Parking Letter of Claim...from 2020.

Ceresdigion

My girlfriend is out of the country and has asked me to look into this.

She received some Trace Debt Recovery letters about an Alliance Parking charge from 2020 (yes...) earlier this year. She was completely unaware, having had no ticket on the windscreen, no letters from Alliance Parking and was unlikely to even have been in the car park in question since it was dated during lockdown.

She has tried writing to Alliance Parking to see what evidence they hold, and was told that as Trace was on the case they couldn't do anything. Other letters have followed from Moorside Legal which were equally uninformative.

I have just received a Moorside Legal Letter of Claim dated 28th May, which I understand from posts on here is actually significant.

A recent letter in The Guardian (2nd June - I can't post links, but it's the first result for a 'parking' search on their website) about a six-year parking claim suggests I ought to take a dim view of this.

I have read several threads, and looked at the FAQs, but to be honest the wide variety of colour and formats makes it very hard to comprehend, whereas the voice of an experienced poster can no doubt put me on the right track in a couple of sentences.

Thorndorise

6 years is the statute limit for chasing this...
What is the date they claim the parking contravention occurred? - I assume from your post you or your girlfriend don't have the original PCN from Alliance?

It seems that a few Private parking firms are trying to get the case through before the 6 years expires...however I am pretty sure that Alliance still have to furnish you with a copy of the original PCN sent (if it was) way back 6 years ago.

She has tried writing to Alliance Parking to see what evidence they hold, and was told that as Trace was on the case they couldn't do anything. Other letters have followed from Moorside Legal which were equally uninformative.

This isn't true, they should at the very least be able to provide you with a copy of the original PCN...

Thorndorise

PS. this is the article you are talking about! https://www.theguardian.com/money/2025/jun/02/ive-just-been-sent-170-fine-for-not-paying-a-parking-ticket-six-years-ago

Ceresdigion

Thank you, yes that's the article.

They claim 18th May 2020 as the date of the contravention.

No, she has not had a PCN or any correspondence relating to one. The first she heard of it was the first Trace letter.

Coupon-mad

Search the forum for Moorside Legal UKCPS and read all the court claim threads from this year. Dead easy to defend.

Moorside Legal have only been going for a year!

The SECOND post of the NEWBIES thread has the info about how to respond.

Ceresdigion

Thank you. The Letter of Claim has a bald tabulated statement of a PCN reference and the claim that a ticket was not displayed.

As it stands, with no parking ticket nor any letters in the intervening years from Alliance Parking with evidence about this supposed infraction, I'm not disputing something that she did with Moorside, but whether it even happened at all.

Should I still e-mail help@moorsidelegal.co.uk with the "generic" solicitors' letter in that second post of the Newbies thread, or does it require specialist wording?

I have seen the extra paragraphs for the template defence to do with Moorside.

I also fear that despite these parasites being scumbags, she would rather just pay up than bother with collecting evidence for a court case or following the steps outlined, considering more pressing matters like finding somewhere to live for a new university course in September. I'm game for sticking it to them, so is it possible to attend in her stead, were it to come to that?

Coupon-mad

No you can't go to a hearing for her but you can do her replies as if you were her (with her consent and in her name not yours).

Highly unlikely to end up in a hearing anyway.

Ceresdigion

Righto, thanks. For now, do I send the 'help@moorsidelegal.co.uk' address the generic solicitors' letter in the Newbies thread?

I guess it's not worth chasing Alliance Parking for actual evidence any more since they brushed us off, even though @Thorndorise says they should at least give us a copy of the supposed PCN.

Coupon-mad

You do NOT want evidence pre-claim.

Thorndorise

Coupon-mad said:

You do NOT want evidence pre-claim.

Sorry CM - you're right this is very true...I always get caught up on the fact that they should provide - unless of course things have progressed!

Ceresdigion

OK, so I should send the generic e-mail to Moorside?