Lost at Hearing - Didn't Receive Hearing Date - Can I Appeal?

Jones578

I'm hoping to get some urgent advice regarding a private parking ticket that has gone to the court.

I filed my Defence in mid-February and have been waiting for a hearing date from the court. In early August, I received a witness statement from the PPC's solicitor, Gladstone, on behalf of UK Car Park Management Ltd (UKCPM). I didn't take any action at that time as I was still waiting for the court to send me the hearing details.

However, I have just received a letter from the county court today (Thursday), dated last Saturday, informing me that the hearing took place last Friday. As I didn't attend, the judge has ruled against me. They have ordered me to pay £170 plus £85 in costs within 14 days.

My main question is, can I still appeal or get the decision set aside? I have not received any correspondence from the court regarding the date, time, or location of the hearing. I have checked my post, and there is nothing from the court about this.

I'm concerned that time is running out, and I'd be very grateful for any guidance on what my next steps should be.

Thank you.

Gr1pr

Phone the court tomorrow morning and check if and when they posted your court order,  which should have been a few months ago,  because clearly Gladstones got a copy of the same court order 

When you received their WS bundle,  it should have been a red flag for you to check with the court you nominated in your N180 DQ document 

Jones578

Thanks for the response. I called the court and they confirmed they had sent the court order with the hearing date back on 9th May. Unfortunately, I never received it, so I only found out about the hearing after getting the judgment letter this week.

Is there anything I can still do at this stage? Or is my only realistic option just to pay to avoid a CCJ being registered

Gr1pr

You would have to apply for a set aside due to not receiving the court order 

The convention is that the letter was presumed to be delivered 2 business days later 

Jones578

Whilst I’m confident I had a valid Defence (no signs at the car park entrance or near where I parked, with photos/videos as proof), after weighing up the time, money, and energy involved in applying for a set aside, I’ve decided to just pay to close this off.

The court ordered me to pay £170 plus £85 costs (so £255 total) after I missed the hearing date (which I never received notice of). However, when I log into Gladstones’ payment portal, the balance shows £268.73 instead of the £255 ordered by the court.

My understanding is that the court order amount is all I legally owe, and anything on top is just them adding extras.

Questions:

• Should I just pay £255 (the judgment sum) and ignore the extra £13.73?

• Has anyone else had experience of Gladstones trying to collect more than the court-ordered amount?

I just want to make sure I don’t risk a CCJ mark by underpaying.

Thanks as always for your guidance.

Umkomaas

Pay what the court ordered. Single payment, do not get attracted to a payment plan, which if you enter, the CCJ will still be recorded on your credit file and will affect your credit for 6 years as if you didn't pay it at all. 

Gr1pr

Yep, pay it in full, then make enquiries with gladrags to see about the extra charge and possible refund 

Dont cause a credit file CCJ issue over a few pounds