Parking Eye/Good2Go Notice and mediation

hc80

Hi, I've had a look at other threads and can't see anything quite as specific as I need advice for. I will try to keep succinct:
On 22 Dec 2022 I parked in my usual carpark for around 30 mins and assumed that the appropriate parking charge (£1.20) would be deducted from my good2go app.
On 28 Dec I discovered via an email that my parking charge had not gone through good2go as the automatic payment/top up had not been successful as my card needed updating which I did straight away and was under the impression that the payment would be made.
Early Jan I received a Parking Notice from Parking Eye and 2 subsequent ones over the next few weeks.
I contacted good2go who said that I had had 3 opportunities to update my card details (from reminders apparently sent on 25/26/27 Dec) and as I hadn't done so until 28 Dec it was out of their hands, they were unable to do a manual transaction, and I would need to appeal to ParkingEye (which I was unable to do for reasons detailed further down).
I received a HMCTS document in April and responded with a detailed defence and debt mental health form from a social worker. I have now received a Directions Questionnaire form from Parking Eye offering mediation before a potential court hearing. 
The background to not appealing or being able to engage any further is that I had been mentally very unwell since the end of November and unable to engage with any difficult situations (under care of community mental health team), and then on top of that it was discovered that I had a huge mass in my womb at the beginning of January and I was undergoing scans, consultations and medication until a full hysterectomy 5 weeks ago from which I am still recovering.
I have filled the form in to agree to mediation, but on reading some of the threads it potentially sounds quite threatening, and have not sent it off yet. I don't have the money to pay the mounting "fine" as it now equates to over £300 but desperately want this whole awful situation to be over and concentrate on recovering mentally and physically. I have never disputed that I owe the £1.20 and tried on 2 occasions via pleas on email to pay it via good2go. Any advice welcome! thankyou
 

KeithP

The  second post of the NEWBIES thread explains exactly how to deal with a County Court Claim.
One of the things it says is never agree to mediation.

hc80

Thank you for replying KeithP. I have had another read of this thread and can see that I have already responded to a couple of things that it would advise not doing:
I received the LBCCC and submitted the Acknowledgment of Service and subsequently sent a defence statement (with copies of emails to/from Good2Go and Debt Mental Health form). I then received a letter from HMCTS saying that my defence documents had been sent to Parking Eye and if they were going to proceed further would be in contact with me within 28 days . PE then sent the Directions Questionnaire after approx 21 days. Due to being in hospital and recovery I have not yet replied to this after about 3 weeks. Essentially should I return this form and say that I don't agree to mediation and request a hearing before a judge? As an aside, I note from the initial PE "Notice" that the photo of my registration plate leaving the car park is completely black so essentially they cannot prove when I left (ie within a grace period). Many thanks

Snakes_Belly

Mediation can be useful in some situations but parking claims are not one of them. They will want around 90% of the outstanding amount.  It's not worth putting yourself through it. 

hc80

Snakes_Belly said:

Mediation can be useful in some situations but parking claims are not one of them. They will want around 90% of the outstanding amount.  It's not worth putting yourself through it. 

Hi Snakes_Belly thanks for your reply. I'm a believer in talking things out, but agree that this is unlikely to get me anyway positively in this instance. So would you suggest filling in the Directions Questionnaire not agreeing to mediation and requesting a hearing, or just not reply and see what happens? Many thanks

KeithP

hc80 said:

PE then sent the Directions Questionnaire after approx 21 days. Due to being in hospital and recovery I have not yet replied to this after about 3 weeks. Essentially should I return this form and say that I don't agree to mediation and request a hearing before a judge?

Surely PE have sent you a copy of their completed DQ?
All you need to do with that is just file it.

Wait for the CCBC to send you your DQ then complete it and return it - remembering to send a copy to the Claimant.

hc80

The letter I received from Parking Eye Enforcement Team says:
"Please find attached ParkingEye's Directions Questionnaire (N180) for the above claim. A Directions Questionnaire (small claims track) assists the court with the future management of the claim. A copy has been filed with the court."

There is no completed DQ from PE, just the above letter with the form for me to fill in stating whether I agree to mediation or not.

KeithP

hc80 said:

The letter I received from Parking Eye Enforcement Team says:
"Please find attached ParkingEye's Directions Questionnaire (N180) for the above claim. A Directions Questionnaire (small claims track) assists the court with the future management of the claim. A copy has been filed with the court."

There is no completed DQ from PE, just the above letter with the form for me to fill in stating whether I agree to mediation or not.

But you have just told us that the letter says "Please find attached ParkingEye's Directions Questionnaire (N180)...".
It is a copy of ParkingEye's Directions Questionnaire. If they haven't completed it properly, that's not your problem.
It is not your Directions Questionnaire.

