Challenge Default Judgement : Premier Park Drop Case. Counterclaim denied.

Castle

stuart_c2023 said:

Castle said:

I bet there's a right of way registered on the land title deeds for access to/from the water treatment plant.

Had confirmation from South West Water Estates. It's in Defence dcoument pages 4 and 5 with a nice line straight through the car park

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/lprdqfjn366zetoxxk3h0/defence-and-counterclaim-240211.pdf?rlkey=ms9noxtyw4s40sl6mv3hk5j9q&dl=0

Good, so one of the many questions for Premier Park will be what due diligence/investigations were carried out when they signed the contract to account for vehicles using the right of way.

Coupon-mad

And why have they ignored all the VERY DAMNING evidence in your defence and carried on intimidating you?

Unreasonable conduct in the extreme.

stuart_c2023

OK, first draft for comment


I , xxxxx of xxxxxx, being the Defendant in this case will state as follows;

1. I make this Witness Statement in support of the Defence and Particulars of Part 20 Counterclaim already filed in readiness for hearing listed 15th May 2024 at Plymouth Combined Court.

2. Damage to my credit rating is proven by Exhibit SC_WS02 CheckMyFile Credit History 240222 and Credit Report 240222, which clearly shows an excellent credit rating being damaged by the County Court Judgment being applied in October last year

3. Damage to my credit rating manifested itself as per Exhibit SC_WS01 RBS refusal of car loan, which is first time this has ever occurred and caused embarrassment and distress within my family due to having to delay purchase of required vehicle.

4. I supplied irrefutable evidence to the Claimant’s online appeal process on 10/10/22 that the claim is entirely without merit, which had they processed properly would have been the end of the matter but their automatic roboclaim process led to them passing on my details to an aggressive debt recovery firm who issued a series of ever more threatening demand letters and ultimately filing claim with CNBC causing distress , loss of sleep and waste of my own family time having to research correct procedures and prepare documentation for defence, as well as the embarrassment and worry of having to attend court.

Statement of Truth

I, xxxxxx, the Defendant, believe the facts stated within this Witness Statement to be true.  I understand that proceedings for contempt of court may be brought against anyone who makes, or causes to be made, a false statement in a document verified by a statement of truth without an honest belief in its truth.

Johnersh

You can do better.

Don't refer to evidence as irrefutable. The court makes findings of fact not you.

Better might be to say the PPC has been provided with all of the documentary evidence required. The appropriate course would have been to discontinue their claim.

The statement provides little factual account of the impact on you of the distress and embarrassment. One might want to lean in to that point a little more. The witness statement is your evidence of distress not just a vehicle for appending a credit report.

Coupon-mad

Yes, talk about whole days/weeks wasted on this and taken from your family/leisure time; your anxiety about how to defend a court claim and take the massive step (for a consumer) of counterclaiming and researching the law behind it; headaches; lack of sleep; the denial of car finance and that impact on you (and partner); how the case has been preying on your mind since it all started xx months ago; the embarrassment of having to tell your employer and go cap in hand to the Water Authority management team asking to have access to their CCTV to explain your innocence...

Talk about the fact you appealed xx months ago and their WS even admits they KNEW from your early appeal all that time ago, that you were not within the site.  They ignored that.

All this has clearly amounted to a course of conduct of harassment (massive similarities with Ferguson v British Gas) appalling intimidation to carry on, and they haven't even cancelled the claim upon seeing the evidence and the official right of way!

Instead, they sent a boilerplate WS ("we're a parking operator and this is what we do") still saying you 'were observed parked in the site' which isn't true; and then they sent a patronising email deriding you for 'not having court experience' and threatening you with advocate's costs for the hearing (costs that DON'T apply in small claims).

And their template WS had the cheek to accuse you of using a template!  Your defence & images is clearly a bespoke document.

stuart_c2023

Take two.
@Coupon-mad
I haven't made reference to the threat of advocates costs as this is only within the "hands down" settlement offer email, which probably unwise to reference.

