Suprise CCJ - Civil Enforcement Ltd

amxv

Hi all, 

Another update:

I have just received my County Court hearing date which will take place in August. 

Does anyone have any helpful tips? Will I just be expected to read out my witness statement or do I need to prepare something else in addition? 

From what I have read on this forum, Civil Enforcement don't seem to attend these hearings so fingers crossed!

Thanks 

KeithP

Have you seen this video?...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=n93eoaxhzpU

Just three or four people sitting round a table having a discussion.

Coupon-mad

amxv said:

Hi all, 

Another update:

I have just received my County Court hearing date which will take place in August. 

Does anyone have any helpful tips? Will I just be expected to read out my witness statement or do I need to prepare something else in addition? 

From what I have read on this forum, Civil Enforcement don't seem to attend these hearings so fingers crossed!

Thanks 

If it's to get a CCJ set aside, reed how it went for:

@Brokenchief (ONLY read his set aside thread)

@Jack5656

@parkingpains1

Also @EpsomJim  

amxv

Thanks both.

I have had an email from Civil Enforcement saying they will not be attending. I will post below.

amxv

The email I received: 

Coupon-mad

Be ready to explain verbally why you reject that 'offer' which was wholly designed to avoid the Claimant being exposed as breaching the BPA Code and the CPRs (by their failure to do a 28 pence soft trace) and being ordered to reply the £275 and other costs the D has been forced to expend.

Tell your Judge this unexpected CCJ was ALL caused by the Claimant's breach because they are only allowed to ask the DVLA for an address once AND are required by the BP CoP clause x (...you must look it up) to check the address again before any litigation.  An old, historic DVLA "car address" is never intended to be safe as an address for service, unchecked years later.

amxv

Thank you Coupon -mad, you've been a great help, as always. 

amxv

Hi all, 

Just want to give an update to let you know I was successful with my hearing. 

1. The CCJ was set aside and will be removed from the register. 
2. The claim was struck out 
3. Civil Enforcement must pay the £275 fee I had to pay for the set aside application. 

Thank you so much for all your help. The judge was very impressed by my application and the hearing was extremely quick, about 15 mins! It helped that Civil Enforcement didn't turn up. 

You guys are all amazing and I couldn't have done it without you. 

amxv

Here is the Skeleton Argument I used. When the judge asked about my ability to defend the original claim, I said my argument would be that I was not driving the car at the time of the alleged event, I was just the registered keeper of the vehicle). The judge was satisfied with this. 

1. Under CPR 13.2, the Court must set aside a judgment entered under part 12 if judgment was wrongly entered. Given that CPR 6.9 (3) was not met, CPR 13.2 applies and the CCJ should be set aside. As the Defendant did not give an address to the Claimant at which the claim could be served at (because the defendant was not asked), CPR 6.9 applies. CPR 6.9 stipulates that an "Individual" should be served at their "Usual or last known residence."

2. Given that more than 4 months have passed from issue of proceedings, and service of the claim was defective (i.e. it was never served), the Defendant submits that this particular claim is dead and the period for service cannot be extended by this application process. If the Claimant believes there is a cause of action, then the correct procedure would be to file a claim afresh and to the correct address after providing the Defendant with the information required under the pre-action protocol for debt claims, issued this time to the correct name and address for service for this Defendant (address). 

2.2 There are several authorities for this, including the judgment in Boxwood [2021] EWHC 947 (TCC)1, which is a reminder of the strictness of the requirements of CPR 7.6 and how difficult it is to use other parts of the Civil Procedure Rules to rectify a failure to serve the claim form within the requisite period: “A claimant is not entitled to rely on the wide, general powers under CPR 3.10 or CPR 3.9 to circumvent the specific conditions set out in CPR 7.6(3) for extending the period for service of a claim form.”

2.3 In Vinos v Marks & Spencer plc [2001] 3 All ER 784 2 the Court of Appeal considered whether any extension of time should be granted under CPR 7.6 in circumstances where the defendant had been notified of the issue of a claim form but the claim form had not been served within four months as required by CPR 7.5 and the application was made after expiry of that period. The court refused to grant relief on the basis that it did not have power to do so.

