Multiple PCNs in Scotland - Letter from DCBL

wickedadonis

Hello all - I sent an email to the DPO with the necessary evidence as suggested on this thread. I have not received any email response from the DPO.

However, I received two more letters in the last two weeks, and this time it is from Debt Recovery Plus (DRP) - both letters are referencing separate parking dates (in March and April 2024) and they are asking to pay up £155 for each date.

They have threatened several times in the past that if I don't pay up in 7 or 15 days, legal action will start but nothing has happened. Some months later, they sent two more letters and now both letters state this is an updated case (Terminal Contact) and pre-legal warning. What does this mean? Just scaremongering tactics I presume? 

Could you please advise/suggest if there's any response I need to send? After I had received letter from DCBL, I had sent the email to DPO requesting to erase old address/cancel PCNs issued on old address and since DRP is now following up again for the two instances from earlier this year, does this mean PCNs issued to my old address last year were canceled? I'm asking because DRP have sent these letters in the past, then it was DCBL, and now again it is DRP. 

Please guide and advise on how should I tackle this issue and if there's any response I must send.

Thank you very much!

KeithP

The fourth post of the NEWBIES thread explains exactly how to deal with debt collector's letters, but to summarise that post - ignore them.

wickedadonis

@Coupon-mad, @KeithP - Thank you very much for your response, guidance and support 🙏

Much appreciated 👍

wickedadonis

Hello guys

Received "Final Notice of Debt Recovery" letter from DCBL. The letter states:

"We will now recommend out client to begin legal action against you, which will incur further costs and these will be added to the outstanding debt. Please be advised that if our client is successful then this may also result in a County Court Judgement which will have an adverse effect on your credit score....".

I presume it is still safe to ignore? Even though I had asked the DPO to 'erase' old address and any old PCNs issued to me, but it's clearly not done yet as I still see old PCNs all racked up and sent to my new address.

I just wanted to check if I should send an email to the Retail Park to raise that I am being harassed? Or raise it to my local MP to be on safer side?

Would appreciate if you could please provide your guidance and expert comments.

Thank you!

Gr1pr

Ignore, same as earlier, nothing has changed 

No such thing as a County Court Judgment in Scotland 

wickedadonis

I understand there is nothing to be done and no mitigation steps to be taken up by me, so I will continue to ignore these letters.

Thank you @Coupon-mad and @Gr1pr for your responses and advice. Much appreciated 👍

wickedadonis

@Coupon-mad @Gr1pr @KeithP - Hello, all - I just received this letter from DCB Legal Ltd after almost 18 months and I need your expert advice on what should I do. Please advise.

Thank you.

Just bit of an update - the said car was deemed as a total loss just last week and working with the insurance company on settlement (which should hopefully happen this week).

Coupon-mad

The car being written off is irrelevant.

And what on earth was the driver thinking? You can't abuse retail parks as your personal car park … but I think you realised that 2 years ago.

"From June 2023, my car was parked few days every week in a retail park in Scotland."

Oh dear.

Massive amount of money at stake, so there is a slight risk of court (even in Scotland) but same advice as this one:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6660476/dcb-legal-letter-work-car-park

Due to the huge sum at stake:

If it were me I would respond, reminding them there is no keeper liability in Scotland and you are hereby asking - under your DPA 2018 data rights - for the identity of the supposed 'Scottish Partners'.

Secondly, you want to know the legal basis for sharing your keeper data with this new third party, given:

• no Scottish firms are listed by Euro Car Parks in their data privacy page, and
• no South African call centre is listed by Euro Car Parks in their data privacy page either, and
• the Simple Procedure has not been followed; in fact they threatened E&W county court in 2024, which is unreasonable conduct;
• the DVLA KADOE rules only release Scottish keeper data purely to ask who was driving and no more. There is no POFA and no right to sue Scottish keepers where the driver has not been evidenced, and
• champerty is illegal in Scotland and this bears all the hallmarks of champerty & maintenance. Tell them to seek real legal advice if their young turkey-teeth flashing staff are oblivious to the above issues.

wickedadonis

@Coupon-mad Thank you for your prompt response. I went through the link you shared but why do you feel there is a slight risk of court despite what you shared below in the link "DCB Group don't litigate in Scotland and don't actually have a Scottish 'partner' law firm despite that letter pretending they do.

DCB Group farm the Scottish cases out to a South African call centre so you could have a laugh by calling the eejits to waste their time.

Do not do it if you aren't a robust scam baiter. AND DO NOT ADMIT TO DRIVING.

Just ignore them".

Just want to know if there's anything for me to do or should I just ignore them? Should I expect a risk of court for this matter? I've not contacted them ever so they don't know who was driving - I am a registered keeper but there are three named drivers on the car.

Coupon-mad

I explained why when I linked it.

"Massive amount of money at stake, so there is a slight risk of court (even in Scotland) but same advice as this one…"

This industry is all about the money and yours is huuuuge. Well worth it, even if they promise to bung a Scottish law firm a % per recovered case.

There is a niggle here so I thought further about these high value cases and deleted my earlier reply.

I don't want you to be an experimental test case, so fight back as advised. You can also add to the point about no keeper liability that there are 3 named drivers on this car - and several dates - so the balance of probabilities about the keeper's likelihood of driving every single time is not tipped in favour of the Claimant to the required 51%.