County Court Business Centre

IgnatiusOliver

Hi all,

I have come back from a few days away to find a County Court Business Centre Claim Form and Response Pack awaiting me.
The Parking Firm are claiming £226.40 with £35.00 court fee and £50.00 legal fees. So a total of £311.40.
It was issued on 19th July.
It relates to me parking for a few minutes on 30th June 2020. Now, whilst I still park in this car park, I have always paid and have no idea how I won't have done. Nevertheless, if they are correct, It was pointed out to me by a colleague that, at the time, the Car Park firm was not charging NHS staff due to it being the height of Covid-19, and I was working in the local hospital for the whole of that period (still do some hours).
Whilst the form looks a bit weird with the photocopied "The County Court" stamp, it doesn't look like one of the usual pretend bailiff letters.
What is the best way forward, as the idea of paying so much for a few minutes is scandalous anyway, but it seems I was exempt at the time anyway.

Thanks.

1505grandad

Who is the claimant?

IgnatiusOliver

Civil Enforcement Ltd. 

IgnatiusOliver

So, the firm must have sold on the debt?

DE_612183

Does it mention which parking firm is being represented by CEL?

IgnatiusOliver

It says "private car park managed by Claimant".

Coupon-mad

IgnatiusOliver said:

So, the firm must have sold on the debt?

No.  CEL is the parking firm.

What do you need to know that's not already in the second post (all about defending a court claim) in NEWBIES PLEASE READ THESE FAQS FIRST?

Dead easy.  We even have a Template Defence.

IgnatiusOliver

Thanks Coupon-mad. Is the template for 2020 still the right one?
Also, given that I was working with Covid patients on the High-Dependency Unit at the time, and town centre parking in Blackburn was free for NHS workers, should I include evidence of my being an NHS worker?

1505grandad

Is this relevant:-

https://www.britishparking.co.uk/nhs-free-parking

KeithP

IgnatiusOliver said:

I have ... a County Court Business Centre Claim Form...
It was issued on 19th July.

With a Claim Issue Date of 19th July, you have until Monday 7th August to file an Acknowledgment of Service but 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 Monday 21st August 2023 to file your Defence.

That's nearly four weeks away. Plenty of time to produce a Defence, but please don't leave the preparation of it to the last minute. However, you should leave the filing of it as late as possible. 

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'.