Gladstones & PCM (uk) Ltd 14 February at 12:20PM in Parking tickets, fines & parking 1 reply 184 views

Stolanive

Hello all, thank you in advance for any help, I will try and be as concise as I can. First, some background:

I sold an old/classic car of mine in January 2014 to an old acquaintance / dealer, it was in a bad way but he thought he could do something with it and it was part of a sale or return fee on another vehicle I was planning to sell. 

September 2020 I received 2 bus lane unpaid PCN letters from Barnet council, I appealed explaining the circumstances and also wrote to the DVLA, giving them as much detail as I could about the buyer and sale. 

Barnet Council replied saying they needed more proof within 10 working days. 

Unfortunately I no longer had any paperwork/receipts of sale of car, the buyer’s business had closed down some years before, we were no longer in contact and despite my best efforts in finding some other companies he had set up in the meantime, I couldn’t / can’t trace him. 

However DVLA then replied, after the Barnet 10 day cut off, acknowledging change of keeper in Jan 2014, but also saying the new keeper had not yet provided details, and also that:

”Any statutory notice for an offence/contravention that took place after you sold the vehicle should be returned to the issuing authority giving what details you can about the sale of the vehicle. Only the issuing authority is in a position to make a decision based on the evidence that you provide.”

I wrote to Barnet again supplying DVLA correspondence, never heard anything back, I believe this one has now run it’s course.

However, the car/owner had also received some other tickets that I wasn’t aware of. 

Last week I received a ‘Letter Before Claim’ from Gladstones, dated 1st Feb 2023, representing Parking Control Management (UK) Ltd, concerning 2 unpaid PCN’s from a residential car park issued in Sep 2020. The letter states they had previously written to an alternate address (previous) but had carried out a search trace which had produced this (my current) address. 

So, my initial queries (amongst many others I’m sure) are:

Do I proceed as normal with SAR to DPO at Parking Control Management, plus a holding letter to Gladstones?

With regards to defence, I don’t know the car park, or circumstances surrounding the issuing of the PCN’s, and I presume I would be declaring myself not driver nor keeper? Other than the DVLA letter I used previously for the Barnet Council correspondence I’m not sure what I can use as evidence etc, might this be enough?

Many thanks 

P

Coupon-mad

Do I proceed as normal with SAR to DPO at Parking Control Management, plus a holding letter to Gladstones?

Nope.  Not in your case.

Yes do the SAR to the PPC but obviously far more than a 'holding letter' to Gladstones.  Provide your DVLA evidence.  It MUST be enough but you must write robustly and clearly because this is an unregulated, rogue industry.

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