PCN unauthorised by land management

Cw1979

Hello,

I really can't see an example of my case anywhere. If I don't pay the PCN tomorrow, Excel Parking will pursue a case against me in court.

Details-
March 2016
Private car park for block of flats (A).
Parking Company hired to look over 5 of spaces belonging to another block of flats (B) in the same car park.
Parking Company puts up sign in wrong area (area not belong to Flats B but to Flats A)
Parking Company issues PCN to car belonging to resident of Flat A next to the wrongly placed sign.
Management company of Flats A is informed in the morning (PCN issued around 10pm), they say they have not given permission to Parking Company and sign is taken down soon afterwards when Managing company inform them.
3 years later- I receive Letter of Claim at my new address. I ask for evidence. Photos are at night, but I take picture of their contacted spaces now and prove I was not in them.
Parking Company say claim still going ahead as they have evidence of the sign to the side of my car.
I explain it was it was there without permission and was taken down and remains down. No answer from Parking Company.
I get managing company of flats to email Parking Company confirming my statement and saying there was no breach of contact as there was no contract.
Over the phone, parking company says the email does not prove that the managing company is responsible for the space I was parked in, but they will forward the email to 'new business'.

Can somebody please tell where I stand on this? Should I just pay when the small claims court papers arrive? Or fight it?

Please help. Thank you in advance.

Egbert_Nobacon

Of course you fight this scam.

Why haven’t the Management cancelled this ?

Don’t ever telephone these vultures.

Read the NEWBIES thread, one click back third thread down.

Cw1979

Quote from managing company email:
I do recall the sign being put up there and dealing with the agent of the property who had instructed this company in having it removed.

Also from the email:
I have no problem contacting the company but like any parking control company they do not always respond and when they do will not deal with ourselves

Quote
I would like to see them take you to court as we can prove the sign had been put there illegally.

Coupon-mad

If I don't pay the PCN tomorrow, Excel Parking will pursue a case against me in court.

Good, bring it on! Counter claim for £500 for data misuse.

But if you would rather try to avoid court, reply to Excel, tell them you are seeking debt advice and that you have reported them to the KADOE Services & Support team at the DVLA for illegally getting your data in an area of the car park belonging to a different block of flats, and show them the MA's email!

Complaining to the DVLA:
''If you think your details have been misused or obtained fraudulently, write to the Data Sharing Strategy and Compliance Team, DVLA, Swansea, SA99 1DY or email KADOEServices.support@dvla.gov.uk
You need to tell us the vehicle registration number and explain how the information has been misused. We will investigate all allegations of information being requested unlawfully.''

fisherjim

Cw1979 wrote: »

Hello,
Over the phone, parking company says the email does not prove that the managing company is responsible for the space I was parked in, but they will forward the email to 'new business'.

But also the pathetic PPC will have no evidence that they were authorised to issue charges in that space as they clearly weren't.


Remember that Excel are just money junkies that will not have performed much in the way of checks over the area they were responsible for, once a chance to scam is highlighted they go at it like a bull in a china shop.


Their sign installer will have been given an address and just merrily banged the things up anywhere.


If they proceed with a court claim their amateur lawyers will issue the claim without reading the evidence.


Some bod will turn up on the day and won't even have looked at what they are doing until an hour before.


They hope you will just fold and pay up due to their intimidation I can't see how a judge could side with the scammers over this one.

But why hasn't the person that engaged these muppets been held to account over this as they are the ones that surely should have called off their Rottweilers and given them a severe rebuke!

The_Deep

If your car was properly parked then it looks like a slam dunk win for you in court, perhaps even a win with a counter claim for trespass, data misuse, or harassment.

Why not encourage them to do so. You might even be able to nail them punitive costs for unreasonable behaviour.

[FONT=Times New Roman, serif][FONT=Times New Roman, serif]Nine times out of ten these tickets are scams, so consider complaining to your MP after the election, as it can cause the scammer extra costs and work, and has been known to get the charge cancelled.

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][/FONT]

Cw1979

I can't thank you all enough for your replies. I almost folded before I read them - nobody wants unnecessary stress in their lives, do they? I will follow advice about the Data Protection Act email and then look into the other avenues if that doesn't get me anywhere. If I get to that point I may need people to check my responses before sending, if that is ok?
Thank you again.

Fruitcake

Post any draft communication here for checking before sending by all means.

Do report this to the DVLA as a serious KADOE breach. Amongst other things, the scammers are required to inform the DVLA as soon as they know a data breach has occurred, so ask if this happened three years ago.

Read post 43 of this thread where another scammer made a DPA breach. Quote the parts of the KADOE contract that apply in your case. Section D10 certainly applies because they did not have landowner permission to obtain your personal data from the DVLA, which then brings Sections J2 and J3 into play. Section D5 may also apply because they did not respect the confidentiality of your data.

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.php?t=6069964&page=3

Report it also to the ICO for a DPA/GDPR breach, and to trading standards for operating a for profit business where they did not have landowner permission.
Complain to the council planning department that the scammers did not have advertising consent for the sign at the material time, and remind them that this is a criminal offence as it is a breach of the Town and Country Planning Act.

The more complaints you make, the more likely it is that this will get dropped. Not only will you be helping yourself, you will be helping us and other victims of these scammers.

The_Deep

It looks as though you might be on to a nice little earner here.

Cw1979

Should I send an email setting out my intention to do all of the above?

Fruitcake

They knew about this three years ago. It is your decision but personally I would make the complaints then tell the scammers what you have done rather than warn them beforehand.

If you want to warn them then do it in the form of a LBC.