Wait for your own Directions Questionnaire from the CCBC and then complete it as described by bargepole in his 'what happens when' post linked from the second post of the NEWBIES thread.

Coupon-mad

How can it be nearly £300, given ParkingEye don't add false fees to their claims, only the capped sums allowed that are in the boxes on the right of the claim form? Is interest in the hundreds?!

Please tell us what the £ breakdown is in the Particulars of Claim on the left of the Claim form?

We don't suggest you agree to or attend a 'Mediation' phone call at all because it is pressure on you to settle. That is its sole purpose.

As well as showing us the POC please also show your EXACT defence you put in (verbatim but redacting any sensitive or personal info).

hc80

KeithP said:

hc80 said:

The letter I received from Parking Eye Enforcement Team says:
"Please find attached ParkingEye's Directions Questionnaire (N180) for the above claim. A Directions Questionnaire (small claims track) assists the court with the future management of the claim. A copy has been filed with the court."

There is no completed DQ from PE, just the above letter with the form for me to fill in stating whether I agree to mediation or not.

But you have just told us that the letter says "Please find attached ParkingEye's Directions Questionnaire (N180)...".
It is a copy of ParkingEye's Directions Questionnaire. If they haven't completed it properly, that's not your problem.
It is not your Directions Questionnaire.

Wait for your own Directions Questionnaire from the CCBC and then complete it as described by bargepole in his 'what happens when' post linked from the second post of the NEWBIES thread.

All of a sudden that makes sense, thankyou! Because the questionnaire is not filled in at all, I have wrongly made the assumption that they have requested mediation and this is the one for me to fill in. I will await my own copy from CCBC and then follow the thread.

hc80

Coupon-mad said:

How can it be nearly £300, given ParkingEye don't add false fees to their claims, only the capped sums allowed that are in the boxes on the right of the claim form? Is interest in the hundreds?!

Please tell us what the £ breakdown is in the Particulars of Claim on the left of the Claim form?

We don't suggest you agree to or attend a 'Mediation' phone call at all because it is pressure on you to settle. That is its sole purpose.

As well as showing us the POC please also show your EXACT defence you put in (verbatim but redacting any sensitive or personal info).

Many thanks for your reply
Apologies that should have said "nearly £200"  - I thought the final notice at £100 was added on top.
The CCBC Claim form states: Amount Claimed: £100, Court Fee £35.00, £50.00 - Total amount £185

Here is my defence statement (added were a list of 36 medical/counselling/pysychologist interventions between end of Nov and 18 April).

Thank you for the suggestion regarding mediation calls.

Defence Statement

On 21 December 2022, I believed that I had parked and paid the parking fee of £1.20 in good faith for around 30 minutes at ****** car park. For the past 4 years I have paid via the Good2Go app via top-up or automatic payments. This was a short trip into town with my son to choose his Christmas present at a nearby shop, we parked again the next day under the same circumstances and good faith to collect the item.

On 28 December 2022, having not engaged with my emails over the Christmas period, I saw an email from Good2Go stating that I needed to update my payment card as the payment for 21 December had failed. I realised that I had had a new bank card issued and that it was not the same card number as the previous one, so added the new card to my Good2Go account and believed that payments for 21/22 December would be paid.

On receiving a Parking Notice on 3 Jan I was very shocked and upset and therefore contacted Good2Go to try and sort the issue, but was informed it was not possible to do a manual correction and that I should appeal to Parking Eye. The parking fee of £1.20 for the second parking event on 22 December was successful (see attached)

Having been suffering from severe depression and anxiety for the previous few months, worried about finances as due to being signed off sick from work for 3 months, and now also facing a serious physical health issue, I was incapable of engaging with the parking issue any further. I was very stressed and could not face any potential conflict.

Each subsequent letter made my anxiety spiral and unable to deal with the matter.

On receiving the County Court letter, I have sought support from Citizen’s Advice and with their assistance, I have prepared this response and calendar of events below in order to defend my inability to engage with an appeal process whilst mentally and physically unwell. My mental health social worker has also filled in a Debt and Mental Health Evidence Form to support my defence.

I am having surgery for a full abdominal hysterectomy on Tues 2 May and will be too unwell to respond to any further correspondence for several weeks, and this is also causing a state of heightened anxiety. Further evidence of my physical and mental health conditions can be requested if required.

I have never disputed the fact that I owe the £1.20 parking fee and have tried to pay this on more than one occasion. I would be very grateful if you could review this defence and accept the extenuating circumstances.

Below is a timeline of events/interventions/appointments relating to my mental and physical health. I also have emails from Good2Go and a Debt and Mental Health form from my mental health social
worker. I have not been able to attach these documents to this defence particulars so will post everything to the County Court Business Centre.