. In Scotland the keeper is not liable so there is no similarity between a private PCN and a Council one. In addition, unlike council tickets, there is no truly independent appeals process for private charges.

or provide the details of the hirer, and if the latter course of action is taken, a valid, signed hire agreement must be supplied.

The hire company could do this or they could ignore it as there is no keeper liability in Scotland because the PoFA 2012 was never enacted there.
Again, the use of the word "must" is incorrect. There is no requirement by any statutory body to compel the hire company to do this

There is a commonly held belief that private parking enforcement firms do not have the power to enforce their charges, and this belief is strengthened by the fact that they often will not pursue individual drivers through the courts. However, as a large fleet operator, Europcar is more likely to be taken to court over unpaid parking charge notices, and must therefore ensure that the correct process is followed at all times.

Yes, and the correct process is to provide the unregulated parking company with the hirer's details, nothing more and nothing less.

The British Parking Association and Independent Parking Committee are the governing bodies of private parking enforcement firms,


No they are not. There are no governing bodies for unregulated private parking companies, yet. They will eventually be legislated by the new Parking bill, recently enacted in parliament.

and it is only by being members of these that they are able to request owner/keeper details from the DVLA.


Incorrect. The DVLA do not hold owner details, and unregulated companies cannot request the same from the DVLA.

This means that they risk suspension if they do not follow the prescribed code of conduct, which would prevent them from requesting details from the DVLA. They are therefore incentivised to act fairly and within the code, as complaints to the BPA and IPC can threaten their membership.

In short, as long as issuers are members of the BPA or IPC, they are allowed to issue and enforce parking charge notices on private land. Europcar's policy is to treat these notices in the same way as those issued by local authorities.

By what authority? The PoFA does not permit this even if it existed in Scotland, nor does any other legislation, regulation, or act of parliament.

Please consult the listing menbers on the link below:

http theipc.info/aos-members/p

I am afraid based on this information above the administration fee charge is correct and will be maintained

I trust this satisfies your query.


Contact your card provider and put the charge in dispute because it is fraudulent. Explain that the Ts and Cs don't apply, and also that in Scotland the day to day keeper (hirer) cannot be held liable, and why.

Also tell the hire company you have put the charge in dispute as being fraudulent because the day to day keeper, cannot be held liable in Scotland.

Finally, complain to your MP about this unregulated scam.

MunroMonkey

Thank you both for your kind words and help, I greatly appreciate it.

Whereas Europcar 'kindly' asked for my patience;
"due to the nature of your query; it is taking slightly longer than usual. It is our aim to provide you a full and thorough resolution, including any necessary supporting documentation.

We would like to offer you our assurances that once the information we are seeking has been obtained, we will respond to you. In the meantime, thank you for your continued patience in regards to this matter."

Time already caught them, as I received an email from ECP today, stating that the appeal has been successful and the notice has been cancelled.

So... case closed, I guess. Thanks again all.

Umkomaas

Check the Europcar T&Cs to see if they void admin charges if an appeal is successful. If so, get on to them quickly.

If this is not covered, give them plenty of grief - many other hire companies will refund admin charges with a successful appeal. Do your research.

Would you share what you said in your appeal to ECP please?

MunroMonkey

Appeal:

Dear Sir,

I refer to the above Parking Charge Notice (“PCN”) issued by Euro Car Parks in respect of an alleged contravention of the terms and conditions of parking at **** by the driver of the above-detailed vehicle on ***** 2019. I confirm that I am the vehicle’s hirer and keeper and I write to dispute the validity of this PCN.

Although the PCN claims that the vehicle parked for longer than the time permitted, it provides no clear evidence to support of this claim, containing only two unclear “photographs” at an unknown location.

Notwithstanding this, the PCN - having been issued in Scotland - falls outside of the scope of Schedule 4 of the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 and as such, liability for unpaid parking charges is limited only to vehicles’ drivers.

Given that there are no possible circumstances under which the vehicle’s registered keeper Europcar Group UK LTD could be liable for this PCN, you must not contact them again. Instead, please direct any further correspondence to me in my capacity as the vehicle’s hirer.

I expect to receive just one further communication from you – i.e. written confirmation that this PCN has been cancelled which must be provided to me within the timescales specified under the BPA Code of Practice. Thank you for your cooperation and I look forward to receiving this confirmation.

Europcar will certainly hear from me if they decide to charge me the administration fee...

Fruitcake

Don't wait, tell Europcar now that the PCN has been cancelled and thus they "must" (use that very word since they seem to like it so much) not charge you or must refund you if they have done so.

I would also contact Europcar's head office/CEO and point out that their employees at this Scottish branch do not understand what laws do and do not apply in Scotland. Since Euro cannot be held liable in Scotland, and neither can you, they need to be re-educated about the PoFA 2012 that was never enacted in Scotland.

Euro have incorrectly applied a law that does not exist in your country, and have falsely tried to obtain money to which they are not entitled as a result.

Please also complain to your MP.