CCJ from a private car park

JaySH

**Sorry I am new here. I am opening a new post as I did it in the wrong place**

Hello
I recently applied for finances on a new purchase and was rejected at first. I checked my credit report and found out I have a CCJ from 2021  from a private parking ticket. I didn't acknowledge any letters, but at some point I moved out and forgot about it. The CCJ was issued in 2021 and I was living somewhere else by then, so I never found out about this. It is affecting my credit so ideally I would like to remove it.
I was not aware that private car parks can take you to court without you stating you were the driver of the vehicle.
I contacted the county court judgment and they gave me those options (see below):

My doubts are:

1. Not sure if apply to set it aside (not sure if I will get the money back) 
2. Not sure how much I have to pay for the judgment if I decide to pay and what satisfied means. Will the CCJ be removed?
3. I might have another parking ticket from the same place (didn't see the new cameras and I exceed the 15 minutes there before I left). I wish I knew about this forum before.

Paying a Judgment

 

Payment should be made directly to the claimant or the claimant solicitors. You will need to obtain a paid in full notice which you can then send to the court to get the claim marked as paid in full.

 

Judgments paid in full within a month will be marked as cancelled.

Judgments paid in full outside a month will be marked a satisfied.

 

Applying to vary a Judgment

 

If you are unable to pay the Judgment you can apply to pay by instalments using the N245 Application for variation of an order form. 

 

The fee for this type of application is £14.00.

 

Please see the application payment details below.

 

Applying to set aside a Judgment

 

If you think that a Judgment has been entered against you incorrectly and you would like to remove it you can apply to set the Judgment aside using the N244 Application Notice.

 

The fee for this type of application is £275.00.

B789

If you had paid the CCJ within 30 days of issue, it would have been cancelled which means that it is completely expunged from your credit file. If you pay it after 30 days then it will remain on your credit file for 6 years but it will be marked as "satisfied". Not perfect and shows any creditor that, whilst you have paid the CCJ, you did in fact receive one and you are at their mercy on how they decide to interpret that information. 

If you received the CCJ by default because you never received the Claim as it was served to an old address, then you should apply for an order for a set-aside.

Why do you think you never received the Claim? When you moved from your previous address, did you update your details on the V5C? That is the address that the PPC will have obtained from the DVLA. Whilst it could land you with a fine from the DVLA for not updating your address, it is not very likely, especially if you update it now.

For now, please answer the following questions:

Which PPC and where did the alleged transgression take place? What was the date and when did you move to your current address? We need to have some idea of the timeline between the time the PCN was issued, the date you moved and the date of the Claim in order to establish how long the Claimant had to establish your current address for service as this will be part of your reasoning for the set-aside order.

Also, please read, re-read and read again the Newbies/FAQ thread where you will learn about the process you are now in. There is plenty of information for you to learn about getting a set-aside in the second post of that thread.

Coupon-mad

Will the CCJ be removed?

Nope, which is why you DO NOT PAY.

You must apply to set aside the CCJ - which doesn't involve paying it, and the fee is usually ordered to be refunded to Defendants because the Claimant issued the claim without properly re-checking the address.  That's a breach of the Code of Practice.

Just follow & copy what these posters dud:

@Brokenchief

@Jack5656

@parkingpains1

JaySH

Coupon-mad said:

Will the CCJ be removed?

Nope, which is why you DO NOT PAY.

You must apply to set aside the CCJ - which doesn't involve paying it, and the fee is usually ordered to be refunded to Defendants because the Claimant issued the claim without properly re-checking the address.  That's a breach of the Code of Practice.

Just follow & copy what these posters dud:

@Brokenchief

@Jack5656

@parkingpains1

I am new to this, so how can I check the posters advice? 
How can I get help to know what to fill in the N244 document? Will I need to go to a court hearing?

B789

JaySH said:
I am new to this, so how can I check the posters advice? 

How can I get help to know what to fill in the N244 document? Will I need to go to a court hearing?

If you click on those posters names (they are links) it will take you to their profile page. On that page, on the left, there are series of menu options, including "Discussions" and "Replies". Selecting either of those will give the results of a search for those items. 

