REVIVING THE PRIVATE PARKING BILL

Coupon-mad

Comes across as blaming motorists.

Not your finest hour, Will Hurley.

Reminds me of VCS/Excel's finest, Jake Burgess on LinkedIn recently using a cartoon to to blame Hannah Robinson after pro bono barristers assisted her to turn £11k in unfair PCNs into Excel being ordered to pay £10k. 

Bitter, much?

kryten3000

Coupon-mad said:

Comes across as blaming motorists.

Not your finest hour, Will Hurley.

Reminds me of VCS/Excel's finest, Jake Burgess on LinkedIn recently using a cartoon to to blame Hannah Robinson after pro bono barristers assisted her to turn £11k in unfair PCNs into Excel being ordered to pay £10k. 

Bitter, much?

The cartoon was posted in January, before the £11k award,  and it was called out at the time.

Umkomaas

I think JB stuck a spoke into his own wheel with that crass infantilism. 🍼

Protest

These "rules" should be challenged as unfair contract terms, both in their substance and in the way they are presented to motorists in midst of a parking event. The courts and public opinion have already found against EXCEL and their rules. In fact they are named so often as the malefactor that one wonders if there is ever a point where the ATA world would decide that an operator was bringing the industry into disrepute sufficiently to cancel their membership (and thus DVLA access). That would require ATAs to have ethical standards of course.

Umkomaas

Protest said:

These "rules" should be challenged as unfair contract terms, both in their substance and in the way they are presented to motorists in midst of a parking event. The courts and public opinion have already found against EXCEL and their rules. In fact they are named so often as the malefactor that one wonders if there is ever a point where the ATA world would decide that an operator was bringing the industry into disrepute sufficiently to cancel their membership (and thus DVLA access). That would require ATAs to have ethical standards of course.

And a pair of big ones. How about it little Willie?

Coupon-mad

I did wonder to myself in April, if some of the worst crap in the Joint Code (the twisted bits where they have changed the wording to the extreme detriment of motorists' interests) could possibly see the BPA and IPC reported to the CMA for alleged offences under the DMCC Act (CPUTRs).

Misleading actions/omissions?

Possibly bolstered by the apparent stance of both ATAs who seem to have told the press last year that it mirrors the DLUHC Code.

Lots of it absolutely doesn't.

It seems individuals can't do a report. Would need to be a company that knows what they are doing.

Or maybe we just watch and wait and gather relevant evidence in one place this year...

Who fancies starting a thread about the CPUTRs (now DMCC Act) where we could all add examples naming & shaming PPCs and DRAs and 'legals' and HCEOs (or even ATAs) who we believe have allegedly breached that legislation?

Includes simple stuff like 'saying a trader is complying with a Code of Practice when they are not'.

It MUST only be conduct occurring since 7th April 2025 when this part of the DMCC Act was enacted/went 'live'.

And it must be evidence (e.g. letters, emails, recorded phone calls) not hearsay.

A thread like that could run and run. And one day explode in the faces of the worst offenders. All we'd have to do would be to pick the worst serial offender and hand the evidence to the DVLA, Scrutiny Board and/or the press and insist one of them raises a concern with the Competition & Markets Authority. 

Protest

who can report offences to the CMA?

AI Overview

Learn more

Individuals and businesses can report potential offenses to the CMA. This includes reporting suspected breaches of competition law, consumer protection laws, or suspected anti-competitive behavior. Additionally, whistleblowers within a company can report suspected illegal activities or anti-competitive practices. 

Here's a more detailed breakdown:

• Individuals and Businesses:

  Anyone can report concerns about potential breaches of competition law, such as price fixing, or consumer protection laws, like misleading advertising. 

Whistleblowers:

Employees or former employees who have knowledge of anti-competitive behavior or other wrongdoing within a company can report it to the CMA. 

Designated Consumer Bodies:

Certain consumer organizations can make "super-complaints" to the CMA about issues that significantly harm consumers. 

Leniency Programme:

Businesses involved in cartels (agreements between businesses to restrict competition) can also report their involvement to the CMA through its leniency programme to potentially receive a reduced penalty or immunity from prosecution. 

[ "Would need to be a company that knows what they are doing...." on behalf of motorists - you mean like AA, RAC, Which or any newspaper that has been misled? Maybe even a disillusioned ATA member ]

Coupon-mad

Yep but that (as usual, fairly hit & miss) AI result is out if date and that's only talking about the CMA's old powers re competition law and unfair practices under the CRA 2015.

Things changed 5 weeks ago and I'm sure I read that reports about breaches under the CPUTRS (now DMCC Act) must be from companies. Not sure why.

you mean like AA, RAC, Which or any newspaper that has been misled? Maybe even a disillusioned ATA member.

Yes.       

Protest

I would be surprised if the new regimen reduced CMA powers in respect to individuals. Two points however - individuals need to present a credible and generalised case for action (more difficult as an individual) and if many individuals appear then CMA will subcontract the interface to a dumb filter body - like OFCOM and the energy industry have done. The script for the dumb  interface is "your grievance if justified can be compensated by cash and some form of written apology. The max cash we can offer is £40 and the letter will look rather standardised. If this is not good enough, take us to court"

Surprise surprise.....this has already started:

"The CMA cannot step in or advise on individual complaints.

For help with your individual case or problem, contact the relevant consumer advice organisation in your area."

And the relevant organisation is CAB which is already seriously overloaded and of very limited help to motorists (and I don't think CAB offers cash compensation!!).

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/tell-the-cma-about-a-competition-or-market-problem  [Apr 2025 ]

A second pass through the same AI portal produced.......

Reports About Breaches Under the CPUTRs (Now DMCC Act): Who Can Report?

Background
The Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 (CPUTRs) have been replaced by the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 (DMCC Act), which updates and enhances the enforcement of consumer protection law in the UK

.

Who Can Report Breaches?
Reports about breaches under the CPUTRs (now the DMCC Act) do not have to come exclusively from companies. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) can initiate investigations based on information from a variety of sources, including:

• Enquiries and research conducted by the CMA itself

• Calls for information from the public, which can include consumers, individuals, or organizations

• Complaints or reports from businesses, competitors, or other stakeholders

The CMA’s draft guidance specifically mentions that at the pre-launch stage, it may act on a “call for information from the public,” indicating that individuals, not just companies, can bring potential breaches to the CMA’s attention

.

Is Govt, led by CMA, heading in this direction? They seem to be well-placed to win in almost any category  https://www.wafflecompetitions.co.uk/

Coupon-mad

The CMA’s draft guidance specifically mentions that at the pre-launch stage, it may act on a “call for information from the public,” indicating that individuals, not just companies, can bring potential breaches to the CMA’s attention.

That's good news, thanks.

Whilst we are well placed to do this piecemeal, I feel the best line of imminent attack is for all regulars, lurkers & readers here to reply to the upcoming (now promised 'shortly') Public Consultation, by insisting that the Scrutiny Board and Appeals Service must not only be fully independent (certainly with the IAS in the bin) but that they and both Trade Bodies are REQUIRED by Government to report breaches of the DMCC Act and/or the Consumer Rights Act, to the CMA.

Requiring all of the above to report evidence to the CMA will be fun if we can all push for that. Proper clout. High stakes.

It would even encourage the 'healthy competition' that the CMA love, of seeing the BPA & IPC being required to whistleblow not only about rogue practice by their own AOS members but also about their rival's members if they see evidence. Which they will.

I'd love to see the BPA dob in Excel or OPS' conduct, for starters