DCBL letter of Claim - Help needed

B789

monte123 said:

@Coupon-mad you must be sick and tired of people repeating the same thing. I have read the newbie thread and some of the other threads now. Honestly I feel a bit of information overload now!

From what I read this is a pattern outlined below

• Court claim issued
• Defence completed
• Hearing date given
• Witness Statement deadline dictated by the court
• Phone call from DCB Legal to defendant
• Email to defendant from DCB Legal with 'Without Prejudice Offer to Settle'
• If no response from/refusal by defendant, email from DCB Legal - 'Notification of Discontinuation' 
• Confirmation of discontinuation from the court follows

Do I start my defence now ?

What is the best line of defence for this case as I cannot remember all the details (from 2018) but from what I can recollect is that - The employer at the time (hospital) who issued this ticket did not offer an emergency parking provision for the worker ( for a late notice contract). The employer has provided a letter to help (above) but I am not sure if this is enough.

 How do I get the court claim ?

Given I have now made SAR and asked for DCBL To delay for 30 days. whats logistically my next step ...

You have outlined the typical UKPC/DCB Legal "pattern" quite well. You now understand the steps but you need to understand the process too.

The LoC is just the first step. It is giving you notice that after 30 days they may issue a court claim. They usually do but they are not obliged to start one at all or they could decide to start one at any time up to 6 years after the parking event.

In your case, if you have sent DCB Legal a request for 30 days delay then all that means is that they cannot issue a court claim before those 30 days are up. All the rest applies as per the previous paragraph.

At whichever time they issue a claim, you will (as long as they have the correct address for service) receive what is known as an N1 claim form with the particulars of the claim (PoC). DCB Legal are notorious for putting very sparse, ambiguous and unclear particulars in their claims which is why we have a specific defence template which has added points to counter the PoC of their claims.

What you will need to do when you receive the claim is to let us know the "Issue Date" of the claim so that KeithP can advise you on any deadlines you must meet. This will be for acknowledging service of the claim (AoS) and for filing your Defence.

I advise you to go back to the Newbies/FAQ thread and re-read it. It is not to be skim-read and forgotten about. Every question you ask is most likely already answered in that thread. You should keep referring back to it every time you have a new question before posting it here. The Newbies/FAQ thread is your go-to reference.

Coupon-mad

You respond to DCBLegal robustly, like I said in other DCBLegal LBC threads x 2 over the weekend.  Just read them (I have no link, but it's in my replies).

monte123

Thank you. I will wait for them to issue a claim and build a case from there based on my reading and your input.

KeithP

monte123 said:

Thank you. I will wait for them to issue a claim and build a case from there based on my reading and your input.

Oh... so you won't be 'responding robustly' as suggested by @Coupon-mad?

Coupon-mad

monte123 said:

Thank you. I will wait for them to issue a claim and build a case from there based on my reading and your input.

That's not the recommended advice.

monte123

Thank you for the advice so far. Received a letter with the country court business centre. I attach the photos of the in which they ask me to pay up or else type situitation. 

The possible responses include
1 - paying £271
2- making a counter claim,
3 - or 28 days to prepare a defence/wish to contest the courts jurisdiction. 

I will respond tomorrow by saying the third option is best. 

Do you guys agree with the move ?   

ps defence has been built

@KeithP
@Coupon-mad

[Image removed by Forum Team]

Coupon-mad

That's not a letter, it's a claim form. Fully expected.

You know how to respond from the NEWBIES thread and the Template Defence sticky.

And a good example defence to adapt is in the thread by @GolfR12

B789

[Pedant mode on] It's a COUNTY court claim form. Not a COUNTRY court claim form. [Pedant mode off]

KeithP

With a Claim Issue Date of 19th May, you have until Wednesday 7th June to file an Acknowledgment of Service.  Do not file an Acknowledgment of Service before 24th May, but otherwise there is nothing to be gained by delaying it. 

To file an Acknowledgment of Service, follow the guidance in the Dropbox file linked from the second post in the NEWBIES thread.

Having filed an Acknowledgment of Service in a timely manner, you have until 4pm on Wednesday 21st June 2023 to file your Defence.

That's over four weeks away. Plenty of time to produce a Defence, but please don't leave it to the last minute.

To create a Defence, and then file a Defence by email, look again at the second post on the NEWBIES thread - immediately following where you found the Acknowledgment of Service guidance.

Don't miss the deadline for filing an Acknowledgment of Service, nor that for filing a Defence.

Do not try and file a Defence via the MoneyClaimOnline website. Once an Acknowledgment of Service has been filed, the MCOL website should be treated as 'read only'.

monte123

they have responded with the following 

Then the following 

Shall I go to the small claims mediation service ?
@Coupon-mad
@KeithP