Total Parking Solutions County Court Claim Fatal Postcode Error

ScarlettTurkey

Hi Everyone, 

I am a student defending a County Court Claim and looking for a sanity check on my strategy before my Mediation appointment & also a thread to post further updates as I'm fairly certain this case will likely be discontinued. I have up till this point tried to follow guides provided on this forum. 

The Facts:

• Location: University Car Park

• The Site: A gravel-surfaced car park with no painted lines.

• The Allegation: Defendant denies liability (I am a regular user who usually pays via app; the alleged offences occurring in January 2025 previous letters were confusing).

• Claimant Solicitors: DCB Legal

My Defence Arguments: I have submitted my Defence via MCOL. My two main points are:

1. Fatal Location Error: The Particulars of Claim state the location as "Solent University - Charlotte Place (carpark f)" with postcode SO41 0YN.

   • SO41 is Lymington/New Forest (15 miles away).

   • The University is actually SO14.

   • I am arguing they have sued for a breach of contract at a location that does not exist.

2. Frustration of Contract (Impossible Terms):

   • The signage terms require parking in "Marked Bays".

   • The car park is gravel with no markings/lines.

   • It is impossible to comply with the terms, therefore no contract could be formed.

Current Status & Strategy:

• Defence: Filed and acknowledged.

• Mediation: Appointment booked for 08/12.

• Settlement Offer: Today, I sent a "Without Prejudice Save as to Costs" email to their solicitors. I pointed out the SO41 vs SO14 error and the lack of bays, and offered a "Drop Hands" settlement to save court time.

My Questions for the Forum:

1. Has anyone seen a judge strike out a claim purely on a postcode error of this magnitude (15 miles out)?

2. For the Mediation call, should I lead with the postcode error or the "no marked bays" argument?

3. If mediation fails (which I expect), is the "Drop Hands" email useful to include in my eventual Witness Statement bundle, or just for the costs assessment at the end?

Thanks in advance for your help!

Coupon-mad

1. No, it's just a typo. The case won't be struck out and clearly you know the location which is (apart from the postcode error) adequately specified. This is not a fatal error.

2. None of the above. You should not be 'leading' with anything nor doing any prep. Just say 'no offer, goodbye'. Two minutes max.

3. Hopefully, there won't be any need for a bundle because DCB Legal will likely discontinue before the date for them to pay the hearing fee.

ChirpyChicken

As per the good lady above 
Its a zero offer and good bye.

Car1980

I'd get your witness statement prepared because we have seen TPS go all the way to a hearing, despite using habitual discontinuationers DCB.

Coupon-mad

Car1980 said:

I'd get your witness statement prepared because we have seen TPS go all the way to a hearing, despite using habitual discontinuationers DCB.

Good point, we have seen hearings.