Car park switched management overnight and issued tickets. Was a contract legally made?

Danny2290

On March 1st 2021 Parking Control Management (PCM) took over management of the residential car park where I live. My car was already parked in my space with a valid UKPC permit from the old provider for about 3 or 4 days and I was not displaying a new PCM permit due to being unaware of the switch. On March 2nd, I went to the car park to find a ticket on my windscreen.

I immediately went to my post-box to find my new permit and contacted PCM to explain this. I supplied evidence of the new permit attached to my car windscreen along with proof that I am authorised to use that space and explained that I didn't know the switch was happening.

My initial appeal was rejected and I was told I could appeal to the IAS. I appealed to the IAS, who wrote a rather cryptic reply to me which kept stating that they have to reject my appeal on legal grounds that I wasn't displaying a correct permit and the charge is 'based in contract'. It's worth noting that I never entered this car park and saw their signage. They switched the signage overnight whilst my car was already parked there and gave me a ticket.

I have now been passed to a debt recovery agency TRACE who are charging me £160 and demanding payment within 14 days.

I would like some advice on the following if possible:

1. If you are legally parked in a car park and a company switches the signs & ownership overnight without your knowledge, have you still 'made a contract' with them? Is there grounds to legally object here?
   
   
2. Is it legal for PCM to automatically increase your parking fine from £60 to £100 just for making an appeal to the IAS? Is this not legally considered as a form of threat/blackmail to force people to pay the initial charge?
   
   
3. I am being asked to pay £160 to TRACE within 14 days before more debt is added and it is escalated. Is there anything I can do to prevent this or gain additional time from them?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Coupon-mad

You won't be paying this!  Don't engage with Trace.

1. If you are legally parked in a car park and a company switches the signs & ownership overnight without your knowledge, have you still 'made a contract' with them? No.
2. Is it legal for PCM to automatically increase your parking fine from £60 to £100 just for making an appeal to the IAS? Yes - but you won't be PAYING it and it hasn't actually increased, it was always £100 but temporarily 'discounted'.
3. I am being asked to pay £160 to TRACE within 14 days before more debt is added and it is escalated. Is there anything I can do to prevent this or gain additional time from them? Gain time?!  STOP!! You won't be paying them!

Read the forum.  Read any PCM thread, how about this one for a starter for ten (nice update last week):
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6128690/legal-claim-for-damages-against-parking-control-management-uk-ltd/p1

Do you own or rent the flat?

Do you have an allocated space, or general spaces for residents?

What happened when you spoke to other neighbours who also got PCNs (no doubt) and complained to the Managing Agent?  NOW...

fisherjim

Please stop thinking of this as a "fine" it's an invoice some muppets have sent you in the hope you will just pay up, follow CM's advice to kick the scamming idiots in to touch.

Half_way

Forget about what any signs may say, or what any permit may say, what dues your lease/rental/freehold say?

It's this space allocated to the property? do you have the right to use a communal car park?
a third party (ie parking company) can not arrive and take away any pre existing rights.


The key question is what does your lease say about parking?

Fruitcake

As above, your lease/AST/property rental agreement has primacy of contract over anything an unregulated scammer has to say that was not a party to your rental agreement.

Was a ballot of residents and landlords carried out in accordance with Section 37 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1987 carried out before the initial scammers were introduced, and again for the introduction of the second scammer? These are questions for the landowner and MA.

What does the scammer's ATA CoP say about a bedding in period? 

Danny2290

Thanks for your replies. 

Coupon-mad said:

Do you own or rent the flat?

Do you have an allocated space, or general spaces for residents?

What happened when you spoke to other neighbours who also got PCNs (no doubt) and complained to the Managing Agent?  NOW...

I am renting the flat in a residential block. The parking space in question is specifically allocated to this apartment. During the time of the PCN being issued, I was displaying the permit from the previous company which shows my right to park in this bay. 

With regards to neighbours, I have no communication with them but I have asked my managing agent for the building if anyone else is having similar issues. 

When you said regarding TRACE: Gain time & stop. How do I go about that; can I ignore them?

They have asked me to pay £160 by Wednesday 9th and I haven't responded to them yet. I had already replied to one of their emails as I didn't know who they were initially, so first contact has been made.

