IPC Code of Practice

gazvov

Hi all,

Can anyone suggest to me whether I am likely to win a claim against me based on the parking operators violation of the IPC Code of practice?

My argument essentially boils down to the fact that I spent 3 minutes in a loading bay for a closed shop, reading the signage around the area to see whether anywhere in the area was okay for me to wait for a short period while picking someone up.

The code of practice states that 'Drivers should be allowed a sufficient amount of time to park and read any signs so

they may make an informed decision as to whether or not to remain on the site.' my argument is that 3 minutes should fit into 'reasonable'.

If it affects the likely outcome, my passenger arrived after those 3 minutes were up, so I drive off.

I sadly didn't get onto this forum early enough in the process, so made no appeals and was not able to follow the advice in the newbie thread. I've ignored all correspondence except my response to their original letter, where I informed the company that I was not going to be paying. We're now at the Letter Before Claim stage with CIS.

Thanks.

Fruitcake

You may or may not win a court case, but you should throw the kitchen sink into the defence. The more defence points, the more chance the judge will agree with one of those points.

What is the name of the PPC, and the name of the solicitors if they are using one?

Start by sending a 30 day hold instruction to the solicitor, stating that although you deny the debt you are seeking debt advice and require them to put your case on hold for 30 days.

Send an SAR to the DPO of the PPC as per the NEWBIES to the PPC. You will need to include proof of (non-photo) ID.

Read the guide to court written by bargepole that you will find in the second post of the sticky Announcement for NEWBIES.

Look at the defence template in one of the other sticky Announcements and start to prepare it ready for when the inevitable claim form arrives.

gazvov

Thanks for the response.

Sadly I'll probably end up paying if there's a fair chance I'll lose. I can't afford a CCJ against me at the moment, due to plans for a mortgage within the next year.

Fruitcake

Even if you lose you will not get a CCJ as long as you follow the tried and tested advice on this forum.
How much is being claimed, because you would pay no more than £175 - £200 even if you lost.

You still haven't told us the name of the PPC or their solicitors.

BrownTrout

gazvov said:

can't afford a CCJ against me at the moment, due to plans for a mortgage within the next year.

So many people come up with this just as an excuse for them to pay. Boggles the mind

gazvov

It's NPE, and CIS, and the claim is for £100 plus a £70 admin fee.

I wasn't aware I could potentially avoid a CCJ. Perhaps I didn't read the newbie post as closely as I should have done.

Ultimately, I know I parked the car where I shouldn't have done, but I assumed it would be fine to do so next to a closed shop, while checking the signs. Some of them were indecipherable due to poor condition, others were incredibly detailed and took a while to read. 

I didn't want to leave the car where it may have stopped someone parking, so photographed the signs to read beside the car. I'm on camera standing next to it for a while, looking at the images on my phone, before the passenger arrives and we leave.

I did explain all this to NPE after the initial letter, but they have continued with the claim.

I wish I'd come here earlier.

gazvov

And by 'a while' I mean 3 minutes and 7 seconds.

BrownTrout

CIS aka TNC have NOT sent you a real letter before claim so it can be safely ignored as its just part of their debt collection process

Coupon-mad

gazvov said:

Thanks for the response.

Sadly I'll probably end up paying if there's a fair chance I'll lose. I can't afford a CCJ against me at the moment, due to plans for a mortgage within the next year.

There isn't a fair chance you'll lose!

We see 1% lost here and have done consistently, winning around 99% of court cases since 2016.

You don't get a CCJ if you lose.  That's not how it works.  If that was true, no-one would defend!

There is NO RISK as long as you follow our advice.  If yours was in the end, a very rare lost case, you'd just pay around the same as is being demanded now.  No CCJ remains if you pay in full if you get a bad decision. Why worry?

It doesn't matter that you didn't come here earlier.

Your case is exactly like all the other cases where people were briefly unloading or picking up a passenger - perfectly winnable. We'll help!