Submitted Witness Statement and and Draft Order by Email - Judge Unwilling to Strike Out

simplegeeza

Hi guys, just a quick note to say that unfortunately I lost my case today. I am absolutely gutted having spent so much time on this. The judge found that excel were entitled to operate at the car park despite the car park in question being omitted from the statement of authority schedule. He also said that although the contract statement of authority is flawed in its purpose, the presence of an excel sign on the site meant that on the balance of probabilities they had authority. Additionally he stated that the additional £60 was unrecoverable but did not taint the whole claim as an abuse of process (expected). He ordered that I pay the original charge, as well as costs such that the total liability to me was £175.00. 

As I say I am gutted and feel very hard done by, as I feel my points were markedly more poignant than the Claimant’s representative’s. The judge was pretty unwilling to talk about signage and it’s validity also, and took issue with my statement that the claimant had not invoked keeper liability under POFA as it was not in the witness statement. I stated this was because Excel had not given enough time to review their evidence after submitting the witness statement before the deadline, but he was taking none of it. 

Ah well I suppose I just have to pay and move on - despite being very annoyed by it all. Does anybody know how you pay the judgement? Will they post it out with details on how to pay? 

Coupon-mad

simplegeeza said:

Also I should add there is a square piece of paper in Excel's bundle that looks like my ticket, but they haven't got a close-up of it.

I am so sorry to hear this Judge was against you.  DJ Lottery and often the case with new deputy (part-time) Judges who haven't seen enough parking scam cases yet.  What about the above evidence, was the Judge not convinced that you/the driver had a ticket all along?

Le_Kirk

Doesn't the claim form (N1) say who to pay?

simplegeeza

@Coupon-mad thanks for your condolences. No he wasn’t interested in the ticket on the screen, citing that “if indeed this was a ticket, the claimant would likely have provided a photo showing the details” and averred that “on the balance of probabilities this was not a pay and display ticket” - he really loved that “balance of probabilities” mantra in his summing up actually come to think of it!

Coupon-mad

“if indeed this was a ticket, the claimant would likely have provided a photo showing the details”

Wow, now that must be a new Deputy Judge who hasn't seen parking scam claims very often, or at all.  He has no idea.  Trouble is, if a Judge makes a finding on the BoP then that is jot something you can appeal.  Only an error in law, an real injustice, for example if he didn't find that you were the driver (i.e. if you were not and he accepted that fact) but still thought that a PPC can hold you liable outside of compliance with the POFA. 

That would be an error in law, if the NTK was non-POFA and he misdirected himself, and knew you were not the driver.

henrik777

and took issue with my statement that the claimant had not invoked keeper liability under POFA as it was not in the witness statement.

He complained a legal argument wasn't in YOUR witness statement ?

Just wow.

simplegeeza

Yeah I know, a real turd sandwich but I’ve swallowed it on down, coughed up the payment and leaving it firmly in the past. I honestly can’t thank you guys enough for your support.

Now that I have made payment, do I need to contact somebody at the court or the business centre to provide proof to avoid the CCJ on credit file? I’ve heard some horror stories in cases where people pay on time and then the claimant still (either in error or spite) attempts to enter a default on judgment. How do I ensure my payment results in no further action and a crystal clear credit file?

Redx

Read other concluded threads where the defendant lost , like this example with a current discussion

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6054928/excel-pcn-post-appeal-stage-not-parking-within-a-marked-bay/p3

nosferatu1001

Do all  you can - emailing the court with the receipt could help stave off any default concerns. 

beamerguy

The County Court system is not up to speed with real life.

Cases should be allocated to judges who are well versed.
A NEWBIE judge should cut their teeth on simple cases like "Jack owes £50 to the bank"
At the very least, a NEWBIE judge should sit in with an experienced judge on parking cases

At the moment it's "pick a judge from a hat" and that can be very detrimental.
I dread to think what devastation a newbie style judge can cause in a family case