Parking Charge from an IPC member

yorkyuk

Hi,

I've recently received a PCN from an IPC member for parking outside a marked bay in a retail park.

I have a few questions since reading the Newbies posts etc.

The advice seems mixed, some say ignore they can't make you pay, while other advice is to pay within the 14 days and then appeal so they don't increase the charge to the full amount.

If I ignore then they take me to court:-

"the worst that can usually happen is you're ordered to pay the charge and the company could also reclaim the court fees (which initially can be between £25 and £410 plus more if there's a hearing) but other costs aren't awarded."

So if I do this and ignore there's a chance I could pay a lot more than the initial charge?

In the letter they sent me they added that the time issued was 10:30 am, but when I checked back on my dashcam I actually left the area concerned at 10:15 am so was in the area before it, but not at the time they mention.

They also said there was clear signage in and around the area, but I have been back and there is not, there is a sign further away, but it is not near the parking area and isn't reasonable for me to read it whilst driving so I didn't actually see it on the day.  is there a guide on how far away the signage is to be classed as reasonable for me to read?

The car park is also free to use if that makes any difference?

I have 14 days to pay at a reduced rate and 28 days to appeal, so if I appeal and it passes the 14 days and my appeal loses, will I be charged the full amount or does appealing stop the 14-day clock?

Any advice on how to proceed is greatly appreciated.

KeithP

I don't know what you have been reading but you have picked up a lot of duff information from somewhere.

I think you'll find the opening post in the NEWBIES thread will answer all your questions.

Coupon-mad

"the worst that can usually happen is you're ordered to pay the charge and the company could also reclaim the court fees (which initially can be between £25 and £410 plus more if there's a hearing) but other costs aren't awarded."

Where has that alarmist rubbish come from?  £410, what ARE they talking about?! Was this from the awful, out of date (and in some places wrong) MSE article about parking charges?

Don't read the MSE article.

Read the NEWBIES thread, top of this forum.  No-one pays an IPC firm and defending a claim doesn't risk huge costs nor a CCJ.

There is no 14 day clock; forget it and read the NEWBIES thread.

fisherjim

When you went back I assume you got lots of photos plus a recording from your dashcam entering the car park showing the lack of signage?

Half_way

Where have you been getting the advice from??

such as this

The advice seems mixed, some say ignore they can't make you pay, while other advice is to pay within the 14 days and then appeal so they don't increase the charge to the full amount.

This is bad, once paid then thats it - you have accepted their demands and paid up there is no way back, at least not without a huge amount of effort - and we would be talking about a separate court claim made against the parking company - not an appeal you would need to initiate a court claim .

 Likewise with ignore, if you go down that route then they can take you to court, ignore the court papers and you are in trouble

So who is the parking company ?

where is this car park?

do not attempt to id the driver  at this stage

yorkyuk

Coupon-mad said:

"the worst that can usually happen is you're ordered to pay the charge and the company could also reclaim the court fees (which initially can be between £25 and £410 plus more if there's a hearing) but other costs aren't awarded."

Where the heck has that alarmist rubbish come from?  £410, what ARE they talking about?! Was this from the awful, out of date (and in some places wrong) MSE article about parking charges?

Don't read the MSE article.

Read the NEWBIES thread, top of this forum.  No-one pays an IPC firm and defending a claim doesn't risk huge costs nor a CCJ.

There is no 14 day clock; forget it and read the NEWBIES thread.

From this article:-

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/reclaim/private-parking-tickets/?_gl=1*txr9ii*_ga*MTgxNzUyOTA2OC4xNjUyMjE4NDAy*_ga_X74CWQS9F0*MTY1MjYxMTY0NC42LjEuMTY1MjYyNjcxNC42MA..

So regarding defending a claim, you say it doesn't risk huge costs, is there a limit then I could be charged if I lost in court, if not how do you know the costs wont be high?

yorkyuk

fisherjim said:

When you went back I assume you got lots of photos plus a recording from your dashcam entering the car park showing the lack of signage?

Yes, I took photos of the area showing no signage in the immediate area and on my dashcam that the nearest sign wasn't readable as I drove in, nor would it be safe to read it while driving.

That's why I was asking if there any rule when appealing on how far the signage is etc.

yorkyuk

Half_way said:

Where have you been getting the advice from??

such as this

The advice seems mixed, some say ignore they can't make you pay, while other advice is to pay within the 14 days and then appeal so they don't increase the charge to the full amount.

This is bad, once paid then thats it - you have accepted their demands and paid up there is no way back, at least not without a huge amount of effort - and we would be talking about a separate court claim made against the parking company - not an appeal you would need to initiate a court claim .

 Likewise with ignore, if you go down that route then they can take you to court, ignore the court papers and you are in trouble

So who is the parking company ?

where is this car park?

do not attempt to id the driver  at this stage

Came from this video:-

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_b0jrTEGJIE

yorkyuk

Before finding this forum I'd already emailed the management company for the retail park as mentioned in step 1.  So guess I have to wait for them to get back, before moving on to the next step of the guide "Postal PCN from a BPA or IPC member"?

Umkomaas

"the worst that can usually happen is you're ordered to pay the charge and the company could also reclaim the court fees (which initially can be between £25 and £410 plus more if there's a hearing) but other costs aren't awarded."

For that figure to come into the equation the basic claim against you would have to be between £5,000.01and £10,000 - there would need to be dozens upon dozens of tickets involved. What you've referred to has come from the very inaccurate advice given on the main MSE forum, we have been asking for the past 7 years for it to be removed and replaced by a simple link to the NEWBIES FAQ Announcement.  There has been no action, for whatever reason. Emails and posts about it have not been responded to.   

By the way, the costs have recently risen since the advice above, £35 starting point.  But should a motorist lose a court case for a single ticket, the maximum award would be:

£100 parking charge
£35 court filing fee
£25 court hearing fee
£50 capped legal fees

£210 - that's it, unless they act unreasonably, like failing to respond to court orders, or not showing up at the hearing, then it's open season on costs and the legal firm representing the claimant will be sure to be after its pound of flesh. We hardly ever see that kind of outcome. 

But you seem to be making a premature assumption that your case will end up in court.   Not every unpaid parking charge ends up in court. With an estimated 9 million tickets issued each year, with only one third paid up immediately, there is no way the court system could ever cope with the remainder!

Which parking firm is pursuing you? There are some that never issue court claims. 

yorkyuk

Umkomaas said:

But you seem to be making a premature assumption that your case will end up in court.   Not every unpaid parking charge ends up in court. With an estimated 9 million tickets issued each year, with only one third paid up immediately, there is no way the court system could ever cope with the remainder!

Which parking firm is pursuing you? There are some that never issue court claims. 

I was just doing some initial research into my options to work out if it was worth appealing.  Obvious I came across the MSE article first and the £400+ they mentioned made me think paying half the £100 cost in 14 days was better than risking a £400+ court cost.

Since reading the NEWBIES Post I've realised there's other avenues to go down.

UKCPS is the Parking Firm.