Euro Car Parks - Parking charge Notice (newbie in need)

1993_Kar

Hi - Newbie here, new to driving, the forum and PCN. Their is a Driver of a vehicle who got a fine from Euro Car Parks for their Goodmayes Retail Park - Essex. Their free period is 3 hours and the driver of the vehicle has been at their retail park at least 5/6 maybe even more times over the free period. The driver was at Costa Coffee which is located in the retail park. Anyways, the driver has been hit with a £60 fine, without reading this thread the driver appealed on the Euro Car Parks website but they've rejected this and the drivers fine still stands. the driver is worried they are going to get another 6/7 fines which they cannot afford to pay! the driver vehicle is a work car, leased. Any advice on what the driver can do please, as they are very worried they are going to get a £400+ fine coming their way. 

Fruitcake

It is not a fine. In future, use the edna basher appeal template for hire/lease cars from post 1 of the NEWBIES. 

Do not reveal the driver's identity, not even on here. You should edit your post now in case you get future PCNs from the same place, although it is too late to do anything about your current PCN. 

If the rejection of your initial appeal came with a PoPLA code, then use it. Read the third post in the NEWBIES thread and include all relevant points available to you from there. 

What happened when you complained to the landowner/retail manager?

Have you complained to your MP yet about this unregulated scam?

D_P_Dance

t is not a fine, it is an invoice from an ex-clamper to compensate them for the alleged harm they suffered when you did what you did. We call it a scam. Pay them not a penny unless a judge so orders it.

Nine times out of ten these tickets are scams, so consider complaining to your MP, 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.

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.

Fruitcake

The tech squad are currently fiddling with the site which is affecting post formatting.

1993_Kar

Fruitcake said:

It is not a fine. In future, use the edna basher appeal template for hire/lease cars from post 1 of the NEWBIES. 

Do not reveal the driver's identity, not even on here. You should edit your post now in case you get future PCNs from the same place, although it is too late to do anything about your current PCN. 

If the rejection of your initial appeal came with a PoPLA code, then use it. Read the third post in the NEWBIES thread and include all relevant points available to you from there. 

What happened when you complained to the landowner/retail manager?

Have you complained to your MP yet about this unregulated scam?

Thanks for the reply Fruitcake! i got an email back from EuroCarParks stating the vehicle was over the 180 minute limit and i'm liable to check the parking tariffs. 

Yes my appeal did come with a PoPLA code, do you think appealing to PoPLA will have any affect? Haven't complained to my MP no, but I am worried that these parking invoices will keep coming through my door for the next month!  

Fruitcake

If you don't appeal then the scammers have six years to issue a court claim.
If you win at PoPLA then the PCN will be cancelled. What other effect do you want?
Post your draft appeal here for checking before submitting it.
A PoPLA appeal would normally include, where relevant: -

Not the Landowner
No standing (no valid contract) to issue charges.
Inadequate signage
BPA CoP failures (Make sure you use the CoP that was in use at the time as it changed in January)
Grace Periods.    (As above)

For any further PCNs, you would include PoFA failures because this is a hire lease vehicle and you won't make the mistake of revealing the driver's identity.

Appeal any upcoming invoices using one of the edna basher templates. Most PPCs seem incapable of getting this right and nearly always fail to comply with the strict requirements of the PoFA 2012. This makes for an easy win at PoPLA if done properly.

Always, always complain to the landowner/retail manager/CEO.

Always, always complain to your MP. It is estimated that 9 million PCNs were issued by parking scammers last year. Imagine the effect this would have if every one of those 9 million motorists complained to their MP. I imagine Brexit would still be on hold if that had happened.

You still haven't edited your initial post. Only ever refer to The Driver and The Keeper, who are two different people in law.

Coupon-mad

I am worried that these parking invoices will keep coming through my door for the next month!  

Who cares, it's only ECP as per all the other threads about them.

the driver vehicle is a work car, leased. Any advice on what the driver can do please, as they are very worried they are going to get a £400+ fine coming their way. 

This is important.  YOU MUST appeal every one, after the lase company names you as the lessee for each and every one.  Don't miss ANY appeals as they might write t the lease firm again (who will probably pay...then charge you) if you fail to hook a PCN in your direction to cheerfully ignore, if you lose at POPLA.

D_P_Dance

, but I am worried that these parking invoices will keep coming through my door for the next month!  

That is highly likely, but why should it worry you, it is al smoke and mirrors.   Only what a judge says in court matters, and more and more judges are seeing theses PPC claims for BOC for what they are, scams. 

1993_Kar

Hi all, thanks again for all your responses. In regards to the first invoice from euro car parks, the driver has not yet taken the case to POPLA but will do imminently for appeals. The driver has received their second fine today from ECP for an entry time of 13:56 and an exit time of 18:40, before making an appeal on the ECP car park, the driver was using the facilities in the retail park, (Costa) and has receipts to prove this. The notice includes the license plate with no time stamp on the actual screen shot of the licence plate, the entry and exit time and date are located beneath the photo, types in via computer. 

Would this be a sufficient appeal?

Dear Sir,
Parking Charge Notice [0123456789]: Vehicle Registration [AA11ABC]
I refer to the above-detailed Parking Charge Notice (“PCN”) issued to me by Euro Car Park Ltd as a Notice to Hirer. I confirm that as the hirer of this vehicle, I am its keeper for the purpose of the corresponding definition under Schedule 4 of the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 (“POFA”) and I write to formally challenge the validity of this PCN.

Your signs fail the test of 'large lettering' and prominence and the terms are not readable to drivers. 

Further, I understand you do not own the car park and you have given me no information about your policy with the landowner or on site businesses, to cancel such a charge. So please supply that policy as required under the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013.

There will be no admissions as to who was driving and no assumptions can be drawn. You must either offer me a POPLA code or cancel the charge.

Thank you for your cooperation and I look forward to receiving your response within the relevant timescales specified under the British Parking Association Ltd Code of Practice.

Yours faithfully,
Hirer 

I was also going to add photos of the entrance to the car park, it's on a roundabout and at the roundabout on entrance there is no sign of parking tariff, there are boards of what the tariffs are however they are split to the far end corners of each side of the car park, no accessible unless you walk a few minutes to each side. 

1993_Kar

Thanks again Fruitcake, Coupon-mad & all other contributors, i'm unsure what the hirers argument should be when writing to POPLA, the hirer has seen the Edna Basher templates, IE the one above, should that be sufficient for the POPLA appel as well?

Coupon-mad

Search the forum for POPLA hirer POFA or Google it along with this string:  site:forums.moneysavingexpert.com