Home Bargains Parking Eye fine Please Help

sarasal

I live abroad and came home for Summer. Picked up a hire car and visited a new home bargains. Stocked up my cupboards for me and 4 kids after 2 weeks quarantine £147 later after navigating a large unfamiliar store. Now the hire company have forwarded a £100 parking charge notice from Parking Eye plus a £42 admin charge from themselves.  I feel stupid for not seeing any signs but just wasn't something i expected. Also angry at the sheer amount of the fine and the fact i was time barred to 1hour 30 in their very large store. Any advice in appealing the fine or do I have no chance? Many thanks in advance.

Fruitcake

It is not a fine.

Appeal using one of the three hire/lease car appeal templates written by a poster called edna basher that you will find in the first post of the sticky thread for NEWBIES. One of the templates is for fleet managers so the one you want will be one of the others.
Do not reveal the driver's identity under any circumstances, not even on here.
Do not say things like, I drove or I parked. You are appealing as hirer/lessee. There can be no assumption in law that the hirer was driving. Do not question this.

As you live abroad, ensure that you give the scammers your overseas address for service. Instruct the hire/lease company NOT to pay the scamvoice on your behalf, and NOT to charge you for the privilege. If they do you will consider it to be a fraudulent charge and will instruct your card provider accordingly.
Tell them you are appealing this which means they are no longer liable for the charge and must take no further action. Include a copy of your hirer/lessee appeal in your instructions to the hire company as proof that you have appealed.

If you succeed in getting the PCN cancelled, ask the hire company for the admin fee back.

What happened when you complained to the landowner/store manger/CEO with a copy of your receipt?

Get pics of the site and signage in case you need to make a second stage appeal.

sarasal

Thank you for taking the time to reply that it is all very helpful and sounds positive. I live abroad but have a uk address too which I am part time resident at. The hire company have this as my address. Won't they be under a legal obligation to give this to Parking eye? I looked up Parking Eye and they are under BPA so won't they also be able to pursue me through the courts at my at my UK address which they'll access through DVLA even if I don't admit to being the driver won't I be liable as hirer?

sarasal

I will definitely go to the store tomorrow to ask to speak to the store manager. 

Redx

sarasal said:

Thank you for taking the time to reply that it is all very helpful and sounds positive. I live abroad but have a uk address too which I am part time resident at. The hire company have this as my address. Won't they be under a legal obligation to give this to Parking eye? I looked up Parking Eye and they are under BPA so won't they also be able to pursue me through the courts at my at my UK address which they'll access through DVLA even if I don't admit to being the driver won't I be liable as hirer?

We usually find that there is no hirer liability under POFA due to the section laying out the rules , because parking companies fail to obtain the hire documentation to hold a hirer liable , providing they do not know who was driving

The people with empty pockets are those that reveal the driver and so lose the protection in law of POFA

So even if PE are within timescales , they will fail due to red tape errors

Fruitcake

I wouldn't mention anything about any address other than the overseas one you reside at either on here, in conversation with the store manager/CEO, or the parking scammers.
Only use your overseas address for service. 

D_P_Dance

WRT  the hire company's admin charge, his may be unlawful.  What does the hire contract say, exact wording please? These are not fines, offences or penalties, they are invoices for alleged breaches of contract, and can only be validated by a County  Court Judge

nosferatu1001

as long as the driver is not identified, you will win this at POPLA on no hirer liability
PE never ever - same as all PPCs - sends the required documents
Ask a board guide to edit your post. 

sarasal

Went to the store manager they didn't want to know. Said its not our car park you'll have to appeal. I have to admit there are signs everywhere it's just on the day i was so distracted as the car park was very busy and i was totally focused on where i was going at not signage. Won't be so stupid next time. The wording for Thrifty is .................
d) All charges, including legal and administrative costs for any road-traffic offence or parking (local authority or private), congestion or toll charges, or any other offence or charges involving the rental vehicle, including costs from the vehicle being clamped, seized or towed away. You are responsible for paying the appropriate authority or company for any charges and costs if and when they ask you or us for these payments. You will also be responsible for paying our reasonable administration charges for dealing with these matters. However, where it is not reasonably practicable to transfer liability for any such fine or charge, we may use our discretion to settle the fine or charge with the appropriate authority and re-charge you such amount together with an administration charge to reflect our reasonable administration costs. Should you wish to appeal, contest or dispute any such fine or charge we shall pass all relevant information to you and you must liaise directly with the appropriate authority or company to obtain any refund, where this is possible. 

I've e mailed them to say i am dealing with it so they don't take any more money from my credit card.
As i have previously rented from this hire company before I lived abroad they have passed on my UK address details to Parking Eye and this address is linked to my DVLA details so I feel the only option i have now is to appeal the Parking Eye charge of £100

sarasal

To add the hire company have e mailed me a photo of the hire car with a time stamp of entry and exit time and say to expect a new notice through the post

Fruitcake

Just because the keeper is using a UK address for convenience does not mean that is where the keeper lives. Use your overseas address for all communications.