APCOA Penalty Notice - Taxi Rank

Coupon-mad

Haha, another Brighton station one at the taxi drop off area?  Never fails.

Colinlee17

Many thanks @Coupon-mad copied your letter and a week later got a reply saying they had cancelled the penalty notice.

Colin

Coupon-mad

Nicely done! It never fails because they can't win at POPLA against those points,  and they know it.

Imagine how many people actually pay...

PaulOckenden

Coupon-mad said:

Nicely done! It never fails because they can't win at POPLA against those points,  and they know it.

Just theoretically (I’d never admit to doing something like this), what happens if it was the registered keeper driving, and if the ‘offence’ happened in broad daylight rather than at night? Just take those bits out of the appeal? Or book an appointment with SpecSavers? 

Coupon-mad

Just take out the bit about darkness and OF COURSE the keeper doesn't admit to driving in any case where the POFA doesn't apply (nor do they lie).

hp9511

Hi @Coupon-mad, fantastic letter and wonderful that you have been able to help so many people! Unfortunately I have been trapped in the same situation, I was picking up my partner from the station around 11:30pm, poor weather conditions so the pictures are very dark and only just show my car lights and number plate. I had no idea about this charge, having done the same pickup location a number of times before over several years. Do you think I am able to use the letter still despite the fact I was the driver at the time? Thanks for any help! 

KeithP

hp9511 said:

Hi @Coupon-mad, fantastic letter and wonderful that you have been able to help so many people! Unfortunately I have been trapped in the same situation, I was picking up my partner from the station around 11:30pm, poor weather conditions so the pictures are very dark and only just show my car lights and number plate. I had no idea about this charge, having done the same pickup location a number of times before over several years. Do you think I am able to use the letter still despite the fact I was the driver at the time? Thanks for any help! 

@hp9511, take note of the post immediately before yours...

Coupon-mad said:

OF COURSE the keeper doesn't admit to driving in any case where the POFA doesn't apply (nor do they lie).

...and then please start a new thread.

Trying to deal with the issues of more than one person in a single thread can only lead to confusion.

Coupon-mad

Except there really is no need for any thread about Brighton station. Nothing has changed. Of course the wording still works, as long as the appellant DOES NOT tick 'driver' when appealing.

nsr500rossi

I also got a ticket, even though I stopped on the double yellows to deliver to the hotel.

I copied and your letter ( thank you) and pasted it in the section on the website , there was not an option asking if I was the driver , only if I was the registered keeper (which I am ) 

unfortunately, it has not worked, I have copied the email they have sent me and pasted it here.

Any ideas why it did not work and do you have any further advice , thanks in advance 

Mike 

27 January 2023 23:00

Thank you for your appeal received 11 February 2023 against the above Parking Charge Notice. Having carefully considered the evidence provided by you, we must advise your appeal has been unsuccessful on this occasion. (Images)

Please note, this is a Penalty Notice issued on Railway land as a breach of the terms and conditions of parking has occurred, and you have confirmed to us that you are the registered keeper of the vehicle in question and therefore you are liable for this Notice.

The Railways byelaws state:

In England and Wales

(i) The owner of any motor vehicle, bicycle or other conveyance used, left or placed in breach of Byelaw 14(1) to 14(3) may be liable to pay a penalty as displayed in that area.

For further clarification, the owner, in relation to a vehicle, means the person by whom the vehicle is kept, which in the case of a vehicle registered under the Vehicle Excise and Registration Act 1994 (c. 22) is presumed to be the person in whose name the vehicle is registered. If the Penalty Notice remains unpaid, APCOA Parking is entitled to pursue you as the keeper through the Magistrates Court by way of a private criminal prosecution for payment of the Penalty Notice.

In your appeal you mention a consideration period was not considered, whilst we appreciate the comments made consideration periods only apply when parking is advertised, as the Penalty Notice has been issued for use of the Taxi Rank without a valid permit, no consideration period is needed.

In your appeal you mentioned that the signage on site is not sufficient/clear. After reviewing the evidence, we can confirm the signage complies with the guidelines laid out in the British Parking Association’s (BPA’s) Code of Practice. Signage displaying the terms and conditions of parking has been installed in clear and prominent positions.

As you do not hold a valid permit we can confirm the Penalty Notice has been correctly issued.

As your vehicle was parked in contravention of the terms and conditions of the site we are satisfied that the notice was correctly issued in accordance with the BPA code of practice, and therefore not able to waiver the charge on this occasion.

 

  Therefore you now have a number of options:

Pay the Parking Charge Notice at the discounted price of £60 within 14 days. Please note that after this time the Parking Charge Notice will increase to £100.

How to pay

Or send a Cheque or Postal Order made payable to APCOA Parking (UK) Ltd to: APCOA PARKING, PO BOX 222, LOWTON WAY, HELLABY, SHEFFIELD S98 1NX.

You have now reached the end of our internal appeals procedure. You now have the option to make an appeal to POPLA - The Independant Appeals Service. You can do this within 28 days of this letter by completing the online appeal form at.  quoting the verification reference number 0510543006. Please be advised that if you opt for independent arbitration of your case, the Parking Charge Notice will be considered at the full amount of £100. If you require a hard copy of the POPLA form please contact our customer service centre on 0345 301 1151 where one of our customer service agents will be happy to assist you.

By law we are also required to inform you that Ombudsman Services    provides an alternative dispute resolution service that would be competent to deal with your appeal. However, we have not chosen to participate in their alternative dispute resolution service. As such should you wish to appeal then you must do so to POPLA, as explained above.

If you choose to do nothing, we will seek to recover the monies owed to us via our debt recovery procedures and may proceed with Court action against you.

Yours Faithfully

Appeals Department APCOA Parking (UK) Ltd

   

Grizebeck

Yes you do the POPLA appeal