DCB Legal - CCJ Defence settlement - What next?

JJBRGGERS

Apologies if this has already been asked I have looked but couldn't find clear advice.

Firstly I have only discovered this forum and have not used the advice / templates from this template so I am just looking to know how screwed I am and should I pay the settlement.

BACKGROUND

I live in an apartment that has a public access car park outside, which I am issued a permit for through my letting agency. I have been fined for not displaying a valid permit (will talk about below) and issued 5 tickets across 5 days. The original fine was for £50 per ticket rising to £100 if not paid within 14 days. The correspondence I have received from DCBL since is demanding £1000. I tried to call to negotiate a fair price as this was the first opportunity I had to speak to anyone regarding the case (will explain below). DCBL were non-negotiable and threatened county court if I did not pay. I chose not to pay and DCB filed a county court claim against me for the sum of £1095. I acknowledged service on day 12/14 and then submitted by defence and agreed to part of the claim another 13 days afterwards. 

DEFENCE

Again I did not use the newbie template but tried to get my point across as best as I could. The basis of my defence was in 2 parts:


My permit had expired and my new permit didn't arrive due to a mix up between the landlord saying they had posted it out to me but I had never received it. I had parked my car in the car park with the old permit with a note explaining new permit on way (advised to do so by parking warden). The machine in the car park has been out of order since I moved in June 2022 and is still out of service to this date. There is a small print on the sign post behind directing you to pay online. My argument was that the penalty seemed harsh when I now have the two permits that when put together show that I have been been authorised to park there by the permit authorisers since date my tenancy started July 2022.   

 Second part of my defence was that I never received any correspondence from the parking company itself. The only paperwork they issued was a physical ticket left on the car. I received no post to my address. The ticket left on the car itself did not have enough information to proceed past the 'pay my ticket' page on their website as they stated you needed a PCN number which the ticket does not show. There is no contact number on the website and just a generic advice e-mail that gives generic responses and is no help at all and responds saying it doesn't discuss appeals. So the first correspondence I received was from DCBL legal in the post - which was the first time i actually seen the different charges and evidence for what the charges are for. This is when i contested the charges and found myself in the position i am now. 

Ultimately i agreed that i had broken the terms and conditions of the car park - but stressed it felt harsh- and offered to pay the original fine sum with the early payment discount applied as i never had that opportunity to do so due to not receiving the required information to pay and the difficulty of the website / contact avenues to resolve the matter.      

WHAT NEXT?

After filing my defence with the court I received an e-mail from DCBL stating they had received my defence and still wish to proceed to court, but then to call them for a without prejudice offer to settle. I called them and they offered to settle for £750.

After reading what I should of done in this forum with templates and ignoring the DCBL without prejudice I fear I have made too many mistakes and will not stand a chance in court. I have until Tuesday (17th) to accept this offer, should I cut my losses and pay £750.

If i choose to not settle what steps should I take next?

TIMELINE

• Jan 2023 - charges issued
• August 2024 - County Court Claim made
• September 2024 - Offer to settle following defence 
• Awaiting directions questionnaire from the court to proceed.

LDast

What exactly did you submit as your defence. We would need to see that in order to consider how you would argue your case in your Witness Statement.

For small amounts, as long as the claim is defended, no matter how poorly, DCB Legal will eventually discontinue, not before several attempts to settle for less, even trying to negotiate down to £25. As long as nothing is agreed, they eventually give in.

However, as this is for a more substantial sum, they are likely to be less likely to actually discontinue unless the defence is so strong that they are likely to get a spanking in court. So, we need to see the actual defence you submitted, verbatim.

What does your lease or AST say about parking? For example, is there any mention of "permits"? What the lease AST doesn't say about parking is equally important. Also, what are signs at the location like? What do they say? Are they capable of forming a contract and if so, are the terms in them lawful? Do they breach the CRA 2015?

You should have a good read of the Newbies/FAQ thread and the Template Defence thread for a better idea of the process and what happens next.

Coupon-mad

DO NOT SETTLE.

You had a verbal agreement with the UKPC Warden!  You were never 'unauthorised'.

We need to see your defence, verbatim. But from what you've said you covered the important point of being a known authorised resident, known to the 'warden'(who then ticketed you). Clearly a scam.

You also need to tell us what is in your tenancy agreement about parking. Or in the original advert for the flat?

How did you know you had a right to park?

Did the landlord provide the first permit from day one? Why did you need a new one?

FINALLY: the PCNs almost certainly went to the wrong address because you hadn't updated the address on your V5C. Are we right? Have you put that right now? Don't assume. Check your logbook address now.

JJBRGGERS

You also need to tell us what is in your tenancy agreement about parking. Or in the original advert for the flat?
So looking through my agreement I can not find anything stating specifically I can park in my tenancy agreement.

How did you know you had a right to park?
I was told by the letting agency who issued me a permit directly from the parking company shortly after moving in

Did the landlord provide the first permit from day one? Why did you need a new one?
The permit only lasts for so long and then they expire and send a new one out, it is meant to be without delay, but it was a mix up in postage that caused the time elapse between the 2 permits, but the first permit start date and the second permit end date cover every single day between the two of them. 

JJBRGGERS

Also the wrong address was due to VC5 logbook address which was correctly changed between the parking ticket and the original letter sent from DCBL legal.

Coupon-mad

Oh no ... eek... you've made a partial admission.  Your defence agrees to pay the amount 'of the original fines'.  Aaaargh!

Attend the Mediation call and you will have no choice but to repeat that offer.

There were never any fines. You should never have agreed to pay anything and would probably have won at your final hearing. Too late now. I'm sad about this one.

JJBRGGERS

Argh! I’m annoyed with myself for not seeing this forum before. 

So the offer to pay £750 is still on the table for another 3 days by DCB Legal, should I pay this now? 

Coupon-mad

Of course not.

JJBRGGERS

So what should my witness statement look like based on the defence I have already submitted. 

Based on my defence could I ask for the original fine sum for the discount of paying early£250 or would I be tied down to the actual amount of £500?

Coupon-mad

I don't think you'll get as far as WS stage.

You made a partial admission agreeing to pay 'the sum of the original fines' so you have to offer that at Mediation phone call stage (soon).

What did you mean by that sum?

How many PCNs?

How much did you mean?

JJBRGGERS

There is 5 PCN's in total across 5 days. I don't think i have made clear in my defence that i would be willing to pay the PCN for the amount of the early discount rate offered for paying. Would mediation take this into account or would they want me to pay the PCN charge without the early discount?