2.4 In judgment of Deputy Master Marsh in Croke & Anor v National Westminster Bank Plc & Ors [2022] EWHC 1367 (Ch) 3 the claimant was one day late in properly serving the Particulars of Claim to the Defendant and the claimant’s application for relief from sanctions was refused. In section 65 of the transcript of the trial Deputy Master Marsh stated “The defendants were entitled to know within the four-month period specified in the CPR whether a claim had been made against them and to be able to understand that claim. [...] Unless an extension of time is granted, the claim will cease to have any validity and will be struck out." 

2.5 In Piepenbrock-v-Associated News Limited [2020] EWHC 1708 (QB) 4 the High Court refused the Claimant’s application for a retrospective extension of time to serve a Claim Form after the Claimant failed to demonstrate they took all reasonable steps to serve the Claim form in the period of its validity.

“Ultimately, the problem was that the Claimant had made no attempt to serve in accordance with the rules…Although I sympathise with the Claimant that the consequences for him of the error of not validly serving the Claim Form will be serious, there is nothing that really separates his case from many others who have made similar mistakes when attempting to serve a Claim Form…I am afraid, in this case, the responsibility for the failure validly to serve the Claim Form rests solely with the Claimant’s side…

In light of my conclusions above, having refused the applications made under CPR 7.6, 6.15 and 6.16, there is not a residual self-standing power available under CPR 3.9 to relieve the claimant of the “sanction” that, as a result of his failure to validly to serve the Claim Form during its period of validity, it has now lapsed. The term “sanction” is inapt because it would, in theory, be possible for the Claimant to issue and validly serve a fresh Claim Form. The obstacle standing in the way of a claim is not any sanction imposed by the Court but the fact that the limitation period for defamation and malicious falsehood has expired…

Finally, the Claimant seeks an order under CPR 3.10 remedying his error in not validly serving the Claim Form. The Defendants submit that CPR 3.10 cannot rescue the Claimant. This general provision does not enable the Court to do what CPR 7.6(3) forbids: Vinos -v- Marks & Spencer plc [2001] 3 All ER 784; [2001] CP Rep 12 [20].”

Mr Justice Nicklin concluded, “The Claim Form was not served during its period of validity. In consequence, the Court has no jurisdiction over the Claimant’s claim. It follows that I should also formally dismiss the Claimant’s application for summary judgment.”

3. The Defendant believes that the Claimant did not adhere to CPR 6.9 (3) as they failed to show due diligence in using an address at which the Defendant no longer resided. The Claimant would not have had any response from communications sent to (XXXXX) but then filed a claim there anyway, instead of carrying out an up-to-date Credit Reference Agency (CRA) 'bulk trace' for 28 pence, immediately prior to the claim. Had the Claimant carried out an up-to-date CRA ‘bulk trace’ they would have found the correct address (XXXX due to the fact that utility bills and the electoral register had been updated to this address for many months (see utility bill dated XXX, submitted as evidence).

3.1 The claimant did not take reasonable steps to ascertain the address of the Defendant’s current residence despite having some 12 months to establish an address. This has led to the claim being incorrectly served to an old address and an irregular judgment.

4. DVLA address data may not be accurate. DVLA data is provided for a single (very limited) reason, so a parking operator can invite the keeper to name the driver or to pay, or to inform the keeper they will be liable if not, and about their right to appeal.

4.1. The system is called 'KADOE' (Keeper On Date of Event) because it is a brief 'snapshot in time' address to enable a parking firm to send a Notice. Operators are only allowed to ask the DVLA once, hence the code of practice requires reasonable steps are taken to check address details are current before litigation. Even if a motorist later updated a VC5 logbook with a new address (or if the DVLA failed to note a change in a timely manner, which is reportedly common) a parking operator will not know, nor be able to find that out.

5.  The Right Honourable Sir Oliver Heald on 23 December 2016 "announced a crackdown on unresolved debts which can damage people’s credit ratings without them knowing. The action comes after concerns were raised that companies were issuing claims to consumers using incorrect addresses." The Minister added "It cannot be right that people who are unaware of debts can see their lives and finances ruined by county court judgments. That in the digital age, we must ensure companies pursuing unpaid debts make every reasonable effort to contact individuals, rather than simply relying on a letter to an old address.”

 

Coupon-mad

That's a terrific outcome - the claim also being struck out is the icing on the cake!

WELL DONE.

This is such a good example skeleton argument that I will link your thread now, in the NEWBIES thread, so others can use, adapt and copy from what you did!

Perfect outcome; what a good Judge to take all this in within 15 minutes.