County Court claim - overstay - not informed permit was revoked.

Iloilo

Received a claim form today relating to a PCN issued in November 2015.
BW Legal and Premier Park are the two genius movers behind this.


I have filled out most of Acknowledgement form on MCOL and was about to fill in the defence section when I saw some advice about filing this by post to avoid the MCOL text box mucking up format and readability. Is this still valid advice to send defence details by post to Northampton?


A brief outline of the matter in hand.


I was issued a PCN in November 2015 for an alleged overstay of 31 mins over a maximum of 3 hours free parking.
I am not disputing the presence of my vehicle in the car park or the length of stay.
However, as a trader at the local Farmers market I had been given permission to park on market days, which gave exemption from any overstay penalty. The permission was obtained by phoning the town council and getting your vehicle number added to a list. No physical permit was issued.
The evidence I have for this permit is contained within the documents I received by Subject access request from Premier Park Ltd.
Their records show that the permit was issued in June 2015 then revoked in August 2015 - comment on form is "status changed" but no other details or reason. Nor is there any record of me being notified of revocation of permit.


Having received a PCN within a week of the incident, and a final reminder some weeks later - both ignored - I didn't hear anything else until BW Legal started their nonsense a couple of months ago.


It seems to me that I have a reasonable defence in that I parked with an honest belief that I had a valid exemption permit. I am fully prepared and confident of presenting my case in person in court.



I would welcome any advice in how to frame this defence and any current steers through the system.

Coupon-mad

was about to fill in the defence section when I saw some advice about filing this by post to avoid the MCOL text box mucking up format and readability. Is this still valid advice to send defence details by post to Northampton?

Yes and no, not by post. By email like EVERY other defence thread you read!

What is the issue date of the N1 claim?

Iloilo

Email not post - thanks.


The N1 is dated 17th July 2019

Fruitcake

As far as I know, when you do the AoS stating that you will defend the claim, you put absolutely nothing in the defence box, not even a full stop.

The guide to court written by bargepole that you will find in post 2 of the NEWBIES will take you through the whole process, telling you what to do and when.

KeithP

Iloilo wrote: »

The N1 is dated 17th July 2019

With a Claim Issue Date of 17th July, you have until Monday 5th August to do the Acknowledgement of Service, but there is nothing to be gained by delaying it. To do the AoS, follow the guidance offered in a Dropbox file linked from post #2 of the NEWBIES FAQ sticky thread. About ten minutes work - no thinking required.

Having done the AoS, you have until 4pm on Monday 19th August 2019 to file your Defence.

That's over a month away. Loads of time to produce a perfect Defence, but please don't leave it to the last minute.


When you are happy with the content, your Defence should be filed via email as suggested here:

Print your Defence.
1. Sign it and date it.
   
2. Scan the signed document back in and save it as a pdf.
   
3. Send that pdf as an email attachment to CCBCAQ@Justice.gov.uk
   
4. Just put the claim number and the word Defence in the email title, and in the body of the email something like 'Please find my Defence attached'.
   
5. Log into MCOL after a few days to see if the Claim is marked "defence received". If not chase the CCBC until it is.
   
6. Do not be surprised to receive an early copy of the Claimant's Directions Questionnaire, they are just trying to keep you under pressure.
   
7. Wait for your DQ from the CCBC, or download one from the internet, and then re-read post #2 of the NEWBIES FAQ sticky thread to find out exactly what to do with it.

Iloilo

Thank you all for your kind help.
I will follow the guidance given and come back if I need more advice.
My defence will be pretty much as outlined above, ie they did not inform me of revocation of permission to park.
It does not feel necessary to raise other points of law or any issues around abuse of protocols by BW Legal, but I am happy to be convinced otherwise if it can help build on the campaign against these shysters.

The_Deep

Nine times out of ten these tickets are scams so complain to your MP.

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.

beamerguy

Iloilo wrote: »

Thank you all for your kind help.
I will follow the guidance given and come back if I need more advice.
My defence will be pretty much as outlined above, ie they did not inform me of revocation of permission to park.
It does not feel necessary to raise other points of law or any issues around abuse of protocols by BW Legal, but I am happy to be convinced otherwise if it can help build on the campaign against these shysters.

You simply cannot rely on how a judge sees this

The more powder in your gun the better your chances

Include ABUSE OF PROCESS

Iloilo

Hi
I have written out a defence ready to print, sign, scan and email to MCOL.
I am not sure how to work in an "Abuse of Process" or how to word it.
Any help or suggestions will be gratefully received.









1.The defendant acknowledges ownership of the vehicle reg no xxxxxxxx and does not dispute the vehicle was in xxxxxx Car Park, Cxxxxxxxxx at the times stated.

The defendant was attending the nearby monthly Cxxxxxxxxx Farmers Market as a trader.

2. The defendant had been issued a permit to park on 11/06/2015, as evidenced in the documents supplied by Premier Park Ltd.

3. The same document also shows that this permit was revoked on 14/08/2015, but gives no reason for revocation.

4. The documentation supplied to the defendant by Premier Park Ltd under a Subject Access Request does not show any correspondence with the defendant informing them of the revocation of the permit.

5. The defendant had applied to Cxxxxxxxxx Town Council for permission to park in xxxxxxxx Car Park on market days. The application consisted of a simple phone call to the town council offices and having ones vehicle registration number added to a list.

6. The defendant is informed by Cxxxxxxxx Town Council (Owners of xxxxxxxxx Car Park) that they hold no information regarding issuing/revocation of permits for the period in question, and that any such records are held by Premier Park Ltd. Cxxxxxxxx Town Council have no interest in pursuing a claim against the defendant.


7. The defendant had not received any notification that the permit to park had been revoked.

8. The defendant parked his car in xxxxxxxx Car Park in the honest belief that he had valid permission to park for the duration of the market (09.30 – 12.30) and that any penalty for overstaying the three hour limit did not apply to his vehicle.

There was no signage visible at the car park to indicate that this was not the case.

9. On receipt of a postal PCN in November 2015 the defendant telephoned Cxxxxxxxxx Town Council and had been assured that the matter would be dealt with and did not need to respond to the PCN. On receipt of the “First Reminder” in December 2015 the defendant again telephoned Cxxxxxxxxx Town Council and received the same assurance.
No further correspondence was received regarding the matter. The defendant assumed that this was the end of the matter, as they received no further reminders or any correspondence from Premier Park Ltd.

9. Premier Park Ltd did not pursue the matter beyond a “First Reminder” sent 18/12/2015. It appears that a “First Reminder” can also be the last.

beamerguy

I am not sure how to work in an "Abuse of Process" or how to word it.
Any help or suggestions will be gratefully received.

The complete text for abuse of process written by coupon-mad is avalable for you to copy.

The only change you make is where it says IT IS ORDERED THAT .....

Add before ....... the courts have said IT IS ORDERED THAT

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6014081

POST# 14

Iloilo

I have added the following:




10. The defendant requests that this claim is struck out as ABUSE OF PROCESS.

11. Premier Park Ltd have added a sum of £60 to their original claim which they have listed on the Claim Form as “ contractual costs pursuant to PCN terms and conditions.” The PCN contains no reference to any terms and conditions.

12 The defendant contends that Premier Park Ltd and their representatives BW legal have not incurred any additional costs and are attempting to artificially inflate the value of the claim in an attempt to circumvent the Small Claims costs rules using double recovery. This amounts to “Abuse of Process”

13. In a recent case at Southampton Court, claim number F0DP201T, 10th June 2019 District Judge Taylor dismissed a similar case from BW Legal as an abuse of process.