Claim letter from Civil National Business Centre. PCN after breaking down.

Binman1990

Hello everyone. I know there is lots of threads about similar stuff but I couldn't find one with the same circumstances.
 So just over four years ago I was driving home and my car started to overheat. There was steam coming from under the bonnet and a stop warning appeared on the dash. I was on a busy road with double yellows and started to panic about finding somewhere safe to stop. I saw a dropped curb with a  very large pavement area outside a block of apartments. There was no pedestrians and the pavement was more than wide enough for me not to cause any obstruction. So I pulled up so I could safely investigate what was wrong with my car. I looked under the car and could see water leaking down. I rang my dad who is an ex mechanic who said it sounded like a radiator leak and that I shouldn't try moving the car as I could blow the engine if there wasn't enough coolant left and that he would get to me as soon as he could. 

After getting off the phone to him I had a look around and saw that there was a no parking sign. I had a walk around the complex and came across the concierge office. I popped in and explained what had happened. He said there was nothing he could do as parking enforcement was outsourced and automatic via the cameras. He advised that if I did receive a letter that I should be okay if I explained the situation as it wasn't my fault and I wasn't really parking there. 

Anyway my dad eventually arrived and he managed to patch my car up enough to be safe enough to drive away. I was probably there for a couple of hours in total.

However I never heard anything from the parking company until fast forward four years and this letter. My question is can I realistically challenge this and expect to win or am I better off just paying it? 

KeithP

You need to be asking yourself why you heard nothing about this incident in the last four years.
Could it be that your vehicle's Registration Document(V5c) had an out of date address on it when the parking company asked the DVLA for keeper's details back in September/October 2020?

With a Claim Issue Date of 18th October, you have until Wednesday 6th November to file an Acknowledgment of Service, but there is nothing to be gained by delaying it. 

To file an Acknowledgment of Service, follow the guidance in the Dropbox file linked from the second post in the NEWBIES thread.

Having filed an Acknowledgment of Service in a timely manner, you have until 4pm on Wednesday 20th November 2024 to file a Defence.

That's four weeks away. Plenty of time to produce a Defence, but please don't leave it to the last minute.

To create a Defence, and then file a Defence by email, look again at the second post on the NEWBIES thread - immediately following where you found the Acknowledgment of Service guidance.

Don't miss the deadline for filing an Acknowledgment of Service, nor that for filing a Defence.

Do not try and file a Defence via the MoneyClaimOnline website. Once an Acknowledgment of Service has been filed, the MCOL website should be treated as 'read only'.

Binman1990

KeithP said:

You need to be asking yourself why you heard nothing about this incident in the last four years.
Could it be that your vehicle's Registration Document(V5c) had an out of date address on it when the parking company asked the DVLA for keeper's details back in September/October 2020?

With a Claim Issue Date of 18th October, you have until Wednesday 6th November to file an Acknowledgment of Service, but there is nothing to be gained by delaying it. 

To file an Acknowledgment of Service, follow the guidance in the Dropbox file linked from the second post in the NEWBIES thread.

Having filed an Acknowledgment of Service in a timely manner, you have until 4pm on Wednesday 20th November 2024 to file a Defence.

That's four weeks away. Plenty of time to produce a Defence, but please don't leave it to the last minute.

To create a Defence, and then file a Defence by email, look again at the second post on the NEWBIES thread - immediately following where you found the Acknowledgment of Service guidance.

Don't miss the deadline for filing an Acknowledgment of Service, nor that for filing a Defence.

Do not try and file a Defence via the MoneyClaimOnline website. Once an Acknowledgment of Service has been filed, the MCOL website should be treated as 'read only'.

Hi. Yes it is possible that at the time of the incident I hadn't updated my address with the dvla as I had recently moved. It's also possible the postman mixed up the post as he frequently does. I live in an apartment block and we regularly receive post for our neighbours and vice versa. 

