WON - Small Claims court case

MrMercury

Posted this on wrong thread when researching..trying to delete from that .
Witness statement below.. I probably need to change 'I' to 'the defendant' throughout, but grateful for comments on the content.

IN THE COUNTY COURT AT (name of your local court)
Claim No.: [INSERT claim number]

Between

xxxxxx (Claimant)

-and-


[YOUR NAME] (Defendant)


_____________________

WITNESS STATEMENT
_____________________


I assert that I am not liable to the Claimant for the sum claimed, or any amount at all, for the following reasons:

1. The Claim relates to an alleged debt arising from the vehicle having been parked at xxxx on xxxxxx . xxxx are arguing I was bound by unknown terms creating a contractual charge, yet this £100 was not a term known or agreed at the point of making the contract (neither when parking, nor when inside the xxxx)

2.1 As a regular visitor to the xxx the defendant did park in this car park 3 weeks previously with no problem. As evidence I submit copies of bank statements showing the regular transactions 3+ a month in the previous months although I also pay cash too, exhibit 1.
2.2. No street lighting covers the car park or the signage at the entrance and no additional lighting has been installed to aid drivers in seeing theses signs. It is therefore again denied that the Claimant’s signage is capable of creating any legally binding contract whatsoever. The IPC Code of Practice states “If parking enforcement takes place outside of daylight hours the operator should ensure that signs are illuminated or there is sufficient other lighting”. This is therefore in breach of the IPC Code of Practice.
2.3 On the date of parking, it was a dark night with limited lighting in the car park. As evidence I submit photos of the ANPR pictures Exhibit 2. Being a very small and dark car park I was watching pedestrians as I parked my car and did not notice the new signage from my car.
2.4 After parking the car I was watching the other cars as I made my way across the small dark car park with my 7 year old child and again didn’t see the recently installed signage as we kept to the edge to avoid the cars.
2.5 No-one in xxx made me aware of the recent change to parking and the need to complete an electronic registration or of a parking charge risk.
2.6 xxxx Trade Body of Conduct states that a grace period should be considered to allow regular visitors to the site to familiarise themselves with the changes. As evidence I submit a copy of the relevant section from their code of conduct, exhibit 3
2.7. Upon receiving the PCN, I immediately visited xxx and was asked by the manager to send across the PCN and VRN and he would cancel. As evidence, I submit a letter from the manager stating that I am a regular customer, that I was a paying customer on the date in question and that he instructed xxx to cancel the PCN, exhibit 4.
2.8 On my next to visit to xxx 2 weeks later, the manager verbally confirmed he asked xxx to cancel the PCN. I asked where the keypad was to input my details, which was then lifted off the floor behind the counter so I could input my VRN. As evidence, I submit a copy of my bank statement showing the transaction on xxxx, exhibit 5.
2.9 I notified xxx that I was a genuine patron of xxxx with a bank statement showing the transaction and that the manager has confirmed back to them that he has cancelled, and that they should check with him/her.
2.10 On my next visit to xxx on xxxx I again asked for the keypad only to be told by the manager that he has switched it off as xxx are harassing his customers and driving them away.
2.11 As further evidence that I was a genuine patron I attach a copy of my bank statement, exhibit 6.
2.12 The Claimant is put to strict proof that it has sufficient proprietary interest in the land, or that it has the necessary authorisation from the landowner to issue parking charge notices, and to pursue payment by means of litigation.
2.13 The signage makes no mention of the Claimant’s authority to manage the alleged car park, to issue tickets or to pursue charges to court in their own name
3. It is trite law that a contractual term cannot be relied upon that is only communicated after conclusion of a contract, as that is too late to be incorporated into the prior agreed terms.
4.1 Denning LJ in Thornton v Shoe Lane Parking [1971] held that the courts should not hold any man bound by such a condition unless it was ''drawn to his attention in the most explicit way'' and that the contract takes place when the payment is made.
4.2 In this case, the xxxx staff member should have made it very clear that the VRN must be input as there was an obligation with a penalty risk hanging over me if I did not.
5 The amount claimed by the Claimant is an unconscionable amount and an abuse of process. The Protection of Freedoms Act 2012, Schedule 4, at Section 4(5) states that the maximum sum that may be recovered from the keeper is the charge stated on the Notice to Keeper, in this case £100. The claim includes an additional £82 plus interest, for which no calculation or explanation is given other than it being “contractual costs” and which appears to be an attempt at double recovery. The amount is also in breach of the Consumer Rights Act 2015, schedule 2 “terms that may be unfair”.
6 In a very recent case District Judge Taylor dismissed a case from the Claimant that included a false amount of £60 due to abuse of process.
(Claim number is F0DP201T District Judge Taylor, Southampton Court, 10th June 2019)
7. Additionally, District Judge Grand has recently concluded that an additional sum such as the Claimant is seeking to recover is knowingly inflated and and the Claimant is not entitled to recover it (F0DP163T, Southampton Court, 11th July 2019)
8. In summary, the Claimant's particulars disclose no legal basis for the sum claimed and it is the Defendant’s position that the poorly pleaded claim discloses no cause of action and no liability in law for any sum at all. The Claimant's vexatious conduct from the outset has been intimidating, misleading and indeed mendacious in terms of the added costs alleged. Accordingly, the Court is invited to strike out the claim of its own initiative, using its case management powers pursuant to CPR 3.4.
9. There are several options available within the Courts' case management powers to prevent vexatious litigants pursuing a wide range of individuals for matters which are near-identical, with meritless claims and artificially inflated costs. The Defendant is of the view that private parking firms operate as vexatious litigants and that relief from sanctions should be refused.
10. The Court is invited to make an Order of its own initiative, dismissing this claim in its entirety and to allow such Defendant’s costs as are permissible under Civil Procedure Rule 27.14 on the indemnity basis, taking judicial note of the wholly unreasonable conduct of this Claimant, not least due to the abuse of process in attempting to claim fanciful costs which they are not entitled to recover.

