PARKINGEYE ticket which has gone to collections

brendankiwi

Hi, i am notified by a collections agency an outstanding parking (private) ticket from 5 years ago. At the time I was homeless...and everyday I parked outside Starucks...went in for coffee and breakfast intermittently.. sometimes I overstayed. I was on good terms with the manager and took extreme care to make sure I was exempted if I overstayed. At the time i was evicted from my flat (I missed a rent!) and the not so benign landlord (who i have since paid!

So I never got notfication. I also rang the authorities DVLA to make it known i had no forwarding address( I had marriage rbeakup, no family, no friends.. no forwarding address. They said I had to have an address for insurance purposes and 30 days to change address with DVLA. 

Fast forward- I have a big fine outstandijng with county court pushed through by the collections agency. If I pay now its just £197 I am told but if I dont it becomes £800 + as Parkingeye will push it to the magistrate.

I have the following evidences:
- that I got many exemptions from starbucks during that  month when i was homeless
- that i was a regular customer at starbucks
- i was on the homeless register and finally got a place by the end of that month from the council

Does anyone have an opinion on this? 
The collections agency just keep telling me- get legal advice and pay. But getting legal advice is thousands of pounds. I do my own ! What do I do now.. even they keep saying...you have your own legal advice..then get more! I jsut dont get it. Do I present the evidence to Parkingeye? Do i take it to the courts? And should I toss it all in and pay £197 (i can't- im trying to manage and forestall tens of thousands in debts). 

Desperate, thanks for reading, 

Trainerman

Just clarify please. Have you a judgement against you ( it has already been to court), or do you have a claim form, or is it a debt collectors letter?

Coupon-mad

If you are just getting a DCBL demand for £197 about a PatkingEye case, then you already have a CCJ and could just ignore it.

The amount tells me that this is already a CCJ.

It won't go to a magistrate.  And DCBL won't come knocking as it's not HCEO level due to the small amount.

Alternatively if you have no job or savings you can apply using form N244 for free in your case (court fees waived) to set aside the CCJ entirely.  I'd do that but you must act promptly, this month.

See what @Grizebeck has to add.

Grizebeck

@brendankiwi

How much do you owe in total?
If your credit file is pretty rubbish then paying Parking Eye wont do anything and i would just let it drop your credit file after 6 years like any other recorded debts on there

but there are options depending on what you owe, to whom, the type of debt and your income