Binman1990

Binman1990 said:

KeithP said:

You need to be asking yourself why you heard nothing about this incident in the last four years.
Could it be that your vehicle's Registration Document(V5c) had an out of date address on it when the parking company asked the DVLA for keeper's details back in September/October 2020?

With a Claim Issue Date of 18th October, you have until Wednesday 6th November to file an Acknowledgment of Service, but there is nothing to be gained by delaying it. 

To file an Acknowledgment of Service, follow the guidance in the Dropbox file linked from the second post in the NEWBIES thread.

Having filed an Acknowledgment of Service in a timely manner, you have until 4pm on Wednesday 20th November 2024 to file a Defence.

That's four weeks away. Plenty of time to produce a Defence, but please don't leave it to the last minute.

To create a Defence, and then file a Defence by email, look again at the second post on the NEWBIES thread - immediately following where you found the Acknowledgment of Service guidance.

Don't miss the deadline for filing an Acknowledgment of Service, nor that for filing a Defence.

Do not try and file a Defence via the MoneyClaimOnline website. Once an Acknowledgment of Service has been filed, the MCOL website should be treated as 'read only'.

Hi. Yes it is possible that at the time of the incident I hadn't updated my address with the dvla as I had recently moved. It's also possible the postman mixed up the post as he frequently does. I live in an apartment block and we regularly receive post for our neighbours and vice versa. 

Also I haven't had the car for over two years 

Gr1pr

Well the unpaid PCN was back in September 2020, 6 years deadline, would have expired in 2 years time, hence why its now a court claim, so follow the advice by KeithP in dealing with the court claim 

Binman1990

Gr1pr said:

Well the unpaid PCN was back in September 2020, 6 years deadline, would have expired in 2 years time, hence why its now a court claim, so follow the advice by KeithP in dealing with the court claim 

So it's worth challenging you think? If I haven't got a leg to stand on I would rather just pay it 

Gr1pr

I am not familiar with the facts in the case, but regardless of win or lose, I would not pay it 

Why. ?  Because even if it got to a court hearing, and if you lost, the total set by that court is likely to be at least £70 less than the total demanded on the claim form, ( typically a loss in court is around £212, not £303.60 ., saving £91 )

Plus if you draft a good defence and a good Witness statement bundle then its likely to be discontinued and you then pay nothing, £0. ( Everyone has a leg to stand on, or two. )

So only a fool and their money are easily parted, IMHO 

Coupon-mad

Binman1990 said:

Gr1pr said:

Well the unpaid PCN was back in September 2020, 6 years deadline, would have expired in 2 years time, hence why its now a court claim, so follow the advice by KeithP in dealing with the court claim 

So it's worth challenging you think? If I haven't got a leg to stand on I would rather just pay it 

LOL!  You haven't read the 420-odd successful outcomes in the DCB Legal discontinuances yet, have you?!  Thread by @Umkomaas

Your claim will be discontinued in 2025. No hearing needed, nothing hard to do and no money to pay.

Binman1990

Coupon-mad said:

Binman1990 said:

Gr1pr said:

Well the unpaid PCN was back in September 2020, 6 years deadline, would have expired in 2 years time, hence why its now a court claim, so follow the advice by KeithP in dealing with the court claim 

So it's worth challenging you think? If I haven't got a leg to stand on I would rather just pay it 

LOL!  You haven't read the 420-odd successful outcomes in the DCB Legal discontinuances yet, have you?!  Thread by @Umkomaas

Your claim will be discontinued in 2025. No hearing needed, nothing hard to do and no money to pay.

I have read some! It's the circumstances of my case that left me unsure. I mean I did stop on the pavement. And I don't know how I'd be able to prove I'd broke down. Would a witness statement from my father be sufficient you think? 

Gr1pr

Your own witness statement ( signed as true. ) is your first person account of what happened, plus you can have a witness statement from parent or whoever, ( a second witness. ) you don't have to prove it, you just have to write it, sign it, submit it to the court and confirm its true if questioned about it , ditto with dad 

The Claimant is the one who has to prove their case 

Coupon-mad

It won't get past WS stage.