Smart Parking PCN referred to DRB and now to DCBL

JKR33

Please could you advise on the following PCN issued by Smart Parking Ltd

The initial PCN was issued Dec 2022. Although the fee of 95p was paid using the RingGo app, the app defaulted to another car listed which went unnoticed at the time. I appealed to Smart Parking they classed it as a keying error and reduced the charge to £20.

I then appealed to POLPA and lost the appeal.

I wrote again to Smart Parking referring to PoFA 2012, schedule 4.  They then informed me it was too late it had been referred to the debt collecting agency and any further correspondence needed to be via DRB

DRB debt collector letters received which escalated to CST Law and eventually Credit Style UK

I sent an initial email to Credit Style in Dec 23 again quoting PoFA 2012, schedule 4.

Letter then received from Credit Style Jan 24 having contacted their client.

This was the client response:

We can confirm that we do not currently issue charges under PoFA.  Instead we are required to request the keeper details within 28 days of the contravention date, and the issue the charge promptly once these have been received.  We can confirm that the contravention occurred on DATE and the charge was issued to the motorist on DATE.  Therefore we have acted  appropriately in line with the BPA code of practice.

In the circumstances we now require payment of the above amount (£170) within seven days of the date of this letter (Jan 2024), failing which we are instructed to proceed with legal action as previously advised.

Further email sent to Smart Parking via  Credit Style:

I refer to the latest correspondence - letter dated ….. 24, received ……. 24, clearly longer than 7 days! I believe Smart Parking Ltd have not acted appropriately, please see reasons below: I dispute the PCN, as the Keeper of the vehicle. I request you to cancel the PCN as it does not comply with PoFA, based on the following reasons: - the PCN does not mention the period of parking 9(2) (a) a- just the pictures and times of the vehicle entering and leaving the car park - there is no statement that the driver is liable for the charge 9(2)(b) - no warning of keeper liability 9(2)(f) - no invitation to keeper 9(2)(e) I believe that based on the above, you have failed to comply with PoFA and therefore can not transfer liability from the driver at the time to the keeper. There is no legal requirement to identify the driver and I will not be doing so.

Response from Credit Style Feb 2024

Good afternoon 

I am contacting you on behalf of our client Smart Parking Limited 

Thank you for your email, please be advised the case has now been closed with CreditStyle if you have any queries or concerns please contact the client. 

Fast forward to Jan 2025

It seems that Smart Parking have now initiated DCBL to start so called debt recovery all over again and have now issued increasing threatening demands the latest being a notice of intended legal action.

I emailed to DCBL to desist and requested they get in touch with Smart Parking to request they review their records. 

Latest email from DCBL will continue with case until I sent proof to them.

There is also a further complication, Smart Parking transcribed my name incorrectly from DVLA, it excludes a salutation and includes some incorrect initials they insist it is correct and is on my V5C, it obviously is not! I am having to jump through the data protection hoops to identify I’m the same person. 

Please can you advise how proceed further to get this monkey off my back for good.

Gr1pr

You wont get the monkey off your back until they ( Smart  )  have either issued a court claim using MCOL  or it times out after 6 years if you are in England or Wales  ( 5 years in Scotland   ), or if you were to foolishly pay their demands, not recommended 

Ignore the debt collectors letters,  no contact,  no phone calls , nothing 

Come back to this thread if or when you receive a Letter of Claim giving you 30 days notice,  or if you were to receive an N1SDT court claim pack from the CNBC in Northampton using MCOL,  before the deadline 

Meanwhile,  IGNORE 

Coupon-mad

I don't know why you kept responding, fruitlessly tried POPLA (sadly without using either of the two 100% slam-dunk winning points we'd use, which would have killed it stone dead) and then pointlessly contacted debt collectors. All a waste of your time ... you could have won at POPLA had you asked here then. Never mind! You live & learn.

Not Scotland I assume?

Either way - nobody engages at £170 threatogram stage. You WANT the court claim!

ChirpyChicken

As above why do you insist on the continual contact

Ralph-y

for any one reading this after getting a nice letter from smart .......

this is what you should do .....

courtesy of  Grizebeck

( initial appeal to smart)

"This is an appeal by the registered keeper - No driver details will be given. Please do NOT try the usual Group Nexus Trick of asking for driver details in order to get around the fact your NTK does not comply with POFA. As there is no keeper liability then liability cannot flow from the driver to the keeper and thus is an auto win @ POPLA. Please therefore cancel the notice or issue a POPLA code where you will auto withdraw"

is some how it fails  use this POPLA appeal

No evidence of Landowner Authority - the operator is put to strict proof of full compliance with the BPA Code of Practice

or

the parking operator does not have a contract at this site to issue pcns"

JKR33

Thank you for all your comments.

I did think that once I received the response from Credit Style it had concluded the matter. 

A definite lesson learned. 

No, I’m not in Scotland. 

Coupon-mad

OK so just get on board now, with the easy stages to kill this once a court claim arrives. Read the FOURTH (your stage) then SECOND (court stage) posts of the NEWBIES thread.

I'm still feeling sad you lost at POPLA, which is practically impossible to do against Smart Parking! Two different winning ways were here for you at that point.  One about non-POFA NTKs and the other about no landowner authority. As shown above by Ralph-y. Impossible to have lost if only you'd come here.

Stop engaging with predatory eejits.

JKR33

Believe me, I feel sad having lost at the POPLA stage.  I really appreciate your guidance now.
I’ll read up in readiness for the next stage.

Thank you again for your response.