1. I make this Witness Statement in support of the Defence and Particulars of Part 20 Counterclaim already filed in readiness for hearing listed 15th May 2024 at Plymouth Combined Court.

2. Damage to my credit rating is proven by Exhibit SC_WS02 CheckMyFile Credit History 240222 and Credit Report 240222, which clearly shows an excellent credit rating being damaged by the County Court Judgment being applied in October last year

3. Damage to my credit rating manifested itself as per Exhibit SC_WS01 RBS refusal of car loan, which is first time this has ever occurred and caused embarrassment and distress within my family due to having to delay purchase of vehicle required for my partner’s transport to work.

4. I supplied clear evidence to the Claimant’s online appeal process on 10/10/22 that the claim is entirely without merit, which had they processed properly would have been the end of the matter, but their automatic roboclaim process led to them passing on my details with no good reason to an aggressive debt recovery firm who issued a series of ever more threatening demand letters. The debt recovery firm provides no email contact details and their phone system only leads through a labyrinth of automated options ultimately taking you back to request to pay without ever providing opportunity to speak to anybody.

5. Again without anybody checking the clear evidence that was supplied that the claim was without merit the claim was filed with CNBC with the threat of CCJ causing distress, loss of sleep and arguments with partner, who as a former Bank Manager was well aware of the effect this would have on our credit rating.  

6. I have had to waste countless hours of my own leisure and family time having to research correct procedures for dealing with the court system and prepare detailed Defence documentation.

7. I have suffered the inconvenience of having to take time during normal working hours to contact the CNBC and the Plymouth Court, with hours spent on hold trying to get through to a system clearly being overwhelmed by the volume of claims produced by the parking firms’ automated systems.

8. I suffered the embarrassment of having to approach my employer’s primary client South West Water for details of the land ownership of the enclosed Treatment Works site, which despite showing a clear right of way across the Claimant’s site they have continued to ignore in their Witness Statement, causing yet more frustration.

9. I have suffered the embarrassment and distress causing sleepless nights of having to attend court for the CCJ Default Judgment set aside hearing, which the Claimant did not even have the decency to acknowledge, let alone attend.

10. This matter should have been concluded in October 2022 when I supplied evidence to the Claimants online appeal system, which their Witness Statement shows they knew at this time I wasn’t parked within their car park, but due to their reliance on automated roboclaim systems and harassment has continued for fifteen months and more to prey on my mind.

11. Even after receiving my Defence documents rather than acknowledge the clear evidence and admit their mistake they have continued with a generic Witness Statement, which ignores the facts of the alleged event, contains mistakes and questions my ability to defend myself.

Coupon-mad

Shouldn't this be changed from:

'with the threat of CCJ'

to

with the CCJ 

I think paragraph 10 should be moved up to become paragraph 2 as it's the one that says you weren't parked in their car park. Needs saying at the start.

stuart_c2023

Coupon-mad said:

Shouldn't this be changed from:

'with the threat of CCJ'

to

with the CCJ 

I think paragraph 10 should be moved up to become paragraph 2 as it's the one that says you weren't parked in their car park. Needs saying at the start.

Thanks, good points.

stuart_c2023

Wow, wasn't expecting this! After couple of emails offering a drop hands settlement, which I didn't see whilst I was on holiday just received an email with this.

Presumably my Counterclaim hearing is now a "free hit" which I've paid £35 to lodge and they paid the hearing fee? Second thoughts best check about the hearing fee 

Dear Mr xxx

We act for the Claimant.

Please find attached our Client’s Notice of Discontinuance that has been filed at the Court.

Please note, the case will proceed to the upcoming trial on your counterclaim only.  We would recommend you seek independent legal advice.

Yours faithfully

xxxx

Paralegal

nopcns

Well done. They already know they are on a hiding to nothing and will have to bear the consequences of your counterclaim.