Fined from Premier parking logistics

MazUK

Coupon-mad said:

But they clearly do, based on their website. Shove that in their face and tell them to stop lying to you!

I have tried previously for 2.5 months but they, in the end, just said its not something that they do. Like a brickwall.

I will try again.

MazUK

I have a draft letter made up. I have to send today so they don't add any further costs.

Can i send this at all by DM to someone to have a look over and see if i need to amend?

Le_Kirk

Just put it on the forum (redacted of any personal info) and you will get the benefit of all the regulars.

Snakes_Belly

Le_Kirk said:

Just put it on the forum (redacted of any personal info) and you will get the benefit of all the regulars.

It's a broad church on this forum so you will get the best advice by following the above post.

Have you considered writing to the CEO of HSBC. I usually find that writing to a CEO does generate a response and I have done this twice with energy companies when i have hit a brick wall.

To be honest as an ex-employee myself I am shocked that they are engaging a company like PPL albeit through a third party. So much outsourcing now in many companies and in the NHS and other public services.  

1505grandad

"Have you considered writing to the CEO of HSBC."

I also copy in a few members of the relevant Board.

MazUK

Le_Kirk said:

Just put it on the forum (redacted of any personal info) and you will get the benefit of all the regulars.

I was considering that. I did send it off as i thought it was the last day to do so before midnight, but i was actually late as the letter stated 28 days and i thought i had one month plus a day.

The reason i didn't add to the forum here is that in the Newbie FAQ I read not to put things on that would make it obvious who you are as the fining companies read the forum and could use that against you.

I sent the compliant by email to both their normal email and the appeals address so that they could not say they didn't receive it. I got no response from their normal one, i got a quite snotty one back from the appeals email saying that i have no right to appeal and that they have sent the matter to the debt collectors.

Today I received a letter from their debt collectors. Gladstones Solicitors "Letter before claim". They want £170, and that with court fees it will be £285.

MazUK

Snakes_Belly said:

Le_Kirk said:

Just put it on the forum (redacted of any personal info) and you will get the benefit of all the regulars.

It's a broad church on this forum so you will get the best advice by following the above post.

Have you considered writing to the CEO of HSBC. I usually find that writing to a CEO does generate a response and I have done this twice with energy companies when i have hit a brick wall.

To be honest as an ex-employee myself I am shocked that they are engaging a company like PPL albeit through a third party. So much outsourcing now in many companies and in the NHS and other public services.  

Is it Noel Quinn with his email as noelpquinn and the the at HSBC dot come at the end? If not do you know the email address?

I'm not surpirsed that they used such a horrible company to be honest.You would have thought that they wouldn't associate themselves with such cowboys but...

MazUK

I did decide to go into the branch even though it has had various outbreaks of Covid.

The previous 2 times i had gone they were closed early due to the outbreaks but they wrote on the paper a message stating that it was due to "unforeseen circumstances" when they should be honest. Even the telephone wouldn't say why and after a while managed to get that info from them.

A lot has happened. Previously the HR has not helped, Asset Management of HSBC did not help, which is where my old work fell under.

I asked for the area Director to contact me. He did not.

I was then given the run around and told its impossible and no means to send a message to the area Director on subsequent calls.

I went into the branch as a last resort. There was a chap who talked to the one person dealing with enquiries for about half and hour. Questions he could find out himself by googling ie Premier account benefits etc. Initially i was the only one waiting. Then an old lady pushed in from of me ( she had been seated in the waiting area). She was very elderly and looked like she had surgery from the bandages she had on. It looked like she was in pain. I did not mind at all as she looked like she needed help more than me then. 

The elderly lady waited patiently as the colleague dealt with the numerous banal questions of the other chap. That young guy by the way didn't seem to care about the elderly lady looking a little distressed. The lady patiently waited and then when it was my turn she told the colleague that she had been waiting a long long time now for the other lady to come back from the back office and that she was in unmanageable pain and she couldn't take the pain anymore.

While she was talking to the colleague, someone from the back came out. I spoke to her and sai=d i wanted to talk to the manager about a private matter. She told me to tell her and then said shes the Manager. She wanted to know there and then the enquiry.

I was explaining when she kept cutting me off and saying i have to pay. I mentioned about being staff and she got real riled up and said are you that person i already had a message about and got aggressive and wouldn't let me finish explaining the circumstances.

She initially said she'd not contacted the parking company to let anyone off the fine, then said she had actually done that before bit wont for me as it was my fault as i should not have parked there. It looked to me that she may have had someone park in the parking spot previously and she just didn't care.

