Parking eye threat

advent2020

I'm a long time lurker and only contribute if I need to help or can share knowledge.

Background
I work with a small motor vehicle service company on by the sea at what might laughingly be called a business park. Previously cars being serviced were often put on the shared waste ground first come first served.

Recently Parking Eye seem to have taken over this land and have sent the registered keepers PCN's "Parking Charge Notice" for failing to pay for parking, £100 reduced to £60 if paid in 14 days. The owners seem a bit worried and asked the garage what they should do and shouldn't the garage pay.
The boss said "The cars are in our care, we are responsible"

I asked our solicitor and he said "They aren't fines and explained that the council for example fine you and these were "merely" invoices and they could have to go to a court to become "fines" and that was unlikely.  He said he would deal with it.

.

Moving on a few weeks

Some "bailiffs" arrived everyone scarpered and muggins was asked to be the front man.

They had some paperwork. I called the solicitor and he wasn't aware of any court judgements made against the company, but there could have been made against the owners of the cars but he thought it unlikely. I put him on to the lead chap.  They  left saying it was a "mix up"

He said if we could get evidence (phone video) that "enforcers" who sometimes work for courts as bailiffs/sheriffs were acting illegally (without a valid court document for example to enforce) they could be fined and struck off.

We've had no more visits. All the paperwork is with the solicitor.

 
I guess the solicitor knows best. But is this normal?

Coupon-mad

Those bailiffs can't have been connected to PCNs issued to individual keepers.  Impossible it was connected, unless a customer nominated one of your employees as the driver (but you'd have had letters about it first). Your solicitor will know how the conversation went but it wasn't about ParkingEye.

I doubt the solicitor knows what we know about private parking. Cases are defendable.  Parking firms cannot send people round without having first of all won in court. You'd have known if a court claim had arrived.

You can no longer use that waste ground for cars with number-plates on, just so you know.  Clearly any vehicle is not welcome. Unless you come to a parking arrangement with the landowner.

Tell all the registered keepers to state in writing to PEye that your firm (give full company street address) was in charge of (keeping) the vehicles on the material dates, as the vehicle was in the care of the garage.

TELL THE WORRIED CUSTOMERS NOT TO IGNORE ANY LETTER.  THEY MUST DO THE ABOVE.

When you start getting letters nominate someone to handle these and appeal as per the NEWBIES thread, each and every PCN.

advent2020

>I doubt the solicitor knows what we know about private parking. Cases are defendable.  Parking firms cannot send people round without having first of all won in court. You'd have known if a court claim had arrived.

So these people were chancers and maybe unconnected with any legal body? They were polite yet menacing, large guys. Building security cameras did get some video without audio.

I spoke to our solicitor today (we both shoot). He said nothing to worry about, he said he enjoys wearing down these companies and their agents and he'd love to meet their representatives in court.
I'm not worried, I'm a sub contractor not an employee though I'd hate to lose such a profitable gig.

I'll get him to look at this forum.

Other businesses here have had judgements - not paying rates or equipment from other parties and been visited by bailiffs and had attempted seizure of items etc

Ages ago a group we and other businesses tried to purchase the land as a shared resource but we failed to secure it. There is zero chance of planning permission and  the final hammer cost was too high.

Coupon-mad

So these people were chancers and maybe unconnected with any legal body? 

No, they were bailiffs after a different debt entirely.  Your solicitor didn't tell you?  May even have been a case of them being at the wrong address due to a similar company name or something.  Might be something to do with one of these nearby companies:

Other businesses here have had judgements - not paying rates or equipment from other parties and been visited by bailiffs and had attempted seizure of items etc

This was NOT to do with ParkingEye, because you'd know if you'd had a court claim (fully defendable).

He said nothing to worry about, he said he enjoys wearing down these companies and their agents and he'd love to meet their representatives in court.

I agree, nothing to worry about unless you get a court claim. 

And if he means 'parking firms' (not bailiffs, separate thing) I have not only faced several of them in court and never lost, but also I've been eyeball to eyeball with the parking industry in Government Teams Meetings since 2020, working for consumers to get a fair deal in the Parking Code of Practice coming in 2024. We will get there in the end, despite the Judicial Reviews that blocked it last year.