Court Claim from UKPC / DCB Legal

Soppytwat

Hi. My vehicle was recorded parked on a UKPC managed private club car park (members go free, visitors pay per hour in advance) on 3rd April 2025, 2 days before I left UK for 3 months. On my return I had received numerous demands from UKPC and DCBL. I offered to pay (and enclosed a cheque for) the original charge of £60 in full and final settlement, without admitting any liability. The reply from UKPC simply stated the appeals process had expired and referred me to DCBL, and the cheque was destroyed.

I have since received a Claim Form (£176.60 + £35.00 + 50.00 = £261.60) and responded by defending the action. I have a week to submit defence.

To save me time:

Do I have a case that UKPC have failed to communicate with me in an effective manner, and

Do I have a case that UKPC have been unreasonable in failing to resolve prior to court action.

I know details are thin at this but it is the principal I am after at the moment.

Many thanks in anticipation

Car1980

Don't overthink it. It's a roboclaim that will be discontinued next year.

Just defend using the template defence. Your points are irrelevant.

Coupon-mad

I really wish you hadn't tried to pay the scam - DO NOT DO THAT AGAIN - but no harm done as they refused your cheque.

Why does the thread title say 'Out of Jurisdiction'? That needs editing asap.

The instructions on how to do the AOS already tell everyone that isn't an issue but that EVERYONE wins v DCB Legal & UKPC because they'll discontinue next year, as long as you play the game. Do it properly. Template Defence. Dead easy.

"I have a week to submit defence."

errr... are you sure? When did you do the AOS and what is the Claim Issue Date?

Le_Kirk

If you post the POC from the claim form and the date of issue, we can give you the deadline for AoS and defence and some tips on the defence.

Soppytwat

Thanks for responses.

N1SDT Issue date 14 Oct 2025

POC below

I left the country for 3 months on the 5th April.

[Image redacted for personal information by Forum Team]

Le_Kirk

With an issue date of 14/10/25 and providing you complete(d) the AoS after 19/10/25 and before 02/11/25 your defence deadline date is 4.00 p.m. on 17/11/25

BUT if you failed to complete the AoS before 02/11/25, you might already have a default judgment for claimant.  Check your status page on MCOL, otherwise you have until next Monday to submit a defence.

Soppytwat

My draft Paragraph 3 as follows:

The Defendant left the United Kingdom on 5 April 2025 for an extended trip abroad, returning on 22 June 2025. Passport stamps and travel bookings confirm this absence.

As a result of being outside the jurisdiction, the Defendant was unaware of any correspondence, including any Parking Charge Notice (PCN), reminder, or pre-action letters allegedly sent by the Claimant or its agents.

Upon returning to the UK, the Defendant discovered the issue and acted promptly and in good faith. A letter was sent to the Claimant explaining the situation and enclosing a cheque for the amount of the original parking charge as a gesture of goodwill and settlement.

The Claimant refused this reasonable offer, stating that the matter had been transferred to a third-party debt recovery company and that the cheque had been destroyed. The Claimant’s refusal to accept payment of the principal sum and subsequent escalation to court proceedings was disproportionate and unreasonable conduct.

The Defendant asserts that the Claimant failed to act fairly or in accordance with the Pre-Action Protocol for Debt Claims, which requires parties to engage in reasonable communication before commencing proceedings.

Car1980

I'd remove all reference to trying to pay them. It makes you sound liable.

Soppytwat

AOS submitted 24 Oct 2025

Coupon-mad

Change your thread title to say instead that you have a court claim from UKPC / DCB Legal.



And in your defence, change this:

"As a result of being outside the jurisdiction"

to this:

As a result of being abroad,

And remove all this:

"Upon returning to the UK, the Defendant discovered the issue and acted promptly and in good faith. A letter was sent to the Claimant explaining the situation and enclosing a cheque for the amount of the original parking charge as a gesture of goodwill and settlement.

The Claimant refused this reasonable offer, stating that the matter had been transferred to a third-party debt recovery company and that the cheque had been destroyed. The Claimant’s refusal to accept payment of the principal sum and subsequent escalation to court proceedings was disproportionate and unreasonable conduct.

The Defendant asserts that the Claimant failed to act fairly or in accordance with the Pre-Action Protocol for Debt Claims, which requires parties to engage in reasonable communication before commencing proceedings."

Nonono. Instead, respond to the allegation, were you driving, why wasn't a valid payment made, etc?

kryten3000

One point that you might want to add at the Witness Statement stage, presuming DCB Legal don't discontinue, is that the Single Code of Practice requires operators to consider late appeals where it can be shown that it was not possible for the recipient of the PCN to respond within their 28 day window:

"8.4.1. Where a parking operator accepts payment of a parking charge, they do not need to offer the ability to appeal providing this is clear in the notice. Parking operators must provide a process for motorists to appeal against a Parking Charge (including unpaid parking tariff) in accordance with Annex C, which:
a) allows that the parking charge may be appealed within 28 days;
b) requires the parking operator to respond to appeals within 28 days or, where a decision on the appeal is not concluded within 28 days, requires the parking operator to acknowledge the appeal and confirm the timeframe for concluding it, including the supply of additional information;
c) requires the parking operator to consider appeals received outside of the normal 28-day period allowed for lodging an appeal where the appellant provides evidence of exceptional circumstances for the appeal not being lodged within the normal timeframes."

I would suggest that their failure to accept payment is equivalent to a failure to consider an appeal.

It probably won't be needed here, but might help a future reader