And that's what it came to in the end. I told her i'm a carer, ex-employee, the tactics used by the company and that the signs were blocked because the enforcement officer had had the largest transit van you can get parked sideways and caught on camera ticketing in 16 seconds when i came to ask for more info in the branch. She absolutely did not care an iota. One person came behind me, and the Manager said she is finished with that and she proceeded to talk to the guy behind me. She'd already told the old lady to sit and wait. And she was abrupt and patronising. I asked her for clarity, i said let me get this clear in my mind, for the sake of an email you are willing for me to take this to an employment tribunal? She said on what basis? And then carried on with the conversation with the person behind me.

I was sorely disappointed. I have no idea why this Bank i worked for ut these types of people in power. This is why i have a low opinion of this company.

It takes 1.5 hours to get there by public transport so about 4 hours if i get a bite to eat each time, 3 times and it cost me a bit of money too. A huge waste of time and possible risk of infection. Really disappointed from my ex-employer.

MazUK

I sent the complaint by email to both their normal email and the appeals address so that they could not say they didn't receive it. I got no response from their normal one, i got a quite snotty one back from the appeals email saying that i have no right to appeal and that they have sent the matter to the debt collectors.

Today I received a letter from their debt collectors. Gladstones Solicitors "Letter before claim". They want £170, and that with court fees it will be £285.

What should i do?

MazUK

Here is the letter i sent in a rush:

"I would like this above "parking charge notice" to be cancelled.
The driver of the vehicle has advised of the following:
- The parking enforcement officer had a very large transit van parked across 4 plus bays, He had the vehicle parked sideways at the front of the land nearest the wall. As a result this covered almost all the small and hard to see signs that were there.
- The driver asked the parking enforcement officer for help and was advised that he would not help them by the parking enforcement officer. The initially driver thought that this person was a commercial worker due to the very large size of the transit van.
- Since the parking officer was blocking view of all but possibly one sign, the parking officer has a duty of care to advise that the parking was a private area and that parking was prohibited and that there would be a fine.
- A member of the public, in front of the parking enforcement officer assured the driver that it was perfectly fine to to park there, that it was safe, and that he wouldn't get into any trouble or fined. The parking enforcement officer, had a duty to advise that that was the wrong information as he was blocking the signs indicating otherwise and heard and saw this conversation occurring in front of him.
- The parking area, as no signs were seen by the driver, and as a result of the above, went to speak to the staff at the HSBC Bank (the landowner). As soon as the driver left the vehicle, the parking enforcement officer was seen ticketing the vehicle 16 seconds later. The parking officer did not give the right information and should have done so as he was wilfully blocking the signs with a large transit van, and the parking officer did not give the correct information when the driver was given the wrong information in front of him by another person. The parking enforcement officer looked on and said nothing. Then as soon as the driver left to ask for clarity from the landowner the parking officer in 16 seconds started to ticket the vehicle. This is clearly against all guidelines and ethical behaviour as well as not giving time for the driver to see any signs or get the correct information. This seems to be a clear case of entrapment by using a large transit van to hide the small in size and number nondescript signage.
- The driver came back within a minute or so to see a ticket had been placed on the vehicle.
- The "parking charge notice" had a time of XXXX as observed time. This is incorrect.
- The "parking ticket notice" had a time of issue as XXXX, this is incorrect.
- The "parking ticket notice" had a fine of £100 to be paid after 14 days. This is against regulation that state the maximum allowed for a legitimate abuse of a car park is £50 (which this was not the case).
- No grace period was allowed. The driver could not see signs for the terms in a fairly nondescript back yard, while a man in a van watched him and started to issue a PCN after 16 seconds as shown on the dash cam video.

Due to the above cancel this "PCN" and confirm to me in writing by return email and or by post that it is cancelled.
If this "PCN" is not cancelled then complaints will be made to:
- IAS who will be supplied with the driver's Dashcam video showing the driver was not given any chance to read the signs, that the PEO did not give any information as required and also did not give any information when he looked on as the driver was given the wrong information, that the signs were covered by the large transit van, and that the PCN has the wrong times
- To the PPE
- The IPC
- To Trading Standards

If you believe, which i advise you not to do, that despite the above you would like to take this matter further and waste your own time and resources through the courts then do the following:
- Take this matter directly to court
- The judge will look to see if costs were mitigated and you can see that i have advised how there are numerous issues, unethical behaviour, and the signage hidden with a large transit van. The judge will see that i have tried to mitigate costs and asked for the simple solution which would be to cancel this charge and that would then be the simple end outcome. As such no further ideas of adding any further costs and or but not limited to administration fee's will be entertained as due notice has been given to you and as such you can take this directly to court.

I look forward to receiving the confirmation of the cancellation and the matter concluded.

Yours,"