ParkingEye CCJ – Was Abroad, Never Received Anything – Want Quick Resolution Without Court

parkingwoesabroad27

Hi all,

I'm hoping someone can help me with some advice on the best way to resolve a ParkingEye CCJ that’s recently come to light. My main concern is the impact on my credit file — I don’t care about paying the charge itself, I just want this resolved quickly so I can move on.

I’ve read the NEWBIES thread (thank you – very informative), but I couldn’t find a case that matched my situation exactly. Most people seem focused on fighting the claim itself in court, but I’m not interested in going down a long legal route. I’m mainly just looking for the **fastest and most efficient way to get the CCJ removed**.

🔹 Background:

- The PCN relates to a parking event on 15 September 2024 at Crowne Plaza Gerrards Cross, where I attended a wedding.

- I followed hotel instructions and registered my car with reception, but it seems it was not registered accurately. 

- I had already moved abroad permanently (Bahrain) in August 2024, and only came back briefly from 6–20 September for the wedding.

- I never received any PCN or court claim — I only found out about the CCJ when checking my credit file recently. 

🔹 Timeline:

- Claim issued: 6 Jan 2025  

- Default CCJ: 6 Feb 2025  

- Vehicle sold: March 2025 but was on sale from Oct 2024 

- Discovered CCJ: 3rd April 2025

 🔹 So far I have:

- Emailed ParkingEye and asked for a Consent Order — offered to pay the original charge. They ignored and referred me to DCBL. (Appendix 1) They also did not respond to my request for all information related to the charge.

- Contacted Crowne Plaza — they confirmed I attended the event and even tried appealing to ParkingEye on my behalf, but no success due to the CCJ being in place. (Appendix 2)

- Considering filing an N244 application to get the judgment set aside but prefer consent order to not waste time and reduce stress.

🔹 My questions:

1. Is it worth making one final push for a Consent Order, or am I wasting time and should go straight to N244 now? I spoke to a lawyer and they said it might help to actually draft the form and witness statement and send it to them first asking for a response within 7 days to agree to a consent order if not I would file it. 

2. Will the court be harsh about the fact I didn’t update my DVLA address or set up a mail redirection? 

3. Does the fact the car was sold shortly after the PCN help reinforce that I wasn’t trying to avoid anything and this is why I did not update the DVLA records?

Any input would be really appreciated. Again, my goal isn’t to argue the charge itself — just to get this off my credit file as soon as possible.

Thanks in advance!

Appendix 1 - Response from Parkingeye

My Email:

Dear Sir/Madam,

 I am writing in relation to a County Court Judgment (CCJ) entered in default against me in February 2025, concerning a Parking Charge Notice (PCN) issued by ParkingEye Ltd in connection with a stay at the Crowne Plaza Gerrards Cross.

 At the time of service of the claim, I was no longer residing in the United Kingdom, having permanently relocated to Bahrain in August 2024 (supporting evidence attached). I briefly returned to the UK from 6 to 20 September 2024 for a family event (flight details also attached). At no stage did I receive any communication from ParkingEye, including the original PCN or any court documents. I only became aware of the CCJ recently when reviewing my UK credit file.

 The alleged contravention occurred on 15 September 2024. However, I understand that under Schedule 4 of the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012, the Notice to Keeper would have been issued by post within 14 days, meaning it would have been sent shortly before or around 29 September. As I had already left the UK on 20 September, I had no opportunity to receive or respond to the notice. Had a windscreen ticket been issued or had I received any correspondence during my visit, I would have taken immediate steps to address the matter.

 During my stay at the Crowne Plaza, I followed the hotel’s stated process and registered my vehicle with reception as instructed. I believe the PCN was issued in error and would have contested it had I been given the opportunity. I therefore believe there are strong grounds to apply for the judgment to be set aside under CPR 13.2 (as there was no valid service of the claim) and that I have a reasonable prospect of defending the claim under CPR 13.3.

 In the interest of resolving this matter efficiently and avoiding unnecessary court time or cost, I respectfully request that ParkingEye consider consenting to the judgment being set aside via a Consent Order. I am prepared to settle the original parking charge as a gesture of goodwill and to cover the associated court filing fee (£100).

