VCS parking in restricted area & claim from from CCBC

upstanding

will give that a go, thanks:
Draft Witness Statement – 9th June 2015 for forum

1. I am the Defendant in this matter. Attached to this statement is a paginated bundle of documents, contents of which are numbered from 1 – ??

The Claimant, VCS asserts that I entered into a contract with them, that I breached the contract and must pay a contractual charge, with further undefined and unexplained disproportionate additional charges. The PCN issued claims that the vehicle was parked in a restricted area of a car park, namely at xxxxx Street, xxx on 9th June 2015.

2. On the day in question I was working in the nearby vicinity. Given that it was over 4 ½ years ago it is difficult to recall for certain whether I entered this area from xxx Street directly or through the nearby supermarket car park (Lidl). If I drove in from xxxx Street, it would have been very difficult to see and identify any specific signage as these were displayed in different colours and in a font too small to be read from a passing vehicle for the different businesses within the confines of this area. There were individual retail and industrial units, a brewery building/hut, all of which were located within the historic brewery yard, (conservation area). Also if a vehicle were exiting at the same time, this signage would have been obscured from view. This particular car park was operated by more than one firm, all with different signage and payment meters yet there was no definitive/clear demarcation between such. If I had entered via the supermarket access, no signage whatsoever was displayed along xxxx Lane leading to the road where the vehicle was parked.

3. It was a usual practice of the general public, workers of the nearby units and offices or retail shops as well as train users to park along this road, many of whom did so, on a daily basis.
On leaving the vehicle, I noted that there were already a number of cars parked along there; this was at approximately 7.30 a.m.
Upon returning to my car at approximately 9.15 a.m. to my amazement/dismay, I found a Parking Charge Notice stuck on the car window. I spoke to a member of staff at the nearby unit of XXX and told him what had transpired to which the response was along the lines of ‘They (VCS) are idiots and seem to randomly ticket but they have no idea of the boundaries – they even put a ticket on our van which was parked in our parking bay outside the front of our unit’, and added that nobody took any notice of them as they were not Council issued and VCS had no jurisdiction on a Council road. This explanation seemed entirely reasonable and acceptable. Is it appropriate to add in verbal input from outside source – don’t want anything to be deemed libelous ??!!

4. The PCN (exhibit x) that was stuck on the car states vehicle was seen in XX, (marked contravention code 81) - a restricted area of a car park by VCS at 7.38 a.m. and PCN was issued at 7.48 a.m. The vehicle was in fact parked on xxxx and not in XX, a retail unit which was on the opposite side of the public road. The vehicle was parked on the road and at no time caused any obstruction or hazard to any other road user, as I reiterate cars parked along this road regularly. Photos – (exhibits a, b and c. or whatever – Google)
Having the presence of mind at the time to take some photographs– it showed 2 VCS signs, which I understood to be relating to the car park/related to the car park (exh xx) These stated “No parking at Anytime”. As I understand it, Terms and Conditions apply to a forbidding sign, i.e. No offer of parking and therefore there can be no contract and hence no breach as indeed there were NO Terms and Conditions stated.

KeithP

Every paragraph needs a number - even on here.

Without numbers it is much more difficult for anyone to comment.

upstanding

5. Some considerable time passed, impossible to put a date to this, as the piece of paper itself was undated. (See exhibit x) This purported to be from Debt Recovery Plus Ltd demanding payment of an unpaid parking charge in the sum of £160. It stated “our client has written to you recently, as they have not received payment, they have referred the matter to us for collection”
Date of this Notice: 42250
Parking charge date: 42164
Location: xxxxx yard.
Please make sure your payment reaches us no later than 42264 and if you do not pay the full amount by 42264 we will recommend court action.

6. Obviously on looking at this piece of paper it did not resemble any form of communication from a reputable business, as it was full of errors, with unspecified dates, they had actually typed in the numbers and therefore I took it to be junk mail. The PCN stated a charge payable of £100 within 28 days or £60.00 within 14 days, yet this demand was for £160 – an inflated cost of £60 with no explanation whatsoever which I now know to be An Abuse of Process – which I refer to later in this witness statement.

7. Over the period of the next twelve months I was harassed, by VCS and their associates on a further 5 occasions with Demands for Money with communications sent from Debt Recovery Plus, Zenith Collections, VCS and BWLegal and numerous telephone calls from BWLegal.

I have listed and dated these exhibits as x-x in folder, all demanding different amounts of money to be paid, some Marked Without Prejudice.

upstanding

just seen comment about paragraphs/number so adding from here on in
8. 3 YEARS LATER – April 2019

7th communication came from VCS (exhibit x) dated xx.4.19 Letter Before Claim stating this matter has now been passed to our Legal Department. The sum is inclusive of a debt collection charge of £60 in accordance with T&C of car park. It also states principal debt of £160, estimated interest of £48.57, estimated court fees of £25 – estimated total - £233.57 – to be paid within 30 days – by 24th May 19 with a printed signature of Jake Burgess.

