Am I too late, Scotland parking ticket. HELP.

Thegreatscot85

Hi all, 

I've read the newbie FAQ's but I still have some questions. NOTE:- I hadn't read this forum before I appealed to NCP! Please don't hate me!

I'll give some background on the ticket, The ticket was received in Scotland and I live there also. We'd previously visited the car park of a retail shopping center (NCP) where no spaces were available. The attendant informed us that we could park in the disabled bay as they needed to pay anyway so no different from any other space. This was a year or so ago, we received no ticket that day. We visited in November and did the same again, parked in the space and paid for a ticket, and put it on the windscreen. We received a ticket this time.



So I appealed the ticket on the basis that I had been given instruction by an NCP employee that it was ok to use the space due to the fact that it was not specific for disabled parking and the fee had to be paid regardless. I can confirm the parking bays are clearly marked and have hatched lines between each space, they are also wider. We were only parking there because we'd previously been told it was ok as long as you have a valid ticket. yes, we should have known better and in hindsight it was obvious but the original information came from an NCP parking staff member. This appeal was rejected and I'm now at the stage of getting debt letters from Trace debt recovery. I received my first one yesterday for £170 plus a reminder email today.

My question is am I too late to follow the guide or do I just pick up from the point where people start receiving debt letters? I believe I may have confirmed I'm the keeper during the original NCP appeal process. And I should clarify I've not followed any of the 1 step appeals processes described in the guide.

Any advice or help would be greatly appreciated. 

Umkomaas

Just ignore it, especially as you are at the debt collector stage. In Scotland as well, the advice (at the moment, but will change later this year/early next) is to ignore.  Read the NEWBIES FAQ Announcement, fourth post, about debt collectors. 

Apart from silly debt collector letters nothing further is likely to happen. 

Coupon-mad

Seconded.

Ignore it completely - nothing will happen - but be aware for FUTURE private parking charges (not this one):

(a). Scotland is adopting the new Code of Practice in a year or so, that will also apply in England and Wales.

(b). Scotland will also bring in 'registered keeper liability' (a bad thing for motorists) and a proper appeals service (a good thing).  The law is changing for you and us.

So, we sincerely hope that you are au fait with the need to respond to the final Government Public Consultation?

We anticipate it will be open very soon.

We all need to ram the nail in the coffin of the false £70 'DRA fee' add-on, that funds the DRA gaslighting of people that you are experiencing right now.

Whether in Scotland, England or Wales, all UK motorists should respond to make sure the level of parking charges is capped at a proportionate level AND the added £70 is banned.

Please come back here when it opens, and you can make sure you don't miss the Consultation:

If you are not a regular reader, to be alerted you'll need to bookmark the thread by MSE_JC at the top of the forum and enable (on your profile) email alerts for bookmarked threads.

Then join us when the Consultation opens, pleeease!

Thegreatscot85

Hello, 

I’ve been following the advice and ignore debt collection for the PCN. This has now moved to legal letter under the name BW Legal and these contain references to CCJ. Fine is now at £170. 90 days notice before moving to legal action via local sheriff. 

Should I continue to ignore these too? Or am I now at the stage where I should respond in some way. 

Any help would be greatly appreciated. 

Grizebeck

Do nothing at this stage

Coupon-mad

Thegreatscot85 said:

Hello, 

I’ve been following the advice and ignore debt collection for the PCN. This has now moved to legal letter under the name BW Legal and these contain references to CCJ. Fine is now at £170. 90 days notice before moving to legal action via local sheriff. 

Should I continue to ignore these too? Or am I now at the stage where I should respond in some way. 

Any help would be greatly appreciated. 

Do nothing except the Public Consultation which is anticipated to be published by the DLUHC in July...affects Scotland hugely.

Please come back here late July or August.

patient_dream

Thegreatscot85 said:

Hello, 

I’ve been following the advice and ignore debt collection for the PCN. This has now moved to legal letter under the name BW Legal and these contain references to CCJ. Fine is now at £170. 90 days notice before moving to legal action via local sheriff. 

Should I continue to ignore these too? Or am I now at the stage where I should respond in some way. 

Any help would be greatly appreciated. 

Best to do nothing.   In Scotland at present there is no keeper liablity, only the driver and if they never know who the driver is, and you will not tell them, they can write as many letters as the want.   

BWLegal know the score for Scotland just as much as they know a CCJ can only happen if you lost in court and did not pay

BWL are scare mongers hoping you are a mug and you don't owe £170, BWL have added a fake amount of £70

Old_Slobberchops

Thegreatscot85 said:

Hello, 

I’ve been following the advice and ignore debt collection for the PCN. This has now moved to legal letter under the name BW Legal and these contain references to CCJ. Fine is now at £170. 90 days notice before moving to legal action via local sheriff. 

Should I continue to ignore these too? Or am I now at the stage where I should respond in some way. 

Any help would be greatly appreciated. 

Continue to ignore these paper tigers. There is no such thing as a CCJ in Scotland and virtually no chance of a single ticket going to court in Scotland as Scottish courts are set up to discourage claims under £300 by making any costs unrecoverable. If it went to court in Scotland, apart from all the filing and hearing fees they'd have to pay they'd also have to pay 2x advocate fees as there is a Case Management hearing and then an Evidential Hearing. That's a bill of around £500 that can't be recovered to get a £100 parking charge. It makes no financial sense. There will be no legal action via a local sheriff. You might get a letter from a solicitor like Nesbitt and Connelly but these cn be ignored too. Expect more fire and brimstone letters until it dies out in a year.

Umkomaas

Old_Slobberchops said:

Thegreatscot85 said:

Hello, 

I’ve been following the advice and ignore debt collection for the PCN. This has now moved to legal letter under the name BW Legal and these contain references to CCJ. Fine is now at £170. 90 days notice before moving to legal action via local sheriff. 

Should I continue to ignore these too? Or am I now at the stage where I should respond in some way. 

Any help would be greatly appreciated. 

Continue to ignore these paper tigers. There is no such thing as a CCJ in Scotland and virtually no chance of a single ticket going to court in Scotland as Scottish courts are set up to discourage claims under £300 by making any costs unrecoverable. If it went to court in Scotland, apart from all the filing and hearing fees they'd have to pay they'd also have to pay 2x advocate fees as there is a Case Management hearing and then an Evidential Hearing. That's a bill of around £500 that can't be recovered to get a £100 parking charge. It makes no financial sense. There will be no legal action via a local sheriff. You might get a letter from a solicitor like Nesbitt and Connelly but these cn be ignored too. Expect more fire and brimstone letters until it dies out in a year.

I think that's a great explanatory post by someone who knows the court situation and procedures in Scotland. I'll bookmark it for reference for others who come this way after receiving a PCN in Scotland. I guess it will have application in future, despite new keeper liability north of the border from 2024. 

1505grandad

 "Fine is now at £170."  -   and it is not a "fine".

Thegreatscot85

So greatful for these very helpful and detailed responses folks! 

Just a quick one, could I have admitted who was driving when I appealed it via the NCP appeal process right at the very start? This is all I’ve done and when they refuse my appeal I’ve went radio silent.