B789

The Newbies/FAQ thread contains much advice on how to apply for a set aside. You should read that thread and keep referring back to it whenever you have any questions as it is a reference that you should be using all the time.

In short, to get a set aside hearing for a CCJ issued several years ago, you will need to:

1. If several years have passed since the judgment was issued, you will need to argue why it has taken so long to request a set aside. You will also have to explain what you have done and when since you discovered the CCJ. It is vital that you act expeditiously as soon as you "discover" the CCJ.

2. You will need to complete an N244 form, which is the application notice for setting aside a judgment. You will need to provide details of the judgment, the reasons why you believe it should be set aside, and any evidence you have to support your case. You will also need to pay a fee. £275 if it is without consent.

3. You will need to explain why you did not respond to the original claim, why you did not receive notice of the judgment, and why you are only now applying to have the judgment set aside. You may also need to provide evidence to support your reasons, such as proof that you did not receive notice of the claim. Researching the threads by those advised earlier will show you some valid arguments.

4. The court may schedule a hearing to consider your application. Be prepared to present your case and any evidence you have gathered to support it. You should also show a draft defence for the original claim. If the service of the original claim was found to be defective, you should also argue that the claim should be dismissed under the four months dead rule but it is also likely that the original claim will be ordered to be re-served to you at your current address.

5. The judge will review your application and make a decision on whether to set aside the judgment. If the judge grants your application, the case will either be reopened and you will have the opportunity to present your case again or it will be thrown out.

JaySH

So I have the CCJ dated in Nov 2021, but I have now bank statements with proof of the new address. I am pretty sure I also changed my DVLA address as I always do, but I have to recognise I was going through an stressful time so can't remember. The CCJ is on my previous address. Although I recognised I didn't acknowledge the letters, I never got more letters sent to the new address therefore I wasn't aware they were taking me to courts. Will this be enough proof to set it aside? 

Many thanks

KeithP

@JaySH, when dealing with a set aside, it is quite important to act quickly. The courts need to see that you have acted as soon as you discovered the injustice.

You started this thread on 30th March - that's four weeks ago (all but a day) - and then simply vanished.

Do you still have the vehicle in question?
If so, look at the Registration Document (V5c). Does it have your current address on it?

B789

JaySH said:

So I have the CCJ dated in Nov 2021, but I have now bank statements with proof of the new address. I am pretty sure I also changed my DVLA address as I always do, but I have to recognise I was going through an stressful time so can't remember. The CCJ is on my previous address. Although I recognised I didn't acknowledge the letters, I never got more letters sent to the new address therefore I wasn't aware they were taking me to courts. Will this be enough proof to set it aside?

It is most likely that, whilst you "changed your DVLA address" for your driving licence, you did not update the address on your V5C logbook, which is the address used for PCNs. Whilst it is unlikely, you could be fined by the DVLA up to £1,000 for not updating your V5C.

Which "letters" did you not acknowledge?

JaySH

So I changed my address in the V5C logbook and driving license I am pretty sure, but I am not sure how to check the date when I did this. I was going through a difficult time so can't remember. First thing to do is to double check if I did change the address in the V5C logbook (need to find the way) then I could apply to set it aside. 
I didn't acknowledge the letters saying I have a parking ticket, but I don't remember having any letters about taking me to courts. Then I moved out, updated all and never received any more letters.
Sorry I have vanished for a while, but currently single dad and recently have changes with work/childcare.
My vehicle also broke down two weeks ago, so I sold it and got a new vehicle. So let's say I have loads going on at the same time. I really want to get on with this as soon as possible now.

B789

If you updated your V5C online, you should have an acknowledgement email somewhere. However, if you didn't actually update the V5C and you didn't tell the parking company to "erase" your old address and update it with your current address, it is very likely that any correspondence just kept going to your old address.

You can visit this site: https://change-address-v5c.service.gov.uk/?locale=en

If you have a copy of your V5C, you just enter your VRM and the V5C document reference number and postcode. If your current postcode doesn't bring it up, then try your previous one. Whichever postcode brings up the details is the address currently registered on your V5C.