Danny2290

Half_way said:

Forget about what any signs may say, or what any permit may say, what dues your lease/rental/freehold say?

It's this space allocated to the property? do you have the right to use a communal car park?
a third party (ie parking company) can not arrive and take away any pre existing rights.


The key question is what does your lease say about parking?

I have asked this question to my managing agent / landlord to get more information about it. I'm sure it's the same as any other residential block like this with allocated spaces. Usually the landlord has ownership of the space but I need to confirm.

Danny2290

Just following on from my initial post, if anyone is interested. 

Reading the judgement from IAS (as a layperson), it looks like the main points are:

1) prior warning was given through correspondence delivered to my mailbox
2) signage in the carpark was adequate
3) my car was not displaying the permit.

My counter arguments in this are the following:

1) I am a legal tenant of the property and I was parked in my allocated space. My windshield was displaying the old permit so it was obvious that I was the tenant with permission to park here on the previous day. PCM issued the fine on the very first day that the switchover happened (switch took place on 1 Mar, fine issued 2 Mar) which is opportunistic and designed to catch out tenants that hadn't switched the permits on the windshield.

2) I did not enter the carpark in March until 3 March, so I could not have seen the new signage displayed in the carpark until then. This can verified by CCTV if they wish to go through the footage.

3) Although they delivered the notice and permit to my mailbox (they have bodycam footage of this), can I be said to have entered a contract with the new parking company based on this? I have barely checked my post during Covid and all bills are emailed now.

The adjudicator wrote that 'Having considered the evidence provided I am satisfied that the Operator has the authority to issue and enforce PCNs at this location and that the Appellant was made adequately aware of this fact prior to the charge being issued'.

Can it be really be proven that I was 'made adequately aware of this fact prior to the charge being issued'?

I also found it interesting that the adjudicator wrote this: 'The terms of this appeal are that I am only allowed to consider the charge being appealed and not the circumstances of other drivers or other parking events. The guidance to this appeal also makes it clear that I am bound by the law of contract and can only consider legal challenges not mistakes or extenuating circumstances'.

Is it fair that extenuating circumstances are not taken into account when making this judgment?

I'm just wondering what the best course of action is right now. Should I be looking for legal representation for this case and how should I deal with debt collectors at this stage? I understand advice taken here is my own decision to act on.

Half_way

step one, what does the agreement between you and the landlord say about parking? you should have an AST/tenancy agreement of some sort.

Coupon-mad

You are taking the IAS far too seriously.  You were never going to win that, it isn't a truly independent appeal because it is run by the parking firms' trade body:

http://parking-prankster.blogspot.com/2016/01/is-independent-appeal-service-kangaroo.html

Stop reading their 'decision'.  And stop panicking about deadlines from debt collectors.  Haven't you read post #4 of the NEWBIES thread yet and seen all the collections of debt letters people have, and the clear advice that hasn't changed in over a decade, to ignore debt collectors?  Please read the resources here and open your eyes top the industry that the Government is trying to regulate right now:

https://uk.motor1.com/news/313814/law-clamp-rogue-parking-companies/

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/crackdown-on-private-car-parking-firms-will-eliminate-unfair-fines

https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/parking-code-enforcement-framework/outcome/parking-code-enforcement-framework-consultation-response

new (final) consultation coming very soon this Summer, about the level of parking charges specifically:

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/government-to-open-technical-consultation-on-fairer-parking-charges

PCM will sue.  You will likely win. Your car was not parked in breach of any displayed terms at the point of parking and a new PPC should fairly do more for residents who were clearly targeted within 24 hours of the changeover.

That's what happens at the moment with parking firm cases, particularly. You only need to read other PCM threads to know this., If you move flat in the coming 6 years before this is over, tell PCM your new address at all times because there is no risk of a CCJ as long as you see and defend a N1 claim form. It's what we do here all the time.

Fruitcake

Have you looked at what your lease/AST/property rental agreement says about parking, parking permits, parking scammers, paying scammers, and court claims, as well as your right to quiet enjoyment. What it doesn't say is just as important.

This is far more important than an appeal to the IAS kangaroo court.

Once you have determined what your rights are, and whether a ballot was carried out of all leaseholders and landlords in accordance with the L & T Act 1987, then you can complain to the landowner, landlord, and managing agents that your lease has been varied without your consent, and outwith the Act (the law).