9. Subsequent to that followed a Claim Form from CCBC dated 21st June, followed by Notice of proposed allocation and Notice of allocation to hearing (July and October 2019).
On 30th October I received an 11th communication from VCS (exhibit x), I feel of a very threatening and demanding nature stating “We have a strong case against you and are entitled to recover the outstanding Parking Charge Notice and any additional costs etc etc” - We are willing to accept a reduced settlement charge of £125 payable within 14 days of date of letter – 25 October 19. “Should you fail to accept our offer, we will continue with our claim and bring this letter to the Courts attention upon the question of costs”. This offer is made on a without prejudice basis. Printed signature of Jake Burgess

10. Moving forward to the present time:

The units of 1-4 XXX are no longer present as shown in photos - xx
Yellow lines were not implemented until 2018 – (again google earth photo).

The 2 VCS signs have since been removed and replaced with 1 sign regarding weather conditions in the blue and yellow of the Excel signage. It would appear the car park itself has ticket machines in the name of Excel but interestingly when returning very recently (2/3 months ago) to take a closer look at this area, the person patrolling was seen to be wearing a high visibility jacket with VCS emblazoned on the back, again confusing the public as to which company, if any, has any authority
!
11. No notice to keeper ever received by myself – the first time I saw this was when I applied for SAR and VCS supplied the information but not until the full 30 day deadline in which they had to respond. A copy of the PCN was supplied and I note in the Parking Officer’s report attached he has signed and dated it as 8th June 2015, a day before the supposed infringement occurred. Neither did they include copies of the further demands for payment all of which I note they refer to the area as Units 1 – 4 xxx and not xxx

12. VCS purported costs are wholly disproportionate and do not stand up to scrutiny and draw your attention to this here:

Hereon in I had cut and paste from o/p w/s regarding Abuse of Process - not sure if that caused the issue regarding posting

upstanding

p.s. as an addition to paragraph 11 the Parking Officer report includes a little diagram stating wheels of car were parked on cobbled area along road - so his little mind must have interpreted the cobbles as being part of the car park but no obvious demarcation suggesting this

Snakes_Belly

7th communication came from VCS (exhibit x) dated xx.4.19 Letter Before Claim stating this matter has now been passed to our Legal Department. The sum is inclusive of a debt collection charge of £60 in accordance with T&C of car park. It also states principal debt of £160, estimated interest of £48.57, estimated court fees of £25 – estimated total - £233.57 – to be paid within 30 days – by 24th May 19 with a printed signature of Jake Burgess.

.

The debt collection charge in relation to the car park has not been paid by VCS/Excel and is abuse of process. See Beamer,s post. I will email you the information the details from DRP's website. They are trying to scam you for a fake add on relating to a car park where you were not even parked and having the audacity to add on all that interest after sitting on the claim for years.

Coupon-mad

12. VCS purported costs are wholly disproportionate and do not stand up to scrutiny and draw your attention to this here:

Hereon in I had cut and paste from o/p w/s regarding Abuse of Process - not sure if that caused the issue regarding posting

Put that part all as a supplementary Witness Statement like others have done.

Snakes_Belly

If the driver was entering from Derby Street to Miller's lane they would not see the Excel sign because there are at least four or five other signs cluttering that area. Cars exiting the car park would also block the view of the inadequate signage. Car's exiting often have to wait as they are emerging into two lanes of traffic. That said you were not on that car park./B]. The signage is very confusing.

This is such a try on at a time when you have had some very difficult personal issues to deal with.

Snakes_Belly

The representative of the PPC will not understand the layout of the Excel car park. It's bad enough if you are actually there. They may possibly ask you about they layout beforehand. Save that for the judge.

I tend to think that those cobbles may be protected. Keep Calm first case was about parking on the cobbles but again there was no demarcation. Perhaps they can't paint on the cobbles but that is not your problem. If a PPC takes on protected sites and listed building then they have got to accept that there will be issues. Part of the issue that I had was that there was no signage over the ticket machine due to the fact that it was fixed to a listed building.

Fruitcake

I haven't fully read this thread yet, but I did some GSV screengrabs to help Snakes Belly with her case.

I'll post up everything I have when I get the time later today or tomorrow. Hopefully I kept the images.

Did you know that it is possible to enter that car park via the Lidi car park a few hundred metres away, which brings you in from the service road by the corner of the hotel?
I'm not sure if that was the case in 2015, but you can change the historical date on GCV to see if that was the case at the time.

Approaching from the service road direction, there are no entrance signs. The only sign visible is on the end wall of the hotel which would be roughly in line with a vehicle passenger door pillar. Turning left to pass that sign on the right takes you in to the railway park which is not part of the Excel/VCS car park.

Turning right instead takes a driver away from the sign on the end of the hotel. If a vehicle was then to park facing the Derby Road entrance, No signs will have been seen at all (I think).