Help Please - Court Claim [Parking Eye] (Limited Time to Defend)

PS_ParkingHelpNeeded

Hi
Having read multiple pages and pages and links going to one thread and to another.  I'm feeling rather confused and overwhelmed by all the information. 
Note: I have read the Newbies Thread. - Help and guidance gratefully requested as I have limited time to enter a defense 

Issue: Claim Form (County Court) Received
Claimant: ParkingEye Ltd
Issue Date: 16 MAR 2020
Amount Claimed: £100.00 
Court Fee: £25.00
Legal Representatives Costs: £50.00
Total Amount: £175.00

AoS has been submitted on Time.

Particulars Of Claim: Claim for monies outstanding from the Defendant in relation to a Parking Charge (reference xxxxxx/xxxxxx) issued on 22/09/2018. The signage clearly displayed throughout "Hotel Car Park Location and address named" states that this is private land, managed by ParkingEye Ltd, and that it is subject to terms and conditions, including the payment of parking tariffs, by which those who park agree to be bound (the contract). ParkingEye's ANPR system captured vehicle XX##XXX (reg number) entering and leaving the site on 16/09/2018, and parking without a valid paid parking ticket. Pursuant to Sch 4 of the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012, notice has been given to the registered keeper, making them liable for the Parking Charge payable upon breach.

Need help structuring a Defense.
I was not the Driver at the time (I was at home), actual driver was a family friend who resides abroad and they visited the said location in my Car. They claim to have purchased a ticket.  No ticket was issued on the windscreen. No letters of any kind or any form of correspondance (Notice to Keeper/Notice to Driver/Letter Before Claim) whatsoever were received in the post from ParkingEye until this Court Claim Form (over 18 months after the incident). 

Can the experts in this Forum please guide me to a suitable strong defense.

Many thanks in advance
HPS

Coupon-mad

Yep, just copy one of the two ParkingEye defence examples in the NEWBIES thread, adapt to suit your facts, then show us and we will have something to work with.  Maybe it's like the Odeon example with a hidden keypad inside the hotel that the driver didn't know about?  Maybe it's not pay & display at all, do you know for sure?

Are you sure your car is registered on the V5C 'logbook' to your CURRENT address and was it registered there on the day of the parking event, or to an old address?  The lack of letters/NTK is usually down to the keeper failing to update their V5C quickly when they move house - did that happen?  It is NOT just about updating your driving licence address with the DVLA...

Add in these facts to one of the 2 examples and show us how it looks:

The Defendant was not the Driver at the time and the actual driver was a family friend who resides abroad and were insured to use my car whilst visiting the UK.  They claim to have been permitted to park and complied with all information at the Hotel so the Claimant is put to strict proof as to the alleged contravention and evidence.  No letters of any kind or any form of correspondence (Notice to Keeper/Notice to Driver/Letter Before Claim) whatsoever were received in the post from ParkingEye until this Court Claim Form - over 18 months after the incident - so the Defendant is at a loss to comment in detail about the parking event until the Claimant explains their cause of action. 

KeithP

PS_ParkingHelpNeeded said:

Help and guidance gratefully requested as I have limited time to enter a defense 

Everyone has a limited time to prepare a Defence. (please note the spelling of that D word)

PS_ParkingHelpNeeded said:

Issue: Claim Form (County Court) Received
Issue Date: 16 MAR 2020
AoS has been submitted on Time.

I am going to assume that that last sentence means that you filed an AoS sometime between 21st March and 6th April. Please confirm.

With a Claim Issue Date of 16th March, and having filed an Acknowledgment of Service in a timely manner, you have until 4pm on Monday 20th April 2020 to file your Defence.

As you say... "a limited time".

Guidance on creating a Defence is can be found in the second post of the NEWBIES thread. There are well over a dozen example Defences linked from that NEWBIES post. I see that you already read that thread, but forgive me for mentioning it again.

To file a Defence, follow the guidance in this post:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/76880595#Comment_76880595

Don't miss the deadline for filing a Defence.

Coupon-mad

To file a Defence, follow the guidance in this post:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/76880595#Comment_76880595

...except don't use that template defence - at all - because (as the NEWBIES thread says) Parking Eye cases are different and I give different defence examples there, for P/Eye cases.

D_P_Dance

Parking Eyes sings are pants, it is more than possible that a judge would find that they are able to form a contract, read this.

