ParkingEye Ticket on Europcar Hire - 1 minute overstay - help with appealing this correctly

fi_al

Hello,

Thanks in advance with any help you experts can offer on this. I spend a few hours reading the various related threads last night, but I didn't come up with anything clear enough.

I hired a car with Europcar and received an email from them this week to say that they have received a PCN for the vehicle staying for 31mins rather than the 30mins allowed in a private carpark, captured on camera.

The alleged contravention occurred on the 2/6. ParkingEye issued the notice to Europcar on the 7/6 and they emailed me with it on the 22/6 which is the day after the 14 days allowed to pay the reduced fee. I now have until the 5/7 to pay.
This means I'm being asked for £100 from PE and £40 admin fee from Eupopcar for staying 1min over the allowed time.

I don't know who owns the car park, so I can't appeal directly to them. 
To add, my mum runs an arts venue that backs onto the car park, but she doesn't have anything to do with the carpark.

I would very much appreciate any help with writing a good appeal.

Thank you

Fiona

Umkomaas

Have you received a formal Notice to Hirer from PE?  If so, have they attached a copy of your signed hire agreement with Europcar?

Or is this a case of Europcar photocopying their Notice to Keeper and sending it on to you to be dealt with?

fi_al

From Europcar, I've only received a photocopy of the PCN (not sure if this is also the notice to keeper) from PE and a traffic violation invoice. No copy of the hire agreement.

Thank you

fi_al

And I havn't received a formal notice to hirer

Umkomaas

You must get Europcar to formally transfer liability to you by filling in the transfer slip on the back of the NtK and returning it to PE. Otherwise they will continue to be liable, they'll take the easy route, pay PE the £100 PCN, then charge your credit card!

Jenni_D

Remind Europcar of the BVRLA Memorandum of Understanding (section 3.2) which advises hire companies to do exactly what @Umkomaas has mentioned above.  

Fruitcake

As above, the hirer/lessee is not responsible for the charge, and cannot appeal anything until they have received a NTH in their own name. Until then, the keeper (the hire/lease company) is liable. I suggest the hirer/lessee instructs the hire/lease company in writing not to pay the charge under any circumstances, but instead to pass the hirer/lessee's details to the PPC as per the BVRLA guidelines.

You should also check the hire Ts and Cs to see what it says about parking charge notices from unregulated private parking companies. Quite often the hire contract does not mention them at all, only fines and penalties from an authority, which a PCN from a private company is not.
You may find they have charged you in breach of the contract terms, in which case you should tell them, and flag the payment to your card issuer as fraudulent.

fi_al

Thank you all. 
I've emailed them telling them not to charge my credit card and to transfer liability.
I checked the T&C's and they must have changed them recently as they include private parking companies.
Is there any point appealing to PE at this point or is it best to wait for the NTH?

Umkomaas

You've nothing to appeal on. If you do you could miss out on winning based on the vital hire agreement not being included with the NtH. Why the need to prematurely appeal?

Fruitcake

Again, the hirer/lessee is not responsible for the charge, and cannot (should not) appeal anything until they have received a NTH in their own name. Until then, the keeper (the hire/lease company) is liable.

I suggest you read the NEWBIES, and paragraphs 13 and 14 of the PoFA 2012 to understand what PE have to do in order for the hirer/lessee to be liable. It might happen, but I have yet to see any PPC manage to follow the PoFA.

The most important thing is for the driver to say and do nothing. Only they can be held liable, but PE have no way of finding out who it was unless someone tells them. The hire/lease company don't know who it was, unless they were present at the time of the alleged event, so can only provide the details of the hirer/lessee. 

Jenni_D

fi_al said:

Thank you all. 
I've emailed them telling them not to charge my credit card and to transfer liability.
I checked the T&C's and they must have changed them recently as they include private parking companies.
Is there any point appealing to PE at this point or is it best to wait for the NTH?

The UK-specific terms mentioned on the website says this:

Fines & Charges

You are liable for the payment of all charges, fees & costs arising from any congestion charge, bus lane penalties, speeding fines, road traffic offence, or parking offence involving the vehicle, including costs from the vehicle being clamped, seized or towed away & any charges/costs (or failure to pay) of the appropriate organisation if & when they ask for these payments together with our administration fee. 

Please familiarise yourself with sections 9.3.1 (‘Charges and Fees relating to Fines and Penalties’) and 21.2.4 (‘Use of Personal Information’) of the T&Cs for further information.

Section 9.3.1 of the linked PDF says this:

9.3.1. Relating to Fines and Penalties
9.3.1.1. Where the term ‘issuing body’ is used in this section 9.3.1 it can apply to any, or all, of the following organisations:
9.3.1.1.1 police or other enforcement agencies or other issuing authorities where a driving offence or suspected driving offence has been committed during a Hire Period; and
9.3.1.1.2 either a public or a private enforcement agency that is entitled to issue parking charge notices and associated fines where a purported or actual breach of contract has arisen.

So it looks like the T&Cs do cover the parking invoice angle, thus making their admin charge enforceable. However that does not mean they can simply pay the PCN and invoice you for it, as 9.3.1.2 makes such charge the hirer's liability.