Horizon Parking - PCN because of user error on prepaid parking space

Cmdr_Bond

Writing on behalf of a friend and their partner (please be kind, I will be sharing the link to this thread with them), please note English is not their first language (1 German, 1 Turkish), so they don't always phrase things to get the best answers - for this they tend to turn to me to help.

My friend and their partner "rent" a parking space in a multi-story car park near to their business.  They own 2 cars, but have only "rented" the 1 space, and only ever park 1 car at a time.

They recently received a PCN - only the 1 so far, but they're expecting more.

They had forgotten to change the registration of the car they were parking within the app.  It would appear that they may have another 10 or so PCNs on their way as they continued using this vehicle without changing the registration.

My friend, on the back of the first PCN has contacted Horizon through their online chat (I think), and they have admitted who was driving.

They have stated (paraphrasing) that they pay a monthly fee (for over a year) for 2 cars (but I believe it's only 1 space), they have stated that they are the partner of X (presuming X is the account holder), they admit that they forgot to change the registration of the vehicle they intended to park, that this is a genuine error, and requested that the charge be deleted as it was a genuine error and that they are a long time customer.

This was the initial response:

Sorry to hear you've received a Parking Charge Notice (PCN) during your parking experience!

So that I can open an investigation case into this Parking Charge Notice (PCN), please provide a full and clear copy of the front of the PCN in a reply to this email within the next 24 hours so that our review can be conducted promptly. 

What happens next?
Once we have the copy of your PCN, our team will cross-reference the details of your parking session with your booking to identify if the PCN has been issued in error by the enforcement company. Where a PCN is issued incorrectly (where a technical error has occurred), the PCN will be cancelled. If the PCN has been issued as a result of driver error which we detail below, our team will dismiss your open case with us and you will be required to appeal your PCN with the issuing authority. We'll let you know either way of course.

Important: Please note that if you have already appealed via POPLA before contacting YourParkingSpace, we will be unable to assist.

Additionally, YourParkingSpace will not be able to reimburse you if you make a payment for the PCN before we have reviewed the case.

They have sent the image of the PCN as requested, and are waiting for an update.

The line that sticks out to me is:

If the PCN has been issued as a result of driver error which we detail below, our team will dismiss your open case with us and you will be required to appeal your PCN with the issuing authority. 

Because surely Horizon ARE the issuing authority?

But what are their steps now?  With what they have already told to Horizon through the chat, have they screwed their chance of appealing this?

And what about the PCNs they're expecting, but have yet to receive.

The car park is ANPR controlled, so they would be able to tell (if they could be bothered to check) that they haven't parked both vehicles.

And although I haven't seen the app for a while, the last time I saw it, it wasn't very intuitive/explanatory as to changing vehicle registrations.

Gr1pr

Horizon Parking are a private parking company,  not an Authority 

There is NO Authority,  it's an unregulated industry 

An appeal can always be made,  but it may be rejected,  plus they may offer the £20 major keying error option 

Rinse and repeat with the other pcns, if or when they arrive 

Cmdr_Bond

Yeah, I'm aware they're a private firm. 

I wonder if they're referring to POPLA?

Either way it's confusing, as my friend thought they were appealing through the chat.  So assuming they come back and say it's user error, take it to appeal, I presume they would need to follow the advice on the sticky posts. 

But would that appeal be prejudiced by the previous contact through the chat?

Coupon-mad

They've only contacted YourParkingSpace via online chat. That's not from Horizon.

Cmdr_Bond

So appeal using the normal methods as listed on the main page?

Gr1pr

Correct , unless they add the details about the keying error in the app too

In private parking cases, there is no Authority,  not the BPA or IPC trade bodies,  not Popla or the IAS either , none at all

Its currently an unregulated industry 

So its either try to fight it on some legal basis,  such as signage or no landowner authority,  or try to obtain the £20 major keying error option,  or ignore  ( but ignoring a lot of pcns could lead to a private court case within the next6 years )

Car1980

What contract are they citing? The signage in the car park presumably.

So what about the contract that was formed when payment was made on the app in exchange for a parking space? Why was there no mention of the £100 then?

Contract 1 has been formed and completed. 

Contract 2 is within the car park.

It's the modern day Thornton v Shoe Lane Parking surely? The £100 charge should have been offered in the original contract - preferably with a "tick this box if you agree to pay £100 for breaching these conditions... etc. etc."

Thornton v Shoe Lane Parking Ltd provides a good example of the rule that a clause cannot be incorporated AFTER a contract has been concluded, without reasonable notice before. Also, it was held that an automatic ticket machine was an offer, rather than an invitation to treat, that the insertion of money was an acceptance, therefore, specifically, any (additional) conditions on the ticket were post-acceptance and invalid.

The app is the ticket machine, but it's simultaneously outside the car park, as the conditions were in Thornton.

It's almost as if the parking companies have realised their keying errors, being too slow to pay via app etc. are completely unenforceable and so they thought up the £20 "keying error" to cover it up.

The question is how many other app-related penalties are actually unenforceable in law...