 I would also appreciate it if you could provide the following documentation for my records:

1. A copy of the original Parking Charge Notice (PCN);

2. The particulars of claim submitted to the court;

3. Any correspondence sent in relation to this matter, including the dates and addresses used.

 For reference, I have attached documentation confirming my relocation to Bahrain prior to the date of the judgment, including my residency visa and my UK–Bahrain flight itinerary.

ParkingEye Response

Good Morning

 Thank you for your correspondence received in relation to the above referenced Parking Charge, which was issued following a parking event that took place on 15/09/2024 at Crowne Plaza Gerrards Cross, Conference, Beaconsfield car park.

 It is clearly stated on our signs that failure to adhere to parking regulations will result in enforcement action being taken and vehicle keeper details being requested from the DVLA to enable this. The DVLA release the name and address details of a vehicle keeper to registered companies, such as Parkingeye, if ‘reasonable cause’ can be demonstrated; i.e. a breach of parking regulations.

 In this instance, 4 letters were issued prior to legal action but unfortunately, Parkingeye received no response. Our original notices outlined the appeals procedure offered by Parkingeye and provided a period of 28 days from the date of our initial correspondence to send any documentation you believe would aid an appeal to us directly. Parkingeye run a dedicated appeals team who consider each appeal on a case by case basis but we note that in this instance, no such appeal was lodged.

 Parkingeye thereafter issued a county court claim on 06/01/2025 to recover the outstanding amount. However, as no defence was filed, nor was full payment received within the applicable time frame, the court granted a default judgment in Parkingeye’s favour. At this late stage, Parkingeye would be unable to accept an appeal and we require payment of the full outstanding amount.

 We can confirm that £302 remains outstanding. Please find our payment information below.

 Please be advised that your correspondence has been forwarded to Direct Collection Bailiffs and all further queries regarding the above Parking Charge should be directed to them.

 If you wish to apply to have the judgment set aside then you can do so by filing an N244 form. Please note that such an application will require the payment of a court fee of £313 (payable to the court) and that there is no guarantee that the judgment will be set aside. This will also involve a hearing in front of a Judge.

 Appendix 2

I hope you are well.

Thank you for your detailed email and for bringing this matter to our attention. I would like to sincerely apologise for the distress and inconvenience this situation has caused you. I fully understand how upsetting and frustrating this must have been, especially given your circumstances and the impact this has had on your credit file.

Following a thorough investigation, I can confirm that the Parking Charge Notice (PCN) was issued because your vehicle registration was unfortunately not recorded in the Parking Eye system on the day of your visit. This may have occurred due to an incomplete registration or a possible error when entering the vehicle details on the tablet at reception.

As part of our guest service, I submitted an appeal to Parking Eye on your behalf explaining your situation and requesting a cancellation of the charge. Regrettably, Parking Eye have declined the cancellation request as the case is now subject to legal proceedings and a County Court Judgment (CCJ) has already been issued.

Given the current status of the case, I would kindly advise you to contact Parking Eye directly to request the removal of the CCJ. You can explain the full circumstances and offer to settle the original charge if necessary, whilst requesting that they agree to a Consent Order to set aside the judgment and have the record removed from your credit file.

Coupon-mad

Depends if the claim was actually served by DCB Legal (note, this is not the same as debt crawlers DCBLtd).

Sounds like it wasn't an in-house ParkingEye claim but you need to know and approach the right firm. You need to ring the CNBC to ask:

- who filed the claim

- please email a copy of the Particulars.

Then you will know enough to email DCB Legal inviting them to consent because you were abroad (attach proof).

Not_A_Hope

Well I wouldn’t pay Parking Eye a penny. I think you have been far too reasonable with them and the hotel for causing you this problem. My understanding is that if 30 days have passed since the CCJ paying now would result in it being marked as satisfied but it would remain on your credit file. To remove it you need to go down the set aside route. As you did not receive any correspondence from Parking Eye or the court claim this should be a mandatory set aside by the court. If Parking Eye are unwilling to agree to a set aside it will cost them even more when the court reimburses your costs. As you can prove you were a genuine patron of the hotel you have an excellent chance of defending their original claim.

Not_A_Hope

2. Will the court be harsh about the fact I didn’t update my DVLA address or set up a mail redirection? 

3. Does the fact the car was sold shortly after the PCN help reinforce that I wasn’t trying to avoid anything and this is why I did not update the DVLA records?

