PCN for parking at petrol station

gbu_2

Ive composed this email to BP, the only contact i could find was there careline@bp.com so hoping it will get through to whoever deals with this.

Is this letter good enough to send, should i take some out or add something more at all?

PCM sent 2 letters, Trace Debt Recovery sent 4 letters and now Moorside have sent 5, should i include all these or just the first letters from PCM,TDR and Moorside?

Regards

I am writing to formally raise a complaint for the parking fine i received at:-

BP Ambassador Service Station 144-150 Stoke Newington Rd, London N16 7XA

I pulled into the station and my son got out and entered the shop as he was going to buy a drink then going off elsewhere, I then proceeded to park up, it was no more than 5 minutes.

The photo evidence doesn't show me dropping him off or myself leaving the site.

Also they sent me a picture of the sign not to park there (which i didn't see at the time or via this photo evidence of it as it's unclear, very small print and not in proper view of the parking area)

The PCN says the parking is for patrons only and as I was with my son who got out to buy something then surely he was/is a patron?

Unfortunately he paid for the drink with cash so there's no digital record of this payment.

The signs do not define the site boundary, nor display a map defining the same area!

I had my first parking charge issued for £60 on 15-5-2004 by PCM, then a follow up charge put up to £100 then I started getting harassed by a further 4 letters from Trace Debt Recovery company threatening court action and the cost now up to £170

(Photo Copies Attached)

After that I am now getting further harassed by Moorside Legal with another 5 letters threatening the same procedure to take me to court over this!

(Photo Copies Attached)

I've been a customer of BPs for many years and a reward member and this is the first time this has happened to me on one of your forecourts, i feel incredibly let down, angry and disappointed in the companies that you choose to enforce a parking rule especially when they use zero evidence and harassing letters to pay extortionate fines or go to court.

The last letter I received from Moorside  (Pic attached)

states "we are unable to respond directly and in writing to your individual request." even though they've had to write this letter to me to acknowledge my complaint to them.

Are you happy with this reply and is this a company that you wish to represent you? They had time to do this then they should have had time to reply directly to me on this matter.

Moorside are telling victims of PCN scams to 'read our website'. Does BP think this is how the public should be treated?

I will not be using your petrol stations again in the foreseeable future 

Coupon-mad

Very good.

And yes BP have been replying from that careline contact.

gbu_2

Coupon-mad said:

Very good.

And yes BP have been replying from that careline contact.

Good to hear, thank you very much.

gbu_2

Update from BP who i emialed.

Dear Customer,

Thank you for your email.

First of all I would like to take this opportunity to explain that this service station is entirely owned and operated by a third party under a BP Fuel Agreement.  Therefore, whilst we are responsible for the supply of BP sign-ware, fuel and lubricants to this location, the daily operations and issues that may arise, such as the one you described in your email, are the responsibility of the site owner.

I have forwarded them your e-mail, in case you require further assistance, please contact them directly on one of the below options:

Motor Fuel Limited

Clock House Court
5-7 London Road
St Albans
Hertfordshire
AL1 1LA

Tel: +441727898890
Fax: 01727 852 318
Email: CustomerCare@motorfuelgroup.com

Does this sound right from BP?

Also should i email this company directly although BP have said they forwarded it on to them ?

Coupon-mad

Yes and yes. 

gbu_2

Thank you, email been sent to them direct from me now also.

gbu_2

They’ve just got back to me and passed the buck onto another company

Thank you for your email.

We apologise for any inconvenience you may have experienced. Our goal is to ensure a seamless and pleasant experience for all our customers. Motor Fuel Group has an agreement in place with a parking contractor, UK Parking Patrol Office. This agreement is enforced in multiple sites within our network where a number of significant contributing factors have required additional steps to support us in maintaining a safe and accessible forecourt for all of our customers.

Due to the parking management at this service station being entirely operated by PCM, we kindly ask you to contact them directly on one of the below options:

Parking Control Management
The Courtyard 1A Cranbourne Road
Slough
Berkshire
SL1 2XF 

www.paymypcn-uk.co.uk

So is this back to square one from the original company who issued the PCN?

Coupon-mad

Dear xxxx

I hope you don't mind me saying that your response is somewhat misleading and muddled.

You say that "Motor Fuel Group has an agreement in place with a parking contractor, UK Parking Patrol Office."

Then you tell me to contact a completely different notorious ex-wheelclamper, PCM who are infamous for being outed as 'rogue traders' on Watchdog and are not connected in any way to UK Parking Patrol Office.

Whichever firm you've contracted with at this site will have a (standard) customer cancellation right in the agreement you hold, typically allowing you as the principal, to cancel a certain number of 'PCNs' per month.

I would be astonished if any landowner would have signed an agreement with any member of this aggressive, unregulated industry without that safety net. Without that right, staff and  genuine customers would be unfairly penalised and the petrol stations would soon lose repeat customers.

So, to clarify: the 'PCN' is an unfair charge because it says the parking is for 'patrons only', which we were. I stopped as my son got out to buy something. He surely was a patron but the rogue agent has selectively not kept the footage of my passenger using the premises.

I've discovered that this sort of sharp practice is typical (especially from IPC member firms like both UKPPO and PCM) and that's why the Government is stepping in to regulate them to stop covert surveillance and curb unfair conduct like this. Most of them are making hay while the sun shines, whist there's no impartial regulation to stop them.

With only Trade Bodies making up the rules (IPC or BPA) the only real 'customer service' ethical oversight that exists right now is from landowners like you. People are having to complain in droves to avoid being sued, so I can't be the first? 

I was kindly asking you to please find the 'client cancellations' clause in the agreement and invoke that right for me as a gesture of goodwill. If it costs you a tenner to invoke a 'genuine customer' cancellation with your agents, I'll cover that, if it resolves the dispute.

kind regards,

gbu_2

This is great thank you very much!

Should i send it to BP as well as to Motor Fuel Group or just MFG?

Coupon-mad

Cc in BP if you like. Doesn't hurt.

They all need to learn something about their rogue agents and the fact the Government is about to regulate this motley crew.