DCBL unpaid CCJ from last year

ravnablue

(Please note, this is a different ticket - 2 out of 3 - to that recently posted but same reason applies as to wrong address)

I received a letter from DCBL December 22 re CCJ dated 16/11/22.  Yes, this was some months ago, frankly, I've put my head in the sand and quietly had panic attacks about these tickets.  I hope I have not left it too late.

This was for a parking notice issued 21/3/22 at The Jackson's Yard car park in Hitchin.  I have no recollection of the car park or any details but I had visited Hitchin for the first time on that date.  The NTK was sent to my previous address.  I had no knowledge of it until the arrival of this letter from DCBL which is of course threatening.

I have spoken - eventually as it was always permanently engaged - to the CCBC and got basic info.  This car park is run by Excel Parking Service and DCBL cite ELMS Legal Ltd as their client.  I contacted DCBL for SAR details and they only said they had my addresses.  

So - first step - do I send a letter asking them to voluntarily set aside the ccj or do I contact the DPO at Excel and at ELMS for SAR? I have seen the useful thread at https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6063295/help-with-getting-parkingeye-ccj-set-aside-please/p3 so can use this letter to try first?

Thank you as always

Coupon-mad

You can't delay it any longer so a SAR is not your priority.

Email Elms Legal and see if they will consent to set aside BUT don't agree to pay the darn CCJ, this isn't needed.

ravnablue

This is what I sent:

Dear Sirs,

Voluntarily setting aside CCJ/Claim xxxx

I received a letter from DCBL, dated 28th December 2022, which informed me that they had been instructed by yourselves to recover a debt of £277.  I was horrified to see that I had had a County Court Judgement made against me on the 16th November 2022.  Apparently, this relates to an unpaid parking ticket dated 21st March 2022.  This was the first time I was made aware of this ticket and certainly had never received any letters in relation to it nor notification of a court summons.

I find it difficult to comprehend that you were unable to make contact with me to send such documentation but following the CCJ, DCBL were very easily able to.  A credit search would have enabled the documents to be sent to the correct address. 

It is clear that you failed to take reasonable steps to ascertain my current residence and I urge you to voluntarily consent to a mandatory set aside, with the costs borne by yourselves. Obviously, this will not assuage my distress this situation has caused but it will avoid further stress. There are benefits to yourselves in that it would avoid a heavier cost at court when the mandatory set aside order is made by the presiding judge – and my costs.  Court time is valuable after all.

There are legal reasons the judge would set aside the case - 

As service was defective and not valid, the court must set aside your judgment pursuant to CPR 13.2

http://www.justice.gov.uk/courts/procedure-rules/civil/rules/part13#13.2

Cases where the court must set aside judgment entered under Part 12

13.2 The court must set aside a judgment entered under Part 12 if judgment was wrongly entered because –

(a) in the case of a judgment in default of an acknowledgment of service, any of the conditions in rule 12.3(1) and 12.3(3) was not satisfied

Conditions to be satisfied
12.3

(1) The claimant may obtain judgment in default of an acknowledgment of service only if –

(a) the defendant has not filed an acknowledgment of service or a defence to the claim (or any part of the claim); and

(b) the relevant time for doing so has expired.

http://www.justice.gov.uk/courts/procedure-rules/civil/rules/part12#12.3

The relevant time for filing an acknowledgement of service

http://www.justice.gov.uk/courts/procedure-rules/civil/rules/part10#10.3

The period for filing an acknowledgment of service
10.3

(1) The general rule is that the period for filing an acknowledgment of service is-

(a) where the defendant is served with a claim form which states that particulars of claim are to follow, 14 days after service of the particulars of claim; and

(b) in any other case, 14 days after service of the claim form.