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/5972164/parking-eye-signs-oxford-road-reading

Also, IIMU that they have an in house qualified legal team,  If that is the case their claim ffor legal  osts should be questioned.

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, when life gets back to normal, it will become impossible for those scammers who are left to continue their vile trade, 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.

PS_ParkingHelpNeeded

Hi, Many thanks for your comments above,

Are you sure your car is registered on the V5C 'logbook' to your CURRENT address and was it registered there on the day of the parking event, or to an old address?  The lack of letters/NTK is usually down to the keeper failing to update their V5C quickly when they move house - did that happen?  It is NOT just about updating your driving licence address with the DVLA.

Hi Coupon-mad,
The car has been at the current address for the last 5 years, there is no Logbook/DVLA issue here.  After reading about the process it's very peculiar to not have received any of the communications they supposedly should have sent before the Court Claim Form.

I am going to assume that that last sentence means that you filed an AoS sometime between 21st March and 6th April. Please confirm.

Hi KeithP,
I can confirm that the AoS was filed between these dates.
Question: How is the date of Monday 20th April 2020 (4pm) arrived at. I'm guessing it's not as simple as adding 5 days to the Claim Issue Date (Dated 16th March 2020), then adding 14 days for AoS, then another 14 days for Defence. Which i made it to be Saturday 18th April 2020.

Hi D_P_Dance,
I will certainly raise this, as this behaviour is draconian and should not be tolerated or encouraged.

All,
I will post a sample of my defence tomorrow morning, and would welcome your feedback in defending this Claim.


Many thanks in advance,
I sincerely appreciate the time and effort you all put in to help us fight these unjust claims.
HPS

KeithP

Hi KeithP,
I can confirm that the AoS was filed between these dates.
Question: How is the date of Monday 20th April 2020 (4pm) arrived at. I'm guessing it's not as simple as adding 5 days to the Claim Issue Date (Dated 16th March 2020), then adding 14 days for AoS, then another 14 days for Defence. Which i made it to be Saturday 18th April 2020.

That's right as far as it goes.
But if the calculated due date falls on a non-working day, as it does in your case, one is allowed until 4pm on the next working day.

This is confirmed in the Money Claim Online (MCOL) - User Guide.
On page 14 of that document it says:

How long does the defendant have to respond to my claim?

The court will send out a claim pack to each defendant once the claim has been issued and allows 5 calendar days from the date of issue for the service of the claim. Therefore the 'date of service' is the 5th calendar day after issue.

The defendant has 14 calendar days from the 'date of service' to file a response. If the last day for filing the response falls on a day that the court is not open (i.e. a weekend or public holiday), the court will allow the next full working day for a response. The defendant can extend the time to respond to 28 calendar days by filing an acknowledgment of service (AOS).

nosferatu1001

Did you get out your v5c and check, or assume?

PS_ParkingHelpNeeded

nosferatu1001 said:

Did you get out your v5c and check, or assume?

Hi nosferatu1001,
For accuracy, I did physically check my V5C - The address is correct. I have lived at same address for 12 years and owned the car in question for 5 years.  All corrspondances from DVLA regarding Road Tax renewal have always arrived directly each year with no delays.

PS_ParkingHelpNeeded

Coupon-mad said:

To file a Defence, follow the guidance in this post:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/76880595#Comment_76880595

...except don't use that template defence - at all - because (as the NEWBIES thread says) Parking Eye cases are different and I give different defence examples there, for P/Eye cases.

Hi Coupon-mad,
I am using the template defense in below link to formulate my personal defence.

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/74850073#Comment_74850073

My Question: May sound like a silly question (not coming with vast legal knowledge) . . . where I see the words [Strike]with words in between follwoed by[/STRIKE] in above template link . . .
Is this to mean the words in between [Strike] & [/STRIKE] are NOT to be included in the final wording of the defence?

KeithP

PS_ParkingHelpNeeded said:

My Question: May sound like a silly question (not coming with vast legal knowledge) . . . where I see the words [Strike]with words in between follwoed by[/STRIKE] in above template link . . .
Is this to mean the words in between [Strike] & [/STRIKE] are NOT to be included in the final wording of the defence?

That's old forum software formatting instructions.

Read it as: 
...where I see the words with words in between follwoed by in above template link...