2nd claim from DCB legal on behalf of spring parkin - parking charge notice escalated to court claim

SaffronValerie

Still drafting the defence for this one as per the template - unsure what to say as I can't remember much from it but I am pretty sure it was a physical ticket they put on my car that looked like a penalty charge notice but was actually a parking charge notice - I was working in the area that day is all I can remember 

Should I say that I can't remember the details?

Thank you in advance !!

SaffronValerie

apologies meant Spring parking limited for the 2nd claim

KeithP

With a Claim Issue Date of 6th March, you have until Monday 25th March 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 8th April 2024 to file your Defence.

That's over four weeks 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 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'.

troublemaker22

Fortunately, it’s not the imaginary DBS Legal but the very real and easy-to-beat DCB Legal. Just follow the process as per the Newbies and Template Defence threads and DCB Legal will eventually roll over and admit defeat in their inimitable fashion.  

We even have a thread devoted to the phenomenon - 
 

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6377263/dcb-legal-record-of-private-parking-court-claim-discontinuations/p1

And you have a double dose of good fortune because they’ve provided a PO Box instead of a real address for Spring Parking. So the claim form is invalid (see  Civil Procedure Rule 16.23 and the appeal case of Smith v Marston Holdings - https://www.civillitigationbrief.com/2020/10/07/address-for-service-the-use-of-a-post-office-box-number-or-accomodation-address-does-not-comply-with-the-rules-also-the-price-tag-for-litigants-in-person/)

The last time I saw a Spring Parking claim form like this from the clown car known as DCB Legal, they threw in the towel within days of the defence being filed. 

SaffronValerie

thank you @KeithP ! Should have it done by EOD - am I right in thinking it should be emailed on a weekday though? 

SaffronValerie

@troublemaker22 hahahhaha apparently anxiety related adrenalin after receiving these claims affected my ability to read - explains why I didn't find that thread!! 

Thank you so so much - will be drafting this shortly! If I don't remember the circumstances surrounding the ticket should I just refer to the PO box address and CPR 16.23 as grounds for the claim being invalid?

Thanks in advance  

Coupon-mad

You just use the Template Defence plus some vague stuff you do or don't know.  If you do (or do not) recognise the location then say so.

troublemaker22

Emails can be sent 7 days a week and 24 hours a day. An email sent outside business hours will be treated as delivered on the next business day. 

Add the failure to provide a proper address as an additional line of defence as well as all the others available to you 

KeithP

SaffronValerie said:

thank you @KeithP ! Should have it done by EOD - am I right in thinking it should be emailed on a weekday though? 

I wonder what 'it' is?

You can file an Acknowledgment of Service anytime you like.

Similarly, as @troublemaker22 says, you can send emails when you like, but we often see that people don't get an automated email receipt when 'it' - 'it' being an email - is sent 'out of hours'.

SaffronValerie

Hey guys has anyone got any notes on this please?

'3. The Defendant was working locally for the week for a charity in the area, outside the Cooperative store, of which the car park is directly behind. The Defendant parked in the car park behind the Cooperative store as they believed the car park to be for those working for the store, and there was no clear signage to say otherwise. The parking space was not in use, nor the spaces near it, nor was there any option to pay for parking. The signage used in the car park is monochrome, and is tucked away high up and unlit on the walls leading up to the car park.

4.  The Claimant has provided a PO Box instead of a real address for Spring Parking. Thus the claim form itself is invalid, to which the Defendant refers to CPR 16.23, which demonstrates that ‘a party to proceedings must give an address at which that party may be served with documents relating to those proceedings. The address must include a full postcode or its equivalent in any EEA state (if applicable) unless the court orders otherwise’, as seen in the appeal case of Smith v Marston Holdings.'

Is this enough? I am going to submit tonight : ) 

thank you  

@troublemaker22
@Coupon-mad
@KeithP

KeithP

SaffronValerie said:

I am going to submit tonight : ) 

Why the rush?
As said earlier, you have until 4pm on Monday 8th April 2024 to file your Defence.
That's still well over two weeks away.
Please do not file your Defence before you are absolutely sure it is good enough.

That does assume that you have, or will, file an Acknowledgment of Service before next Monday.