Smart parking. Cst law

holczy

Hi I received a parking charge from smart parking 24/12/2019 and a photo of my car entering and leaving a car park. I did enter the car park as I had a call and got in off the road to take it. There are no barriers just parking meters so I San close to the entrance not in a bay and took the call. Then left. The time I was there was 12mins 14 seconds. Didn't think nothing of it. Got a charge for £60. Ignored it. It says on letter £100 after 14 days. Ignored it as told its not enforceable. Then had Debt recovery plus chasing for £170 for the parking charge. Ignored that. Now I have CST Law Chasing with a LBC Letter Before Claim  now £185. £15 Client charge.
Should I pay it or ignore it. 
I was told private company parking wasn't lawful??
What should I do as a 12 min phone call is going to be expensive. 

Fruitcake

The advice to ignore a private parking charge has not been given on this forum since the law changed in 2012.
From your description above, the car was parked.
Private parking charges are lawful and enforceable if a judge says so. Whether they are fair is another matter.
Wherever or whoever you got your out of date advice from, it is utterly incorrect.

Nobody here will suggest you pay, even if the driver parked where they shouldn't have.

Are you sure the LBC is a genuine letter before claim as opposed to another debt collector letter? Whom does it tell you to pay, and how long have they given you to pay? 
If it says to pay CST, and gives less than thirty days to pay, it's a debt collector letter.
If it says pay the PPC, gives thirty days to pay, and includes income and expenditure forms it is a genuine LBC.

Have you read the sticky thread for NEWBIES thread yet that asks everyone to read it first? That will tell you how to defend a claim. 
The £85 add on is a fake charge, is double recovery, and an abuse of process. There is another sticky thread that deals with that, and one that gives you a ready made template defence.

First however you need to determine what stage you are at. Debt collector or court.

Also, you need to determine if the PCN/NTK was or was not PoFA compliant. If it was not, then you need to ask a board guide to edit your first post to remove information about who was driving, or ask them to delete this thread until you are up to speed with the information in the NEWBIES.

In future, either use a hands free system or better still don't take the call, or stop on a public road.
Never ever pull on to private land just to make or take a 'phone call, and always read the Ts and Cs if you do use a private car park. Ideally don't park in a car park infested by a private parking scammer.



 

Umkomaas

What should I do as a 12 min phone call is going to be expensive. 

Where are you phoning from - Australia?

BrownTrout

Umkomaas said:

What should I do as a 12 min phone call is going to be expensive. 

Where are you phoning from - Australia?

Sipgate.co.uk is your answer.

Coupon-mad

Then had Debt recovery plus chasing for £170 for the parking charge. Ignored that. Now I have CST Law Chasing with a LBC Letter Before Claim  now £185. £15 Client charge.
Should I pay it or ignore it. 

You don't appear to have read the 2nd post of the top thread: NEWBIES PLEASE READ THESE FAQS FIRST.  Please do!

beamerguy

Then had Debt recovery plus chasing for £170 for the parking charge. Ignored that. Now I have CST Law Chasing with a LBC Letter Before Claim  now £185. £15 Client charge.

It is sad to say that this legal is living in the clouds and has been since they got involved in the scam industry.  Adding all these fake amounts is just dream world stuff.

One assumes in their letter before claim, they say DRP instructed them.  That is as daft as another thread on here about another legal, DCBL, who think the name of the house is the registered keeper.    ?????   

READ ALL ABOUT CST HERE, there is help how to respond to a LBC

CST letters' forum group thread

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6166004/cst-letters-forum-group-thread/p1

D_P_Dance

In matter such as these, where a court appearance is likely, all correspondence should be conducted by email ot letter, judges like to see paper trails.  Have you complained to your MP?