Gladstone Solicitors LBC

Yankeecandle123

Hi Guys,

I have received a LBC from Gladstones today. First of all, the fact the letter is dated 07/10/2019 and they have given me 30 days from that date and it is now 10 days after that i find ridiculous!

Surely they should send this first class or recorded if they are going to give such timelines?

But now i am preparing to send a letter over to them.

Bit of Background on PCN:
PCN was received (beyond appeal date too) so was unable to appeal, didn't attempt to.
Car was alleged parked in a bay under a contract. There was signs stating this, but there was ticket machines which a ticket was purchased and displayed (as shown in their shoddy pictures) but was advised it was a contractual breach. There is no clear signage to say what spaces apply to the ticket machines and what spaces apply to a contract/permit. There is all different signs over the car park and pictures of this car park has been obtained for defense. The space in which the car was parked does not have the contract signage above it.

LBCC Response:
The letter received from Gladstones, as advised is already 10 days into the 30 day period. The only option to respond is via post. Im looking to send the below template i have obtained to them:

Dear Gladstone Solicitors,

I have received your Letter Before Claim in the post on 17th October 2019 but dated 7th October 2019, which is already 10 days through the 30 day response time you have provided me to respond.
As Solicitors you will be familiar with the requirements of the Practice Direction (PD) which was applicable prior to 1st October 2017 and the Protocol which applies thereafter. As you surely know the intended purpose of the PD and Protocol is to assist parties to settle the issue between them without the need to start proceedings and to support efficient management by the court and parties of proceedings that cannot be avoided. In order for this to happen it is expected that the Letter Before Claim is compliant with the requirements of the PD pre-action conduct (paragraphs 6(a) and 6(c) and the new pre -action protocol for debt claims paragraphs 3.1(a)-(d), 5.1 and 5.2. I therefore formally request all the information and documentation that your client is required to provide. This will include the following;

1. If I am being pursued and the driver or keeper of the vehicle
2. To provide concise details of the claim which should include the basis on which the claim is made and a summary of the facts
3. A copy of the contract with the landowner where they have been granted authority to bring the claim
4. To clarify if your client is relying on schedule 4 of POFA 2012
5. Any details of the signage at the time of the alleged offence including the location and signage that has been added following this date
6. Any photographic evidence that is alleged to support this claim
7. Further details of the claim including where the vehicle was parked and how the monies being claimed has been calculated
8. Copies of any previous communication sent by your client to me, the dates in which they were sent and proof of delivery or date of delivery.
9. A detailed summary of how the amount being claimed by your client has been calculated including the sum of £60 for the time and resources they claim they have spent.

I am unable to form any defense or response to your letter until I am in receipt of the requested information. Should your client fail to produce the requested information I will apply to the courts for an immediate stay in accordance with Paragraph 15(b) of the PD until this information has been provided. As you state in your standard letter which lacks clarity, please refer to Paragraph 2.1(c) of the PAP which obliges the parties to act reasonably and proportionately.

Should this matter proceed to a court hearing I will present this letter as evidence of my formal request and any response I receive from you in direct relation to my request.
I require a formal written response within 14 days of the date on this letter. I look forward to receiving this response,

Regards


Any advise or changes to be made to the template will be much appreciated!

TIA!

RDA

Yankeecandle123 wrote: »

Hi Guys,
I have received your Letter Before Claim in the post on 17th October 2019 but dated 7th September 2019, which is already 10 days through the 30 day response time you have provided me to respond.

Should be 7th October 2019 not 7th September 2019.

Yankeecandle123

RDA wrote: »

Should be 7th October 2019 not 7th September 2019.

Noted and amended.

Coupon-mad

Don't use that ancient 2017 'LBC rebuttal' template, where on earth did you find it? I haven't linked that old thing in the NEWBIES thread for over a year.

The NEWBIES thread tells you what to do with a LBC and it's not a 'rebuttal'.

Yankeecandle123

Hi Coupon-mad,

Thank you for your reply. I have searched the Newbies thread and cant see a letter template for a response to a LBC. There's a lot of links on there but i don't know if I'm looking at the right one, I've read Post 2?

Coupon-mad

I didn't say there was a letter template to respond to a LBC! I hate those tired 'rebuttal' template responses as they are utterly pointless IMHO, which is why I no longer give the link to the 2017 waffle that you found!

I said this:

The NEWBIES thread tells you what to do with a LBC and it's not a 'rebuttal'.

Yankeecandle123

Hi Coupon-mad,

My apologies for the misreading of your comment.

I will request an SAR from the PCN on the info they have for me.

Regarding sending a letter back to the solicitors, ill add that i am requesting SAR and to hold on this - is it also worth me including in the letter that 10 days had already passed since they sent the letter or am i just wasting my breath?

Is it likely that they will continue to MCOL? If so - do you mind that if this progresses further - i add updates on here?

Many thanks.

The_Deep

Bring this to the attention of the SRA,

https://www.sra.org.uk/sra/complaints/make-a-complaint/

[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]Nine times out of ten of these tickets are scams so consider complaining to your MP, it can cause the scammer extra work.

Parliament is well aware of the MO of these private parking companies, many of whom are former clampers, 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.

[/FONT][FONT=Times New Roman, serif]http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2019/8/contents/enacted[/FONT][FONT=Times New Roman, serif]

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

Yankeecandle123

Hi Deep,

Thanks you for this, as you can tell, im all new to this!

Would i be reporting them due to the lack of postage urgency for sending this out with timelines?

Many thanks,

1505grandad

"Regarding sending a letter back to the solicitors, ill add that i am requesting SAR and to hold on this "

Include the latest forum advice that "you are seeking debt advice and must therefore put on hold"