2. No. Happens all the time. PPCs earn a fortune by sending PCNs and claims to old addresses resulting in default CCJs.

3. You might choose to explain that in your defence but the reality is ParkingEye can only request keeper details from the DVLA once shortly after the alleged incident. The fact is after not receiving any response to numerous letters sent to the keeper at the address provided they chose to issue a court claim to the same faulty address. Their Code of Practice requires them to check they have the correct address BEFORE raising a claim. However that is too much effort for them costing about 29p. Instead they ignored the requirement and got an automatic default judgment instead. As far as the court will be concerned their claim was not ‘served’ and should be a mandatory set aside. 

parkingwoesabroad27

Not_A_Hope said:

Well I wouldn’t pay Parking Eye a penny. I think you have been far too reasonable with them and the hotel for causing you this problem. My understanding is that if 30 days have passed since the CCJ paying now would result in it being marked as satisfied but it would remain on your credit file. To remove it you need to go down the set aside route. As you did not receive any correspondence from Parking Eye or the court claim this should be a mandatory set aside by the court. If Parking Eye are unwilling to agree to a set aside it will cost them even more when the court reimburses your costs. As you can prove you were a genuine patron of the hotel you have an excellent chance of defending their original claim.

Thanks mate. Understand your position but since I am based abroad now I find it easier to simply pay them off and set aside via a consent order rather than filing the N244 and take my chances.

Based on my conversations with a lawyer, they seemed to think that Parkingeye have done everything legally and by the book - they served the papers to my last known address, including reminders and claim before ccj and the fact that I moved abroad would not be enough of a leg to stand on in court.
Therefore, I would have to use the email from the hotel as my main defence hence why my first preference is an out of court settlement.

 I also do not want to waste the court time on a minor matter such as this. If I was in the UK I would have gotten this cancelled at the first stage itself by emailing the hotel but unfortunately I was not aware of any of this until last week.

parkingwoesabroad27

Coupon-mad said:

Depends if the claim was actually served by DCB Legal (note, this is not the same as debt crawlers DCBLtd).

Sounds like it wasn't an in-house ParkingEye claim but you need to know and approach the right firm. You need to ring the CNBC to ask:

- who filed the claim

- please email a copy of the Particulars.

Then you will know enough to email DCB Legal inviting them to consent because you were abroad (attach proof).

Thanks Coupon mad. I checked and on the claim the claimant is listed as Parkingeye ltd. I have then subsequently received letters from DCBL - Direct collection baillifs ltd, which is a debt recovery reminder. Should I ring them and discuss the situation and possiblity of a consent order?

Ralph-y

how  long are you going to live abroad ?

Coupon-mad

parkingwoesabroad27 said:

Coupon-mad said:

Depends if the claim was actually served by DCB Legal (note, this is not the same as debt crawlers DCBLtd).

Sounds like it wasn't an in-house ParkingEye claim but you need to know and approach the right firm. You need to ring the CNBC to ask:

- who filed the claim

- please email a copy of the Particulars.

Then you will know enough to email DCB Legal inviting them to consent because you were abroad (attach proof).

Thanks Coupon mad. I checked and on the claim the claimant is listed as Parkingeye ltd. I have then subsequently received letters from DCBL - Direct collection baillifs ltd, which is a debt recovery reminder. Should I ring them and discuss the situation and possiblity of a consent order?

Show us the POC please, as you say you have the claim form.  We can then tell if it was via DCB Legal.

Does a CCJ in England matter to you?

parkingwoesabroad27

Ralph-y said:

how  long are you going to live abroad ?

I am not sure but I do have a mortgage in the UK which is up for remortgage in a couple of years so do not want this on my credit history. I have a clean record.

parkingwoesabroad27

This is all I have at the moment.

Coupon-mad

OK, whilst that isn't the claim form I can tell from the £125 sum that this was an in-house ParkingEye claim.

Where's the Claim Form then? Was it served to the right address a few weeks before that?

They used to be fairly reasonable when people were able to show that they did not receive the claim. Maybe you contacted the wrong team? You didn't try an 'appeal' did you?

Did you email enforcement@parkingeye.co.uk and prove the dates you were abroad and specifically invite them to tell you their terms to consent to set aside?