Help please! Britannia Parking County Court Claim

OsteoMum

Hi all

I'm hoping to tap into the wealth of knowledge & experience.
My son parked behind some shops in Stafford in February. There was a small sign that said "Parking must be paid for by a telephone app only." My son paid within 2 minutes of entering the area, following the instructions on the board on a wall in the Parking area, using the number given and the code stated for the parking area & received a receipt via email stating his payment, car registration & the address with postcode of the parking area.

Two weeks later he had a pcn from Britannia Parking for £60 for non-payment of parking charges. He appealed and sent them proof of his receipt. They charged him £5 for the right to appeal. Britannia Parking refused his appeal on the basis they hadn't received the parking charge. They then sent him a pcn for £100. 

On closer inspection his receipt names Secure Parking Ltd as the recipient of the car park fees. 

My son has since had 3 letters from bailiffs, each with increasing costs, highlighting how they're famous for being on TV & recovering debts. I'd imagine it's designed to intimidate. Yesterday he had a County Court Claim form for just under £300. I've posted the AoS late last night & now I'd really appreciate any help to put together the best defence possible. 

My son had his workmate with him when he paid. If my son hadn't followed the correct instructions his receipt would not match the address & postcode for the parking area that the claim is for. Is my son responsible for Britannia Parking not displaying the correct information? 

Thank you in advance for any and all help.

Osteomum 

LDast

What is the issue date of the claim? Please expand on "They charged him £5 for the right to appeal. "

Gr1pr

Corrections for you 

They don't charge £5 for an appeal , no idea why you believe that story, an appeal is free

No bailiffs have ever been involved in chasing the alleged debt, just powerless debt collectors , probably DCB LTD , possibly DCB Legal too

We don't know what the Britannia signs said at the time, I don't believe that you do either, you are assuming information that may not be true.  Clearly the wrong parking company was paid, possibly due to confusing and inadequate signage, that is clear to me , so no more assumptions please, pictures of the signs and the location would help 

Facts 

The original PCN was for £100 ( not £60. ) , it had a time limited early settlement offer of a 40% reduction for early payment within 14 days , so £100 minus £40 was £60 for a quick settlement, that was not paid by your son

The second PCN was a £100 reminder where the discount was no longer available, this wasn't paid either 

Non payment to Britannia ( a BPA AOS member. ) is why he is being sued  ( he actually paid Secure Parking Ltd. an IPC AOS member , or possibly Secure Parking Solutions Ltd. ?  )

Please post the issue date on your son's claim form. ( Top right. )

Post the AOS date too. ( 14th October. ?  )

Name the legal company acting on behalf of the parking company 

Post a redacted picture of the POC on the lower left of the claim form, redacting ONLY the VRM details 

Start drafting his defence based on the defence template thread by coupon mad in announcements 

Coupon-mad

He appealed and sent them proof of his receipt. They charged him £5 for the right to appeal.

I think one other poster mentioned this but we didn't see the evidence of that rip-off.

Can we see that letter please (the one that says something costs a fiver) and the court claim form?  Is it addressed to him or you? Cover your data, the QR Code, the VRM, the claim number and the MCOL password. 

Le_Kirk

I've posted the AoS late last night 

When you say you posted it, do you mean you put something on an envelope, put a stamp on it and stuck it in a post box (hope not) OR you completed the AoS via MCOL using your son's name?  Everything must be in his name although you can help.

OsteoMum

Le_Kirk said:

I've posted the AoS late last night 

When you say you posted it, do you mean you put something on an envelope, put a stamp on it and stuck it in a post box (hope not) OR you completed the AoS via MCOL using your son's name?  Everything must be in his name although you can help.

Hi, thanks for the advice. I was a probation officer for some years so I was aware it all has to be in my son's name. After all, it's his PCN, not mine. I made sure that I questioned my son thoroughly & checked his parking receipt, I checked the parking area and generally tried to do as much research as possible. Any errors in the first post by me are wholly mine and are down to a long, sleepless night & my trying to get the request for help done before I travelled home to my bed. 
As my son is starting cancer treatment I'm just trying to .are his life a little easier at the moment. 🤷‍♀️

Thanks anyway 🙄

Coupon-mad

No worries! We just wanted to be sure it wasn't posted snail mail or in the wrong name.  AOS being lodged is important.

As long as it is showing as acknowledged on MCOL when you log in as him, then crack on with his defence, which will be emailed from an email account you can monitor.

OK so use the Template Defence.

Also please can I see this as i really want to show it to the Government as part of my work on the Steering Group:

He appealed and sent them proof of his receipt. They charged him £5 for the right to appeal.

P.S. Best wishes for your son's treatment.