DCB- What next?

l_savings

Hi all,

I'm very new to this, so would appreciate a little advice if possible!

I had a PCN from a McDonalds car park in Oct 2023. I responded with reasons why I would not be paying the charge. The charge is for £100 for an overstay in a free car park (free for 90 mins). Overstayed by 47 mins.

DCB got involved (and added another £70!) and I responded with a response on a previous thread to state I would defend, needed an additional 30 days etc. I have just got the following response and unsure of where I go next?

Thanks in advance!

"We now respond to the same as follows.

 

When parking on private land, the contractual terms of the site are set out on the signs. You are entering a contract and agreeing to the terms by parking and staying on the site. Parking in breach of the terms as stipulated on the signage means that you are then breaking the terms of the contract. This breach of contract is the grounds for the sum of the Parking Charge Notice (PCN).

 

The terms and conditions on the signs stated '90 minute maximum stay', or otherwise a PCN of £100.00 would be issued. The vehicle was recorded on the land for 2 hours and 17 minutes, as is demonstrated in the photographic evidence attached. The PCN was issued correctly, and in accordance with the amount as stated.

 

Our Client provided a sufficient amount of signage in order for Drivers to understand they were parking on private land and to understand the terms of the site.  

 

It is your responsibility to seek out the signage on the site, in order to determine whether you can comply with the terms of the signage. Therefore, the error lies with yourself as you parked your vehicle on site without understanding the terms of parking.  

 

Do note the terms and conditions of the signage still apply to the customers of the McDonald's on site.

 

The sum added is a contribution to the actual costs incurred by our Client as a result of your non-payment. Our Client’s employees have spent time and material attempting to recover the debt. This is not our Client’s usual business and the resources could have been better spent in other areas of the business. Had you of paid as per the Contract, there would have been no need for recovery action so the amount due would not have increased.

 

The HMRC ‘VAT Supply and Consideration manual’ (VATSC06140), which was last updated on 02/09/2020, confirmed that PCNs fall out of the scope of VAT.

 

Please note the timeframe in which to appeal the PCN has expired. You were given the opportunity to lodge an appeal when the initial Notice was issued to you.

 

It is our position that our Client has taken all reasonable steps to bring the matters to your attention before additional fees and costs were incurred. All correspondence is sent via a trusted postal service as it is within our Client’s best interest that the correspondence reaches the intended recipient. DCB Legal have now been instructed to pursue the balance as all previous attempts to recover the balance have been exhausted. 

You now have 30 days from the date of this email to make payment of £170.00. Failure to make payment will result in a Claim being issued against you without any further reference."

nopcns

Please read the Newbies/FAQ thread which explains in great detail how to beat this scam. It does not appear that you have already done so. The second post explains what you can expect.

There is a 100% chance that if you follow the advice in the above thread and wait for them to issue a claim and then defend it using the robust template defence, they will discontinue. DO as advised and you can expect your username to appear in lights in this thread:
DCB LEGAL RECORD OF PRIVATE PARKING COURT CLAIM DISCONTINUATIONS

Coupon-mad

What you do next is this, please:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/80729403/#Comment_80729403

Tell us when you've reported DCB Legal to HMRC  online, for suspected failure to account for VAT on debt recovery fees.  It's very easy to do.  Took me 5 minutes to do my suspected VAT concerns report.

Le_Kirk

Had you of paid as per the Contract, there would have been no need for recovery action so the amount due would not have increased.

Dd they really put that?

1505grandad

I know nothing about VAT etc but wonder if this is relevant  -  the OP received as above:-

"The terms and conditions on the signs stated '90 minute maximum stay', or otherwise a PCN of £100.00 would be issued. The vehicle was recorded on the land for 2 hours and 17 minutes, as is demonstrated in the photographic evidence attached. The PCN was issued correctly, and in accordance with the amount as stated."

"The HMRC ‘VAT Supply and Consideration manual’ (VATSC06140), which was last updated on 02/09/2020, confirmed that PCNs fall out of the scope of VAT."

https://www.gov.uk/hmrc-internal-manuals/vat-supply-and-consideration/vatsc06140

Per the above link:-

"Excess charges subject to VAT

Where the terms and conditions make it clear that the driver can continue to use the facilities after a set period upon payment of a further amount without being in breach of the contract - for example, no charge for an initial three hours parking but £70 if that period is exceeded - then the payment will be consideration for use of the facilities and subject to VAT."

l_savings

Coupon-mad said:

What you do next is this, please:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/80729403/#Comment_80729403

Tell us when you've reported DCB Legal to HMRC  online, for suspected failure to account for VAT on debt recovery fees.  It's very easy to do.  Took me 5 minutes to do my suspected VAT concerns report.

Thanks Everyone,

I have submitted the report to the HMRC. Should I respond to DBC Legal, or wait to see if they initiate proceedings?

Thanks

Coupon-mad

Just wait for the claim. Scam nearly over!

l_savings

So, I've now got the claim form from UKPC Ltd!

What are my next steps please? 

KeithP

What is the Issue Date on your Claim Form?

Please show us the Particulars of Claim - taking care to hide any personal detail.

l_savings

Issue date: 21/5/24

Particulars:
- Indebted to a parking charge at said location
- PCN was issued
- Pursued for reason: Parked for longer than permitted (as either driver of vehicle owner)

Then costs for PCN + damages, interest rates, court fees etc

KeithP

l_savings said:

Issue date: 21/5/24

With a Claim Issue Date of 21st May, you have until Monday 10th June to file an Acknowledgment of Service.  Do not file an Acknowledgment of Service before 25th May, but otherwise 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 24th June 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'.