Help with PCN after reading Newbies threads

Gr1pr

grumpy_gremlin said:

K so if I have read this right, ignore all letters from DCA cause they are scumbags and then if and when I get a letter of claim I can use the template of defence on MOL?

Not quite 

1) The Letter of Claim giving you 30 days notice will be from the claimant parking company,  or from their lawyers,  by post, you respond using the LoC template response in the newbies sticky thread,  second post,  usually by email,  sometimes by a different online method such as a webform 

2) A Money Claim is made using MCOL and the CNBC in Northampton post an N1SDT claim form pack to you containing various forms and instructions.  You would adapt the template defence and use your final defence draft on MCOL 

2 entirely different things, different stages, different responses , not the same 

1) comes before 2) typically with a 2 month gap between them 

grumpy_gremlin

Thank you for clearing that up, apologies , trying to read but it's difficult for me...

grumpy_gremlin

So got a letter today from dcbl (Direct collection Bailiffs Ltd) titles "Notice of Debt recovery - unpaid Parking charge 160 

Gr1pr

grumpy_gremlin said:

So got a letter today from dcbl (Direct collection Bailiffs Ltd) titles "Notice of Debt recovery - unpaid Parking charge 160 

Ignore them 

Coupon-mad

grumpy_gremlin said:

So got a letter today from dcbl (Direct collection Bailiffs Ltd) titles "Notice of Debt recovery - unpaid Parking charge 160 

How lovely.

Of course - because you already posted that you know to ignore these and await the claim form - we know you'll have seen similar letters pictured in post 4 of the NEWBIES thread. So no worries.

We don't need updates about threatograms.

grumpy_gremlin

k, so just recieved the letter of claim, will try and have a look on the forum for some templates to respond back

grumpy_gremlin

How does this sound? 

Dear Sirs,

Your ref: 
Claimant: Close Unit Protection Services Ltd

I refer to your Letter of Claim dated 14 January 2026.

I am the registered keeper of the vehicle and I deny any debt to your client.

Your letter asserts that the vehicle was “parked”. This is denied. The vehicle stopped momentarily for the sole purpose of allowing a passenger to alight and then departed immediately. This is a normal and lawful activity and does not constitute parking. No contract to park was formed and therefore no breach could have occurred.

Your client’s own photographic evidence shows the vehicle with headlights and brake lights illuminated, demonstrating that the vehicle remained under the driver’s control and was stationary only temporarily. These images do not evidence parking and do not establish acceptance of any contractual terms.

Any suggestion that a brief passenger drop off constitutes parking is expressly denied.

You state that I am liable as “Keeper or Driver”. I do not admit to being the driver. If your client intends to pursue keeper liability, you are required to demonstrate full compliance with Schedule 4 of the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012. No such evidence has been provided.

In accordance with the Pre Action Protocol for Debt Claims, please now provide the following information before this matter can be considered further. Please provide evidence of your client’s authority from the landowner to issue and pursue parking charges at this location. Please provide copies of the signage in place at the time together with a site plan showing sign locations. Please explain how a momentary stop to allow a passenger to exit a vehicle is defined as parking under the terms of any alleged contract. Please confirm the legal basis upon which keeper liability is asserted. Please also provide a full breakdown of the sum claimed, including the legal basis for the added debt recovery costs.

Until this information is provided, the alleged debt remains formally disputed and the matter must be placed on hold.

Yours faithfully,

Nellymoser

You seem to have missed the advice on how to respond to 30 day notice LOC in the NEWBIES  POST 2 - Small Claim.

grumpy_gremlin

You mean this one? I thought it was a generic one and we wrote to fit our circumstances.

Dear Sirs,

Your ref: [insert reference number]

Proposed legal proceedings

Claimant: [insert name of parking company]

I refer to your letter of claim.

I confirm that my address for service for the time being is as follows, and any older address must be erased from your records:

[Insert correct address here]

You should revert to your client because the 'propensity to pay' score in my case is zero, so any claim is hopeless and a waste of the court fee (whether 'fronted' by your firm or not). Move on to weaker victims.

The alleged 'debt' is disputed and any court proceedings will be vigorously defended.

Yours faithfully,

Coupon-mad

It is deliberately generic because you DO NOT WANT information. Use that one.

We assume this is a DCB Legal LBC so you'll get a Claim Form anyway. This is the end game when they will finally discontinue at the end of this year. Trust us!