DBC Legal letter for Euro Car Park parking charge notice

mistiqe86

Hi,

I am wondering if anyone can help me. I have read the Newbie threads on parking fines, I have emailed the companies, but I am a bit stuck now and don't know what to do. 

So the facts are:

- I have received the letter from DCBL (below)


- this is the 1st correspondence I ever received from DCBL or Euro car parks. Apparently parking charge notice was issued in August 2022. 
- I genuinely don't have any knowledge about the fine and it is unlikely I didn't pay for parking, but well... Unless I know where I went wrong, I have no idea what happened. 
- I have checked my documents and I have moved house in 2022, PCN issued in August 2022, I have changed V5C address only in Jan 2023. 
- I followed the forum advice and emailed DPO at both companies to update my address and erase all the previous data
- I have contacted Euro Car Parks through their enquiry website to dispute any knowledge of the PCN and asked for proof
- I have contacted DCBL to dispute the debt:

Dear DCBL,

I am writing in response to a letter from you dated 16/09/2024, reference number xxx to formally dispute the unpaid parking charge that has been forwarded to DCBL for recovery. I have no knowledge of any such parking charge being issued by Euro Car parks Limited. I have not received any correspondence or notification from Euro Car Parks company regarding this alleged parking charge.

I am requesting that you provide me with the following information:

• A copy of the original parking charge notice: This should include the date and time of the alleged parking infraction, the location, and the specific terms of the parking restrictions.
  
• A record of all attempts to contact me: This may include letters, emails, or phone calls.
  
• Any evidence that I was present at the location on the date and time specified: This could include CCTV footage or other documentation.
  

Please provide evidence of my liability for the alleged debt or send me written confirmation that this matter is now closed. Until I have received this information and verified the validity of the claim, I will not be acknowledging or paying the alleged parking charge.

If you do not stop collection activity whilst investigating my dispute, you are breaking FCA rules and guidance:

"A firm must not ignore or disregard a customer's claim that a debt is disputed and must not continue to make demands for payment without providing clear justification and/or evidence as to why the customer's claim is not valid." 7.5.3

"A firm must suspend any steps it takes or its agent takes in the recovery of a debt from a customer where the customer disputes the debt on valid grounds or what may be valid grounds." 7.14.1

Also, ignoring claims that debts have been settled or are disputed and continuing to make unjustified demands for payment is harassment.

They have responded with following:

We write further to your recent correspondence.

We are instructed by our Client to recover the outstanding balance in relation to the Parking Charge Notice (PCN) issued to you.

The timeframe in which to submit an appeal expired prior to our instruction; you were given the opportunity to lodge an appeal when the initial Notice was issued to you.

As the person named by our client, you remain liable for the outstanding balance.

You can pay easily by using Scan to Pay, simply scan the QR code located on our letters with your phone and pay by card. You can also pay by card on the secure payment page on the website 24 hours a day www.dcbltd.com/pay-online/.

Alternatively, use our 24/7 Payment line: 01302 897022— Office number: 01606 539 169 Office opening hours: Monday—Friday 8am—5pm.

Bank Transfer
Sort Code: 20-24-09
Account Number: 60430781

Please quote your DCBL reference number as the payment reference.

Please note, should the balance remain unpaid, it would be the decision of our Client on how they choose to proceed.

So I have sent another email:

Dear DCBL,

Thank you for your response. However, I must reiterate that I have not received any prior correspondence from Euro Car Parks Limited regarding this alleged Parking Charge Notice (PCN), nor any notification about the opportunity to appeal. As I have stated previously, I have no knowledge of this PCN and I dispute the validity of the alleged charge.

Once again, I request that you provide me with the following information as proof of the validity of this claim:

1. A copy of the original Parking Charge Notice (PCN), including the date, time, location, and specific terms of the alleged parking violation.

2. A record of all attempts made by Euro Car Parks to contact me, including any letters, emails, or phone calls.

3. Any evidence proving I was present at the specified location during the time of the alleged violation, such as CCTV footage or any other form of documentation.

Until this information is provided, I will not acknowledge any liability for this alleged debt. Furthermore, continuing collection activity without addressing my formal dispute or providing the requested evidence is a breach of FCA regulations, specifically:

- "A firm must not ignore or disregard a customer's claim that a debt is disputed and must not continue to make demands for payment without providing clear justification and/or evidence as to why the customer's claim is not valid." (FCA 7.5.3)

- "A firm must suspend any steps it takes or its agent takes in the recovery of a debt from a customer where the customer disputes the debt on valid grounds or what may be valid grounds." (FCA 7.14.1)

I do not acknowledge any liability for this alleged debt unless valid evidence is presented. Please be advised that I will consider this matter closed unless you can provide the necessary information to substantiate this claim.

I look forward to your prompt response with the requested evidence.

I am so sorry for the long post! but I don't know if I have done a right thing and what to do next, I don't know what the PCN is for, I am stuck.
Any further advise would be much appreciated! 

Gr1pr

The PCN is an invoice, nobody has received a fine. ( magistrates issue fines. )

14 day notices are debt collectors letters 

Wait until they ( DCB Legal. ). Send you a 30 days Letter of Claim, then reply as in the second post of the newbies sticky thread in announcements by coupon mad 

Ps, you mentioned 2 companies 

Dcbl is DCB LTD, debt collectors 

DCB Legal ltd, the legal department 

I suspect that DCB Legal are not involved yet , your picture is a typical DCB LTD letter 

LDast

Where on this website have you been advised to communicate with a debt collector? Never, ever, ever, ever, ever, communicate with a useless debt collector.

GO and read the Newbies/FAQ thread and then you will know what you need to do and when. Trying to plead with DCBL, one of those useless debt collectors, if futile and a complete waste of your time, and ours if we have to read what you planned on sending to them.

Wait for an LoC and then a county court claim and if you follow the advice in the Newbies/FAQ thread, it will all be over early next year when they discontinue.

Coupon-mad

Your thread title says you have a DCB Legal letter but it looks like you don't yet. Not sure why you responded to toothless debt crawlers.