I believe the facts stated in this Witness Statement are true.



Signature of Defendant:

Date:

Redx

a witness statement uses I , not the defendant, its the defence that mentions the defendant

1505grandad

Your Defence in post #5 stated:-

"7. Even if the Claimant is able to produce such a landowner contract, it is averred that there can be no legitimate interest arguable by the Claimant in this case. When - all too often at this location - (ParkingEye) unfairly harvest the data of a registered keeper to charge a genuine patron, any commercial justification in the form of landowner support for such unfair ticketing is de facto absent."

note (ParkingEye)

was the Defence filed with this paragraph included?

In post #15 you state:-

"Hi, parking company is CE.. court date is set for 8+ weeks.. owner of the land is writing a letter saying I had permission to park and that he instructed them to cancel the PCN."


BOTH PPC's ARE BPA AoS MEMBERS

yet your WS statement in several paras state IPC Code of Practice

Coupon-mad

You need the BPA CoP about new signs/new restrictions.

And you need the ending to be replaced by the current words in post #14 of the Abuse of Process thread by beamerguy, with the 3 exhibits that relate to that argument. Or put the post #14 words in on a separate sheet as a supplementary WS and keep your main WS about what happened.

As I said already (in post #14 above, in this thread) you need to cover this well. Highlight the CRA 2015 Schedule 2 paras 6, 10, 14 and 18, same as this one:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/76657457#Comment_76657457

Finally, make your para numbers in your WS much more simple, just 1, 2, 3, etc.

MrMercury

Hi, I have a potential point to put in my defence but don’t want to put it in here..could I message someone please and ask their opinion.

KeithP

MrMercury wrote: »

Hi, I have a potential point to put in my defence but don’t want to put it in here..could I message someone please and ask their opinion.

Now that you have asked, be wary of someone PMing you offering help.

The parking companies, and other mischievous souls, are known to frequent this forum. If you are offered faulty guidance in the open forum, you can be sure that it will be corrected quickly by others.
If you are offered faulty guidance via PM, then clearly that cannot happen.

Take care.

waamo

MrMercury wrote: »

Hi, I have a potential point to put in my defence but don’t want to put it in here..could I message someone please and ask their opinion.

Points are best posted in public. Many eyes are better than one. The parking company get to see your defence in plenty of time so I see no need to be secretive about it.

Coupon-mad

Show it here.

ashley_cohen

Coupon-mad wrote: »

Show it here.

WSS - there are plenty here who are not what, or who, they seem, but wisdom of crowds has always worked well here.

MrMercury

There are only a small number of cars registered to park on the day in question, Most just before or after the place opens and then nothing. Which would suggest that every customer was caught as its a very busy place. Can I make use of this?
How many copies of the claimants WS should I receive, a copy and original or just a copy?