Help please - CCJ & Debt Recovery – from unknown Parking fine

Coupon-mad

As long as that's the same bit henrik quoted.  But when I say transcript I mean the one found on bailii, here, and yes the whole thing attached as a PDF:

https://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWCA/Civ/2016/71.html

Swarb is always a better search result than Casemine, IMHO because Swarb gives the bailii link.

Umkomaas

@henrik777 - welcome back, you have most certainly been missed. 👏

Jack5656

Coupon-mad said:

As long as that's the same bit henrik quoted.  But when I say transcript I mean the one found on bailii, here, and yes the whole thing attached as a PDF:

https://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWCA/Civ/2016/71.html

Swarb is always a better search result than Casemine, IMHO because Swarb gives the bailii link.

Thank you again. I don't know if there is a pdf online I can download but I have copied the html script into Word and saved the transcript as as a pdf to send the court.

@henrik777 could you comment please on my concern that by adding in this case to review that I might be giving the judge too much information to go through for a set aside hearing?

Coupon-mad

I don't.  Henrik is our set aside expert.

Jack5656

Coupon I must send my supplementary WS to the court by tomorrow but have an important question please.

If the judge is not convinced to award a mandatory set aside and opts for discretionary (and wants to see I have a reasonable chance to defend the claim), should I send a Draft Defence in writing now, or is it a case of just verbally citing reasons I could use for a defence at the next hearing?

Coupon-mad

Either.  Whatever you are most comfortable with.  We've seen people do both, with success.

Jack5656

I'd like to add a draft defence in writing to help persuade the judge but I am really short on time now. Would using parts of (or all?) of the termplate here..

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6108153/template-defence-to-adapt-for-all-parking-cases-where-they-add-false-admin-costs-edited-march-2022/p1

be 100% relevant to my defence where the keeper was NOT the driver?

And is CEL subject to this POFA issue@

15. Pursuant to Schedule 4 paragraph 4(5) of the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 ('the POFA') the sum claimed exceeds the maximum potentially recoverable from a registered keeper, even in cases where a firm may have complied with other POFA requirements (adequate signage, Notice to Keeper wording/dates, and a properly communicated 'relevant contract/relevant obligation').  If seeking keeper/hirer liability - unclear from the POC - the Claimant is put to strict proof of full compliance. 

Coupon-mad

Yes - you can use ALL of it - and just need to add as para 3, your individual defence-supporting facts that I think we've talked about earlier.

Jack5656

OK great thank you. Below is what I have added in a Draft Defence for para 3 (although I have broken down into further numbered paragraphs for ease of reading).

Let me know what you think please:

DRAFT DEFENCE

1. The Defendant denies that the Claimant is entitled to relief in the sum claimed, or at all.  It is denied that any conduct by the driver gave rise to a ‘parking charge’ and it is denied that this Claimant (understood to have a bare licence as managers) has standing to sue or to form contracts in their own name at the location.

The facts as known to the Defendant:

2.  It is admitted that the Defendant was the registered keeper of the vehicle in question but liability is denied. 

3. The Defendant was not the driver in xxxx on xx xxx 2018 and was working in xxxxx, between 9am and 5pm. I refer to my supporting evidence - Manager Statement and Time Sheet (Annex A).

4. The Defendant did not receive a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN) in xxxxx 2018 and notice of a default claim was first notified to the Defendant in a letter from Direct Collection Bailiffs Limited dated xxxxx 2022.  

5. The Defendant has only had sight of the claim dated xx xxxxxx 2018 due to a Subject Access Request obtained from Claimant and received on xx May 2022.

6. The car park in question operated by the Claimant in 2018 has been reported as having unclear and poor signage at the location. xxxxx Live (Annex B ) reported on 4 October 2017 that “none of the signs posted in the car park, including at the payment machines, warn users of the regime which charges them from the moment they arrive.”

The report further states that the camera system installed in May 2017 required customers to input their vehicle registration, but if the registration was not put in correctly the system did not pick up that a ticket has been purchased.

Despite not being the driver, the Defendant believes there is plenty of evidence to provide a strong defence to any claim. The signage was not clear and the payment system was difficult to navigate and to prove payment if a registration number was not entered correctly.

7.  The Claimant Civil Enforcement Limited (also trading as Creative Car Park Limited), has been removed as the parking operator in this location in 2022 as reported on xxxxx Live on 20 January 2022 (Annex B ) who stated that, “The car park has been notorious for years and attracted huge numbers of complaints about penalty charges and refusal of refunds and appeals.” Recently-appointed chief executive of xxxx has vowed to put an end to it ever since he started getting wind of the mass anger and states “I’m not always happy with how customers have been handled... It’s not had a good reputation, it’s not been good enough and we recognise that.”

8. The facts in this defence come from the Defendant's own knowledge................................

Coupon-mad

Yep that'll do and you can refer to evidence (as you have there) because this is a set aside case so anything goes and you are already supplying WS x 2 and other evidence to support your set aside application.

Normally no evidence goes with a defence (in a non CCJ case) but heck this is all part of an application.  Chuck it all in.