Smart Parking @ Tower Rd, Newquay - Overstayed & Appeal Turned Down

MoreInCommon

Hello,

While on holiday in Cornwall we parked in this car park and purchased a paper ticket from the ticket machine.  As I see from other posts, I'm not the only one to be surprised to find my time in the car park was being monitored by ANPR, and that it was the entry and exit time that I was expected to pay for.  I paid for 4 hours, and we got back to the car at the time indicated on the ticket.  However, we didn't leave immediately (one reason being I am diabetic and had to test my blood sugars before driving).  I did not keep the ticket as there was no PCN attached to the windscreen, and being unaware of the ANPR we assumed we would be fine.  According to the Notice to Keeper we were in the car park 4 hours 36 minutes.  No doubt this included time before I purchased the ticket as well as after we got back to the car.

Unfortunately I only read the newbies thread after my appeal was turned down.  In the appeal I referred to myself as having purchased the ticket and returned to the car, so I guess that counts as admission that I was the driver who entered into the contract?  The NTK was issued on 4/9/2025, with date of contravention 21/8/2025 - so as it was issued on day 14 I would not have received it until after the period allowed under the POFA.... but I presume I cannot use that defence now, having stated that I was the person who payed for the parking?

They have extended the 'discount' (£60) until 23/10, or I can appeal to IAS.

I would like to challenge this, as like many people I thought ANPR tended to be used for pay on exit car parks, or free shopping car parks.  Had I realised they were using ANPR in conjunction with a paper ticket, and that it was possible to extend my time by paying more, I would have done that.  It feels they are just trying to catch people out and rake in money through issuing inflated charges.  However, having effectively admitted I was the driver, I would not want to risk a CCJ. 
Do I have a good chance of defending this, or should I just cut my losses and pay the discounted fee?
Should I appeal to IAS (I'm guessing from reading elsewhere the answer is that there is no point)?
Should I write to Smart Parking again and change my story about being the one who paid for parking (eg say I forgot what day it was or something), in order to try to use the POFA defence?
I have tried identifying who the landowner is so that I could complain to them, but I haven't been able to find anything online.

I'd be very grateful for any advice!

Coupon-mad

Just ignore it.

Should I write to Smart Parking again and change my story about being the one who paid for parking (eg say I forgot what day it was or something), in order to try to use the POFA defence?

Of course not! Ignore them. Ignore DRAs.

Still unsure that we are right? Just click on the little red 'MSE link' in the small 'Parking Ticket Appeals' banner at the top of this page which leads to the MSE Guide to fight PCNs.

Same info is shown in both this forum and in that Guide, as regards the debt recovery letters being a futile stage and risk-free. Consistent advice here is easy to find and not just from random strangers. The MSE Guide is official 'Martin Lewis backed' advice.

Car1980

Simply ignore and come back if you receive a letter from DCB Legal.

Driver ID is only a factor in a limited number of cases, so don't worry about that.

They do make court claims through DCB but always discontinue. So it's just a form filling exercise with no judgment or hearing ever coming to fruition.

James_Poisson

It doesn't matter what you appealed to Smart they wouldn't cancel it, they only want money, there is no real appeal it's all a sham, don't beat yourself up, and don't make up things, stay above the low life Muppets' antics.

Don't waste any more time on it until they send their next stage of threats in the form of court papers who they used just to turn the screws.

MoreInCommon

Thank you all for your advice.  I'm inclined to wait till the court papers and challenge it then, but confess to feeling a bit anxious about that, and unsure I have the time to put together a detailed defence - but I feel reassured that there seem to be many on here who have done this / been successful.
So I'll ignore the debt recovery agents, and come back if/when I receive the court demands.
Thank you.

kryten3000

It's really not that hard - check the link in my signature for a summary of the stages.

You'll have to write a Defence which is mostly a template and fill in one form (N180).
You will likely have to take a mediation phone call - 5 minutes tops.
You may have to write a Witness Statement, again based on the content you can find here.
You may have to attend a hearing, but given this is Smart that is highly unlikely.

Most of the actual process is waiting for the next stage.

Umkomaas

If DCB Legal becomes involved, as long as you follow the steps outlined in the forum, you won't be getting anywhere near a court hearing. DCB Legal involvement will be good news for you!  Read how DCB Legal cases turn out in the following thread, there are 679 reasons to believe what we tell you!

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6377263/dcb-legal-record-of-private-parking-court-claim-discontinuations/p1