(2) The general rule is subject to the following rules –

(a) rule 6.35 (which specifies how the period for filing an acknowledgment of service is calculated where the claim form is served out of the jurisdiction under rule 6.32 or 6.33);

(b) rule 6.12(3) (which requires the court to specify the period for responding to the particulars of claim when it makes an order under that rule); and

(c) rule 6.37(5) (which requires the court to specify the period within which the defendant may file an acknowledgment of service calculated by reference to Practice Direction 6B when it makes an order giving permission to serve a claim form out of the jurisdiction).

If the claim form was not served (or validly served as some may put it) the time limit for acknowledging service has not begun. If it hasn't begun it can't have expired. If it hasn't expired that is a mandatory set aside.

This is on point with the court of appeal in Dubai Financial Group Llc v National Private Air Transport Services Company (National Air Services) Ltd [2016] EWCA Civ 71 (09 February 2016).

There are further points but I am sure I do not need to quote them and you are aware that the best way forward is to voluntarily consent to a mandatory set aside, with the costs borne by yourselves.

I look forward to a quick resolution,

Yours faithfully,

This is what they replied:

Good afternoon, 

Thank you for your email and kind letter.

Unfortunately we would not be liable for paying any of your costs in setting aside any judgment, we used the address provided to us from our client that was taken at the time of the DVLA.

You are welcome to look at doing a set aside application but we would not be liable for your costs.

I guess I need to get on with reading the what to do now threads and send off a form to court

 

Coupon-mad

Reply and state that you take it from their reply that their client WILL NOT consent to set aside, despite knowing (and admitting in this response) that just used an unchecked and unreliable DVLA vehicle address instead of doing a 28 pence bulk 'soft search' first.  Which DCB Ltd did easily, after the CCJ was obtained under false pretences.

If they will not Consent now (despite being invited to do so to minimise costs for all) they will be liable for the £275 fee plus court hearing attendance costs incurred by the Defendant.

The Defendant will file the N244 next week.

The Defendant is aware that Elms Legal are on record in previous similar cases of waiting until close to the application hearing, then sending the Court a document designed to look like a signed consent order, to try to escape liability for costs.  Don't try that trick.  It will be used alongside this email exchange to show the  Claimant's course of wholly unreasonable conduct.

The Claimant is invited to reconsider this week and agree to draft a Consent Order now which states that they accept that the claim was served to an old, unchecked address, thus the CCJ must be set aside with any costs borne by the Claimant.

ravnablue

Thank you Coupon Mad

the response was just made by an office manager so was seemingly not taken seriously. 

I will send your suggested response. They do like making us jump through hoops obviously hoping we will just pay up. 

Coupon-mad

It's especially important to tell them you know about their 'late consent order' trick, because you can then show ALL this email exchange to your Judge who might otherwise say "Mr Defendant, what's your problem - it's uncontested? Look they consented, therefore all is well:  no costs order"!

...Leaving YOU to shoulder the £275.

ravnablue

Well, I received an email yesterday late afternoon:

Please be advised if you were wanting to settle the outstanding balance of £277.00, we could then consider a consent order with you.

We are unsure as to what you have referred to in relation to your comment of “The Defendant is aware that Elms Legal are on record in previous similar cases of waiting until close to the application hearing, then sending the Court a document designed to look like a signed consent order, to try to escape liability for costs.  Don't try that trick.  It will be used alongside this email exchange to show the Claimant's course of wholly unreasonable conduct.”, each case is on a case by case basis and consent orders are not offered for every case, they are dependant on circumstances.

 Our client gave us the last known address taken from the DVLA and have acted appropriately at each step along the process.

Of interest is that I received a phone call from Elms Legal this week - from a different department asking if they could send me out details for their will service.....no...I haven't given them my number either.  They soon disappeared when I told them it would be inappropriate as I was in dispute with them over a CCJ!

Coupon-mad

As I said:

If they will not Consent now (despite being invited to do so to minimise costs for all) they will be liable for the £275 fee plus court hearing attendance costs incurred by the Defendant.

The Defendant will file the N244 next week.