Motorbike parking charge

ahp2946

Hi

My son has received 2 PCN for failing to display a valid ticket and in his naivety has already appealed and given his details. He has also escalated this to the IAS as the parking company rejected his appeal.

He was parked in Palantine Road in Blackpool while on holiday and paid for a ticket to cover the full 48 hours he was going to be parked which he then put on the bike as securely as possible.

As he rides a motorbike he took a photo of the ticket showing the time, date and 3 digits of reg that the ticket shows, directly below his motorbike number plate to show he had paid in case the ticket went missing. I am just looking for any advice should the IAS appeal fail which i am now expecting it to having read the posts on here.

It looks like NE Parking are trying to charge on the basis of contract.

Redx

the PPC has 6 years to try a court case , so this person would wait for a formal LoC and/or a court claim form N1 from the CCBC in Northampton

ahp2946

So basically ignore anything that comes except a court letter?

The_Deep

From what you have told us, if the scammers take this to court they may struggle. Get your MP on board.

Nine times out of ten these tickets are scams.

Parliament is well aware of the MO of these private parking companies, and on 15th March 2019 a Bill was enacted to curb the excesses of these shysters. Codes of Practice are being drawn up, an independent appeals service will be set up, and access to the DVLA's date base more rigorously policed, persistent offenders denied access to the DVLA database and unable to operate.

Hopefully life will become impossible for the worst of these scammers, but until this is done you should still complain to your MP, citing the new legislation.

http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2019/8/contents/enacted

Just as the clampers were finally closed down, so hopefully will many of these Private Parking Companies.

Redx

ahp2946 wrote: »

So basically ignore anything that comes except a court letter?

no , I also included the LoC as well, thats 2 items , not one

ahp2946

Sorry, assuming you mean Letter of Claim, I will bear that in mind.

ahp2946

Thanks, are there any template letters to contact our MP or should I get my son to call them directly or drop into one of the MP surgeries.

Luckily he thought to get evidence of payment but then followed the advice on the MSE website which it seems may differ from the forum advice.

ahp2946

As expected the appeal has failed based on contract law and no mitigating circumstances were accepted. Should he just ignore this now or advise the parking company that he will not be paying and to take him to court? Can the court take mitigating circumstances into account when it comes to contract law or is he just screwed?

As well as contacting his mp is it worth trying the whole daily mail sad face route or is that likely to be a waste of time?

Appeal answer below.

"It is important to understand that the adjudicator is not in a position to give legal advice. The adjudicator's role is to look at whether the parking charge has a basis in law and was properly issued in the circumstances of each particular case. The adjudicator's decision is not legally binding on the Appellant (it is intended to be a guide) and the Appellant is free to obtain independent legal advice if they so wish. However, the adjudicator is legally qualified (a barrister or solicitor) and decides the appeal according to their understanding of the law and legal principles.

The guidance to this appeal makes it clear that I am bound by the law of contract and can only consider legal challenges not mistakes or extenuating circumstances. The conditions of parking at the location in question are such that drivers must ensure that a valid pay and display ticket is clearly on display at all relevant times. Signage stating these terms exists throughout the site and having viewed images of the site I am satisfied that the Appellant was made reasonably aware of the conditions of parking, particularly as in this case the Appellant approached the pay & display machine.

I am satisfied from the photographs provided by the Operator that no valid ticket was properly displayed in the vehicle. For the avoidance of doubt, the Parking Charge Notice (PCN) has been issued as no ticket was properly displayed in the vehicle. The Appellant states in their appeal that they purchased a ticket, but the images provided by the Operator mean that I am satisfied that no ticket was properly available for inspection at the time the PCN was issued. While noting the Appellant's comments, the photographs, taken at the point of issue, show the Appellant's vehicle without correctly displaying a valid ticket. As stated above, the guidance to this appeal makes it clear that I am bound by the law of contract and can only consider legal challenges not mistakes or extenuating circumstances. For this reason, I am satisfied that as no ticket was correctly displayed in the vehicle at the time the PCN was issued, as suggested by the Operator, that the prima facie case has been proven. I am satisfied as to the location of the contravention, that the correct vehicle has been identified parked at the time suggested in the images provided and that the correct Appellant is pursued.

It is the driver's responsibility to ensure that a ticket is purchased and that this ticket is correctly displayed in the vehicle. By allowing the vehicle to be parked without a valid ticket properly displayed, even if mitigating circumstances exist, the Appellant became liable to pay a charge. It is clear from the evidence provided that no ticket was properly available for inspection at the time that the PCN was issued. I note the Appellant may have obtained a ticket however this point is largely irrelevant, as the issue here is that the ticket was not correctly displayed.

Whilst having some sympathy with the Appellant, once liability has been established only the Operator has the discretion to vary or cancel the parking charge based on mitigating circumstances. I am satisfied that the Parking Charge Notice has been issued correctly and accordingly this appeal is dismissed."

Fruitcake

Tell your son to buy an old style tax disc holder with a front that can be unscrewed. Bolt it somewhere on the bike such that the bike can be uniquely identified, and use it for parking tickets, taking a piccy each time it is used.
In my biking days I used have a second holder next to the one with the actual tax disc bolted to the front forks for this very purpose.

Get pics of the site and signage now in case the scammers try court later. Look carefully to see if they say where the ticket should be displayed. Not many bikes have windscreens.

Do not answer the following questions on here about the ticket, but think very carefully about them. See if you can work out what I am asking.

Do you have the PPC's photos of the bike? If so does it show every possible place where the ticket could have been displayed? Was the ticket displayed on a part of the bike that was NOT photographed by the scammers? If so, you would want proof that the ticket wasn't actually on show.


Other than that, wait six years to see if real court papers arrive, and ignore anything else. If your son moves home in the next ix years, he should tell the scammers his new address for service.

He should also complain long and hard to his MP about this unregulated scam.

fisherjim

It's as you were told told this is all a scam, it's even quite possible the ppc moron removed the ticket from the bike to bag his target.


That rejection from the IAS is exactly as predicted, and if you read it you will notice it's not even specific, it's just a template:

ahp2946 wrote: »

I am satisfied that as no ticket was correctly displayed in the vehicle at the time the PCN was issued,

NE Parking Services are also known as NE Security Ltd and unusually in the parking industry actually list their real address which is a tiny shop in a terraced street in Hartlepool small fry really, they are unlikely to go all the way with this as a result.


And the photo of the paid up ticket is gold dust.


However preparation for the future is key, these muppets are not prolific on here but have been caught out scamming in Blackpool in the past, basically knowing most motorists will be visitors and easy targets.


They tend to use Debt Recovery Plus as the next stage in their threat model but as the newbies sticky on here states these should cause no sleepless nights and should be ignored.

The_Deep

If they did take this to court they might struggle. It would be very difficult to prevent a ticket being stolen from a motorbike, and the judge is very likely to decide OTBOP that it was. The PPC would have great difficulty in proving bilking here.