GSX PCN Quayside House Car Park Shoreham Port

Twist_D

The Driver in a "loan" car from a body shop (no hire agreement was entered into) was driving along Wharf Road looking for a parking space, all the 8am-6pm spaces were full to continued on looking for a space not realising they had entered private land, came to Quayside House car park and thinking that it was subject to the same parking restrictions as Wharf Road parked in a space there shortly before 6pm and walked onto the beach without seeing any parking signs only to come back about 20mins later to find PCN stuck on windscreen
Issue Date: 15/07/20
Issue time: 18:11
Reason for issue: Parked without purchasing a valid cashless session
Any help/advice on how to proceed would be most welcome 

Umkomaas

The NEWBIES FAQ sticky, first post, tells you the process to follow. Plan A - try to get the landowner to cancel it. Plan B - initial appeal to the PPC using the template from the sticky. No appeal succeeds. Then it's sit it out to see what if anything they do next. Only a Judge can tell you to pay this, until then, you owe them nothing. Beyond Plan A, there is no easy fix. 

Twist_D

Thanks for the info, Assuming the landowner is the port I have tried phoning the port and spoke to a nice lady who said she was unable to help and directed me to GXS website 

I have found an email address for Harbour Master/Director of Marine Operations: 

Do you think it is worth emailing him?

Umkomaas

Try anyone you think might have some influence. 

In preparation for any escalation further down the line, check whether the car park has any byelaws applying to it, if it's owned by the harbour, it may well have. Even if it's just in the vicinity of the harbour, check for byelaws coverage. Then check the byelaws to see what they state. 

Vehicle keepers cannot be held liable on land covered by byelaws under the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 (Schedule 4), but their applicability to the car park needs researching. Even if they do apply to the car park, it still won't stop the PPC continuing to try to pursue you, you just have to make it difficult for them.  There's no early silver bullet, but byelaws will help ultimately, as long as there is no admission as to who the driver was and/or who the vehicle owner is (the DVLA do not know who the owner is, they only know who the registered keeper is).  So you do not provide information on either the driver or owner to anyone. You are only dealing with this as the vehicle's keeper. 

Umkomaas

Coupon-mad said:

Umkomaas has been very kind.  You didn't need any of the above info repeating here.  It's already in the NEWBIES thread.

It was either keep my head down to explain in some detail, or be sent outside to mow the lawns! 😆

D_P_Dance

Nine times out of ten these tickets are scams, so consider complaining to your MP., it can cause the scammer extra costs, and in some cases, cancellation. 

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 later this year,

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

Twist_D

I have exhausted PLAN A
so was going to send this... 
I dispute your 'parking charge', as the keeper of the vehicle. I deny any liability or contractual agreement and I will be making a complaint about your predatory conduct to your client landowner.

The driver of the vehicle was looking for a parking space along Wharf Road as an occupant of the vehicle was suffering from a panic attack and needed to get out of the vehicle for some fresh air. 

From a driving position the Wharf Road "Mon - Sat 8 am - 6 pm 4 hours no return within 1 hour" Parking signs are clearly visible and readable. If there were clear signs such as these in Quayside House car park the driver would have seen them and acted accordingly  

There will be no admissions as to who was driving and no assumptions can be drawn. Since your PCN is a vague template, I require an explanation of the allegation and your evidence. You must include a close up actual photograph of the sign you contend was at the location on the material date as well as your images of the vehicle.

If the allegation concerns a PDT machine, the data supplied in response to this appeal must include the record of payments made - showing partial VRNs - and an explanation of the reason for the PCN, because your Notice does not explain it.

If the allegation involves an alleged overstay of minutes, your evidence must include the actual grace period agreed by the landowner.

Twist_D

Here is the slightly rushed appeal I sent in before day 21 as I was still pursuing Plan/Route A...

Dear Ms Unknown

We have received your appeal for Parking Charge Notice ______ relating to vehicle registration mark ______.

Your appeal:

Dear GXS I dispute your 'parking charge', as the keeper of the vehicle. I deny any liability or contractual agreement and I will be making a complaint about your predatory conduct to your client landowner. The driver of the vehicle was looking for a parking space along Wharf Road as an occupant of the vehicle was suffering from a panic attack and needed to get out of the vehicle for some fresh air. From a driving position the Wharf Road "Mon - Sat 8 am - 6 pm 4 hours no return within 1 hour" Parking signs are clearly visible and readable. 

If there were clear signs such as the ones on Wharf Road in Quayside House car park the driver would have seen them and acted accordingly Looking at the Photographic Evidence you have provided with this PCN the signs in this car park are not prominent, clear or legible from all parking spaces, certainly not from the space the vehicle in question was parked. There will be no admissions as to who was driving and no assumptions can be drawn. Since your PCN is a vague template, I require an explanation of the allegation and your evidence. 

You must include a close up actual photograph of the sign you contend was at the location on the material date as well as your images of the vehicle. I believe that your signs fail the test of 'large lettering' and prominence. Your unremarkable and obscure signs were not seen by the driver and having no firm entrance to the car park means that any signs when entering the car park could easily be missed by 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. 

If the allegation concerns a PDT machine, the data supplied in response to this appeal must include the record of payments made - showing partial VRNs - and an explanation of the reason for the PCN, because your Notice does not explain it. 

If the allegation involves an alleged overstay of minutes, your evidence must include the actual grace period agreed by the landowner. NAME AND POSTAL ADDRESS OF THE REGISTERED KEEPER of the Loan Vehicle 

____________________  

There will be no admissions as to who was driving and no assumptions can be drawn. Therefore I respectfully ask that you must either offer me a POPLA code or cancel the charge.

Twist_D

Here is GXS response the following day where the haven't provided any of the evidence I asked for  ...

Dear Ms Unknown Unknown,

Re: Parking Charge Notice Number ____ (Vehicle: ____)

Site: Quayside House Car Park

Issue date: 15/07/2020

Following your letter of Appeal received on 04/08/2020 for the contravention at site Quayside House Car Park on

15/07/2020 18:11:13 for Parking Charge Number ____ a decision has been taken to decline your Appeal.

The Vehicle was parked without displaying a valid land owners permit in clear contravention to the signage

displayed on that site.

The area the vehicle was parked is private land, the terms and conditions of parking are clearly explained in the

signage on site, including the one you must pass when entering the land.

If you believe this decision is incorrect, you are entitled to appeal to the independent appeals service(IAS). In

order to appeal you will need you Parking charge number your vehicle registration and the date the charge was

originally issued.

Appeals must be submitted to the IAS within 21 days of the date of this letter. Please visit

www.theias.org for full details.

Yours sincerely,

Appeals Department

GXS Services Ltd

Twist_D

I know this has been asked before but if it is not worth appealing to the IAS what is my next step?

Le_Kirk

Twist_D said:

I know this has been asked before but if it is not worth appealing to the IAS what is my next step?

Wait.................
Wait...............
Debt collector letters
Letter of/before Claim
Formal court claim papers from Northampton CCBC