VCS - Court Claim. Is it worth including a Counter Claim?

Coupon-mad

That case is rare and you only get costs against you if you are considered to have acted unreasonably.  You won't be paying any legal fees.

satchy_b

My final hearing date keeps getting put back (for reasons that the Court hasn't disclosed to me). Now it's at the end of September.

The Reserved Judgment suggests that the Judge has ruled in the Claimant's favour and even said that he feels the additional £60 was reasonable and not extortionate. The hearing appears to be just to formalize the verdict and confirm how much I'll have to pay.

Is it ever possible to make a Judge change their mind after a Reserved Judgment has been given?

And am I still able to try to settle out of court with the claimant? Or now that we're this far along, does the hearing have to take place?

D_P_Dance

 £100 charge and £60 for costs is not extortionate 

The Supteme court said £85 was acceptable.  WRT the added unlawful £60, please read this,

Excel v Wilkinson

At the Bradford County Court, District Judge Claire Jackson (now HHJ Jackson, a Specialist Civil Circuit Judge) decided to hear a 'test case' a few months ago, where £60 had been added to a parking charge despite Judges up and down the country repeatedly disallowing that sum and warning parking firms not to waste court time with such spurious claims.   That case was Excel v Wilkinson: G4QZ465V, heard in July 2020 and leave to appeal was refused and that route was not pursued.  The Judge concluded that such claims are proceedings with 'an improper collateral purpose'.   This Judge - and others who have since copied her words and struck dozens of cases out in late 2020 and into 2021 - went into significant detail and concluded that parking operators (such as this Claimant) are seeking to circumvent CPR 27.14 as well as breaching the Consumer Rights Act 2015.   DJ Hickinbottom has recently struck more cases out in that court area, stating: ''I find that striking out this claim is the only appropriate manner in which the disapproval of the court can be shown''.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/16qovzulab1szem/G4QZ465V Excel v Wilkinson.pdf?dl=0

Coupon-mad

satchy_b said:

My final hearing date keeps getting put back (for reasons that the Court hasn't disclosed to me). Now it's at the end of September.

The Reserved Judgment suggests that the Judge has ruled in the Claimant's favour and even said that he feels the additional £60 was reasonable and not extortionate. The hearing appears to be just to formalize the verdict and confirm how much I'll have to pay.

Is it ever possible to make a Judge change their mind after a Reserved Judgment has been given?

And am I still able to try to settle out of court with the claimant? Or now that we're this far along, does the hearing have to take place?

You can always settle out of court but don't offer that fake debt recovery cost.  The Judge is deluded about that.  No, there won't be a change of mind by the Judge.  This seems most unfair if you haven't had a hearing.

I really hope you have done the Government Consultation by email and objected absolutely to ANY debt recovery fake 'costs' being added on top of a parking charge (of course) and told them what you think of them increasing charges to £130 instead of £100...which is already extortionate.

You have 6 days to do the consultation.  Please, please, do and do it by email so you attach evidence.  Spread the word, is closes within days, next week!

Also, I hope you've also registered for the Group Action, against the DVLA (open to anyone with a PCN since 2018?).  Gotta be in it to win it!  Nothing to lose, and it's genuine.

Read the threads about those important matters, they both need doing, right now, this week.

satchy_b

D_P_Dance said:

 £100 charge and £60 for costs is not extortionate 

The Supteme court said £85 was acceptable.  WRT the added unlawful £60, please read this,

Excel v Wilkinson...

It appears I've got the only Judge in the country that's not following this example! Maybe I should have gone to Bradford County Court.

Coupon-mad said:

 You can always settle out of court but don't offer that fake debt recovery cost.  The Judge is deluded about that.  No, there won't be a change of mind by the Judge.  This seems most unfair if you haven't had a hearing.

I really hope you have done the Government Consultation by email and objected absolutely to ANY debt recovery fake 'costs' being added on top of a parking charge (of course) and told them what you think of them increasing charges to £130 instead of £100...which is already extortionate.

You have 6 days to do the consultation.  Please, please, do and do it by email so you attach evidence.  Spread the word, is closes within days, next week!

Also, I hope you've also registered for the Group Action, against the DVLA (open to anyone with a PCN since 2018?).  Gotta be in it to win it!  Nothing to lose, and it's genuine.

Read the threads about those important matters, they both need doing, right now, this week.

I got a hearing. The Judge just felt he couldn't give his verdict without looking further at the evidence (he didn't have time to look before our hearing because he was running late). Then a few weeks after that hearing I got the Reserved Judgement through the post. Even if he is deluded if he's the Judge there's not much I can do (other than appeal which'll probably cost me more) and I can't see the Judge on my case awarding any less than £160 to the Claimant.

I'll check out the other stuff, although I got my PCN in 2017. Thanks

Coupon-mad

Ok but a strong response to the proposals in the consultation will be well worth you doing to make sure the government rethinks the ludicrously dangerous idea of saying PPCs can add fake debt recovery ‘costs’ that the MHCLG knows has not been paid.

For what other trade would the government step in and say “we’ll make it law that you can add a surcharge that we know you’ve never paid and we’ll make it so people can’t fight that add on in court, by adding it on the signs”.

This is shameful funding of an ambulance chasing culture.

Tell them how angry you feel about that proposal.  Also a number of posters have complained about increasing PCNs in London to £130 which was never the intention of the Knight Act.

D_P_Dance

Even if he is deluded if he's the Judge there's not much I can do

Of course there is, complain.

https://www.gov.uk/complain-judge-magistrate-tribunal-coroner

copying the complaint to your MP and read this

https://www.hmd.org.uk/resource/first-they-came-by-pastor-martin-niemoller/ j

Jenni_D

Your HMD link has some additional characters which are breaking the link

https://www.hmd.org.uk/resource/first-they-came-by-pastor-martin-niemoller/

D_P_Dance

New link

https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/martin-niemoeller-first-they-came-for-the-socialists

satchy_b

This is the email/letter I plan on sending to the PPC. Any feedback appreciated.

To whom it may concern,

With regards to PCN VCSXXXXXXX and the related legal case, I have no desire to drag this matter out any longer. I would rather put this behind me and I’m sure you would rather not have to pay any further legal costs. 

With this being the case, I am willing to offer you £100 in order to fully settle this matter.

For clarity, this is not an admission of liability (despite what this particular Judge has concluded I still feel I am not liable) and indeed there are many similar cases going to trial where the Judges have ruled in the defendant’s favour. However, all things considered I feel that this is my best option at this time. 

If you accept this offer you agree to not pursuing me with regards to this matter again and will deem my PCN to have been fully paid. You will also update Debt Recovery Plus, and instruct them to not pursue me either.

It should go without saying, but once you have received payment you should also contact Sheffield County Court (or the relevant legal department) in order to confirm that this matter has been settled and that case GXXXXXXX should be closed, and the hearing scheduled for XXth September should be cancelled.

Please can you confirm if you agree to the above, and how I can go about making payment.

Regards