Letter of Claim - Euro Parking Services / Gladstone Solicitors - Assistance Required

LSDRevolutionary

Hi,

I hope I can get some assistance here. I have received a PCN for overstaying at a Service Station (Sri Balaji Service Station - Alum Rock). I can't recall how long I stayed, although they have images of me being there for 9 mins 53 secs (potentially 7 seconds below the mandatory grace period), however I may have been there a few seconds beyond 10 mins. For some reason they haven't included any images of me over the 10 mins.

I have read the NEWBIES thread and many of the sub-threads and decided to respond to Gladstone Solicitors after they sent me a letter before claim. I had not responded to any of their contact prior to this. Please see below the email I sent to their DPO following their LBC. Below that is the response I received from Gladstone solicitors (personally, I thought their tone was rude and abrupt). They have also included a letter direct from the client (Euro Parking Services) showing the SAR I requested - I have attached these.

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Dear Sirs,

Your Ref. xxxxxxxxx

Proposed Legal Proceedings

Claimant: Euro Parking Services Ltd

I refer to your letter of claim. This is the first correspondence I have received, as I have not received any prior correspondence in regards to this matter at all, so this letter of claim has come as quite a surprise. It has caused me a great deal of anxiety, particularly amidst the current economical environment.

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

I dispute your 'parking charge', as the keeper of the vehicle. I deny any liability or contractual agreement, and there will be no admission as to who was driving and no assumptions can be drawn.

Since the correspondence I've received in this letter of claim is vague, I require an explanation of the allegation and your evidence. You must include a close-up photograph of the sign you contend was at the location on the material date, as well as your images of the vehicle.

If the allegation concerns a payment machine, the data supplied in response to this appeal must include the record of payments made – showing a partial vehicle registration number – and an explanation of the reason for the Parking Charge Notice, because your notice does not explain it.

If the allegation involves an alleged overstay of minutes, your evidence must include the actual grace period agreed by the landowner.

I am sourcing and seeking independent debt advice and as such, I formally request that this matter be put on hold for an additional 30 days, in accordance with the Pre-Action Protocol for Debt Claims 2017 ('the PAP').

I note that the amount being claimed has increased by a hugely exaggerated amount which the Government called "extorting money from motorists".

Don't send me your usual blather about that.

I have two questions, and under the PAP I am entitled to specific answers:

1. Am I to understand that the additional £60 represents what you lot dress up as a 'Debt Recovery' fee, and if so, is this nett or inclusive of VAT? If the latter, would you kindly explain why I am being asked to pay the operator’s VAT?

2. With regard to the principal alleged PCN sum: Is this damages, or will it be pleaded as consideration for parking?

Yours faithfully,

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Dear xxxxx,

Further to your email dated 7th September 2025.

Whilst noted, we do not accept your representations.

We remind you it is the responsibility of the driver to ensure they comply with the parking regulations on site and thus, as it is abundantly clear you have failed to do so, we are satisfied the charges have been issued correctly and all sums owing are due in full.

Please see evidence pack attached for your records.

As this appears to be a template response commonly available online, we do not intend to engage substantively with its contents, particularly as it is unlikely you fully understand the implications of the statements made.

However, we note your assertion that you will "vigorously" defend any court proceedings. In light of this, we have today arranged for legal proceedings to be issued to recover the debt in full.  

Upon receipt of the claim form, we recommend that you follow the instructions provided within it carefully. At this stage, if you are uncertain about any aspect of the process, we strongly advise that you seek independent legal advice. 

Kind regards

Charlotte

Legal Assistant 

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So for context:

- I did not use the Service Station, I parked to the side and left the vehicle for around 11 mins.
- I did not see any signs to prewarn me that it was even possible to receive a fine! Otherwise, I of course, would not have parked or would have made a purchase from the Service Station.
- The signs are only visible if you were to approach the entrance to the Service Station, which I did not. They have further signs towards the back of the lot, which I went nowhere near.
- They have sent me numerous pics taken from forecourt CCTV cameras, showing me leaving (16:36:58) and entering my car (16:46:58).
- I had no idea it was even possible to receive a PCN for anything of this nature, whether I used the Service Station or not.

Please may I ask the good people of the forum to advise on how best to proceed? Should I respond to Gladstone solicitors further?

Gr1pr

I think that you should now wait for the inevitable N1SDT court claim pack from the CNBC in Northampton using MCOL to arrive in the post 

Car1980

She wants paying, so spending time replying to say she won't reply, sending "evidence" and immediately making a court claim seems an excellent method of not getting money out of anyone 😂

What a div.

Her evidence is excellent evidence of no signage. I can see there is a free cash machine but not much else. 

Just ignore and await that court claim.

LSDRevolutionary

Thanks for the replies. Just reading through what a potential defence would look like, my fear is that their images show me getting out of the car and into the car, so I'm not sure how it will hold up in court if I say that I can't confirm who the driver was at the time, as it will be obvious it was me.

Do I need to worry about this or will their lack of signage be enough to win in court? Apologies if this info is on the forum, I've read to the point the info is barely registering anymore XD

Car1980

But you can happily state you were the driver.

There are only certain circumstances, earlier in the process, where it can be advantageous to keep it quiet.

This is all based on contract law, so there has be clear signage. Did they put a copy of the sign in their pack?

Coupon-mad

You parked (and walked elsewhere) whilst blocking use of that petrol pump for ten minutes? Or am I seeing that wrongly?

LSDRevolutionary

Coupon-mad said:

You parked (and walked elsewhere) whilst blocking use of that petrol pump for ten minutes? Or am I seeing that wrongly?

Hi Coupon - I can't actually recall too much about why I left the vehicle, I was however, under a lot of stress and going through some trauma I wouldn't wish to divulge here. Do you think this will negate any defence I have? Apologies I can't really explain my thinking at the time... I'm pretty much still dealing with a lot of the issues (let's call them that) and this is really adding to my stress. Any advice whether good or bad news would be really appreciated just so I know where I stand.