Parking fine - Help with Defence needed please.

SidneyArthur

Hi Folks,
I have written my defence statement following receipt of The Claim Form and would appreciate someone checking over it. I have read lots of info on the forum, particularly the NEWBIE thread, however, I expect amendments will be required. Shall I post it on this thread, removing all personal info of course?

KeithP

Hello and welcome.

What is the Issue Date on your Claim Form?

Have you filed an Acknowledgment of Service?
If so, upon what date did you do so?
Your MCOL Claim History will have the definitive answer to that.

Coupon-mad

Yes please show the draft (but NOT the whole Template Defence; we don't need to see that).

And please answer Keith's questions and show us the Particulars of Claim, covering your VRM.  And state which PPC & solicitor.

SidneyArthur

Thanks both, the issue date is 15th November.
Acknowledgement of Service filed 9 days after issue date - 24/11/23
The company is Premier Park Ltd
Solicitor - CST Law - Sheffield, S3 9PP

SidneyArthur

Particulars of Claim

SidneyArthur

My template defence consists of 4 points -

* The claimant has not set out any specific detail to the breach of contract and has used a cut-and-paste sparse statement of case. (Is this a valid argument in my case?) I will use Civil Enforcement Ltd v Chan (E7GM9W44) as evidence.*

* In relation to "A Grace Period", I did not park in the carpark. After unsuccessfully waiting for a suitable space to become available, I left the carpark after 10 minutes to find another area to park in. (Evidence to be used is case 3JD08399 Parking Eye v Ms X, Altrincham - The defendant spent 31 minutes waiting for a car park space without actually parking.) 

* No evidence of landowner authority.

* Abuse of Process - Inflated claim over and above the original amount, and over and above the maximum amount stated on the original PCN. The PCN states that "If we are required to take further action to recover the parking charge the amount due may increase to £115.00" (They are claiming £170.00, plus daily interest, plus £35 court fee, plus £50.00 legal costs)

Coupon-mad

None of that is needed as the template already covers all of that.

You are using the hharry defence wording linked in the Template Defence thread and just need to show us some brief facts about the car park in para 5 that you intend to place underneath the CEL v Chan images.

KeithP

SidneyArthur said:

Thanks both, the issue date is 15th November.
Acknowledgement of Service filed 9 days after issue date - 24/11/23

With a Claim Issue Date of 15th November, and having filed an Acknowledgment of Service in a timely manner, you have until 4pm on Monday 18th December 2023 to file your Defence.

That's a week away. Plenty of time to produce a Defence but please don't leave it to the last minute.

To create a Defence, and then file a Defence by email, look at the second post in the NEWBIES thread.

Don't miss the deadline 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'.

Can you please tell us the exact date of the alleged parking event?

SidneyArthur

The date of the alleged parking event was 03/08/2022.
As you are suggesting I use the hharry defence wording, I take it that my POC has not set out enough detail of breach of contract/has not stated the offence?
Are you saying that I should not include any reference to the fact that I did not actually park in the carpark (My point on A Grace Period) and only waited for a space? This is not covered in the suggested template...
With regard to the actual car park, I do not have any specific facts on it's signage, lighting etc as it is a three hour drive away and I have not been back to the area since. 
Should I include all points in the entire template? (I think I know the answer to this one!)

Coupon-mad

Yes include the whole template.

As you are suggesting I use the hharry defence wording, I take it that my POC has not set out enough detail of breach of contract/has not stated the offence?

it's not an offence.  Don't use that word.

But yes, the hharry wording is for cases where the breach reason isn't in the POC.

Are you saying that I should not include any reference to the fact that I did not actually park in the carpark (My point on A Grace Period) and only waited for a space? This is not covered in the suggested template.

No. That might well go as your facts section, which IS in the hharry version. You need some facts - general stuff about why you were there and you recall it was a busy car park, almost full, so you couldn't park or read any signs for xx minutes whilst still driving in moving traffic - but don't specifically respond to an allegation that isn't pleaded.

Le_Kirk

SidneyArthur said
Are you saying that I should not include any reference to the fact that I did not actually park in the carpark (My point on A Grace Period) and only waited for a space? This is not covered in the suggested template.

Coupon-mad said:
No. That might well go as your facts section, which IS in the @hharry100 version. You need some facts - general stuff about why you were there and you recall it was a busy car park, almost full, so you couldn't park or read any signs for xx minutes whilst still driving in moving traffic - but don't specifically respond to an allegation that isn't pleaded.

When you do write your facts section remember that defences are written in the third person, therefore "the defendant" not "I"