DCB Legal Letter, Work Car Park

brick2984

Hello,

For the past year I've been recieving floods of PCN letters from various debt collection companies, but largely from DCB Limited. My work car park park is run by Euro Car Parks Limited and when working, I have of course parked in the car park. Initially, my car reg was whitelisted in the car park but after some time I received the first letter. After asking my manager about it, they told me that the car park was "being difficult" about the number of cars they allowed us to whitelist and that I should ignore the letters. The letters became so frequent it became a joke at work that you could determine which company is sending the letter just from the font they used. I ignored them, untill now, when I received a letter from DCB Legal, which I learned from reading this forum when the letters began, is not something I can ignore any longer.

I have spoken to my manager about this and they said that another colleague received something similar yesterday, which I assume is not a coincidence. I gave them a copy of the letter to pass to the area manager and head office. According to my manager they are working to get the PCN's dropped for everyone who has received letters.

My question is, should I take any steps myself against it? Or just wait and let my work sort everything out? I have read the newbie thread and am aware of the standard email template response but I wanted to hold off untill I got some advice as I couldn't find a thread with a similar case to mine.

I am located in Scotland, which I believe is relevant. I have attached redacted images of the letter.

Thanks for any advice you all can give.

Coupon-mad

"I am located in Scotland, which I believe is relevant."

It is … normally you'd ignore … but that's a lot of PCNs.

Luckily, DCB Group don't litigate in Scotland and don't actually have a Scottish 'partner' law firm despite that letter pretending they do.

DCB Group farm the Scottish cases out to a South African call centre so you could have a laugh by calling the eejits to waste their time.

Do not do it if you aren't a robust scam baiter. AND DO NOT ADMIT TO DRIVING.

Just ignore them.

Woodstok2000

Advise them, as keeper, that you dispute any liability and will not be identifying the driver. They cannot hold the keeper liable in Scotland (yet).

Tell your boss youll be charging the company for taxis to and from work until they resolve it.

Coupon-mad

"My work car park park is run by Euro Car Parks Limited and when working, I have of course parked in the car park. Initially, my car reg was whitelisted in the car park but after some time I received the first letter. After asking my manager about it, they told me that the car park was "being difficult" about the number of cars they allowed us to whitelist and that I should ignore the letters. The letters became so frequent it became a joke at work that you could determine which company is sending the letter just from the font they used."

This is all caused due to the controlling influence of ANPR operators who run a dashboard that deliberately limits the number of vehicles that retailers and business would wish to exempt.

Smart Parking have also boasted publicly about being able to use (abuse?) their retailer/landowner 'dashboard' to limit whitelisting, which then obviously causes more PCNs against employees & patrons as the real businesses on site struggle with limited scope.

They are forced to choose which cars to whitelist, on a daily or weekly basis, at the expense of others which have to be removed. It's a scam. Clear as day.

One wonders why it takes so long for landowners to realise that limited whitelisting is not operating in their interests, and to just sack the PPC.

twopenny

Your employers have caused this problem. Is there a and list of who is allowed to park that they've supplied?

If they haven't allowed enough spaces for their workforce then they need to say who's in and who's out.

Crazy and they need to sort it out.

If they keep procrastinating bundle the pcn s in date order, then hand into the boss as each one arrives.

Coupon-mad

No the parking firm caused it.

The business or landowners enabled it.

Deliberately inadequate whitelist. It's a game they all play with a 'dashboard' that forces retailers & businesses to do a 'one in, one out' shuffle of exempted vehicles despite needing more.

brick2984

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81929795#Comment_81929795

Is there any risk of them prosecuting due to the number of them? Or do they just never in Scotland regardless of the total?

And so I'm clear, I should just continue not responding and let my work do what they're doing?

Coupon-mad

Prosecuting?! No. It's not a criminal matter.

I would pressure your workplace to explain why they removed staff vehicles from the whitelist without telling you. And to push for the parking firm to be sacked. Get together with other employees and call for an end to this farce.

DCB Legal have ever been known to sue in Scotland and are unlikely to use a 'Scottish Partner' because that would mean splitting the proceeds.

And champerty is illegal in Scotland, so law firms can't be unjustly enriched or maintain claims for their own share in profits, added fake costs & interest.

But don't park there because there could come a point when a test case becomes worth a punt using your Simple Procedure.

Coupon-mad

@brick2984 we have seen more than one ECP Scottish case (not litigated but we are watching these) with high sums of money at stake, e.g.:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81934297#Comment_81934297

There could be danger of a claim.

So like I said there, and given the Scottish Simple Procedure expects you to engage, like in that thread I'd now say:

Due to the huge sum at stake:

If it were me I would respond, reminding them there is no keeper liability in Scotland and asking under your DPA 2018 data rights for the identity of the supposed 'Scottish Partners' and you want to know the legal basis for sharing your keeper data with this new third party, given:

• no Scottish firms are listed by Euro Car Parks in their data privacy page, and
• no South African call centre is listed by Euro Car Parks in their data privacy page either, and
• the Simple Procedure has not been followed; in fact they threatened E&W county court in 2024, which is unreasonable conduct;
• the DVLA KADOE rules only release Scottish keeper data purely to ask who was driving and no more. There is no POFA and no right to sue Scottish keepers where the driver has not been evidenced, and
• the sum of money threatened to be claimed vastly exceeds the stated PCN sum on any of their client's generic signage, and is a clear attempt at double recovery, contrary to the findings in ParkingEye Beavis, and
• the PCNs only arose due to ECP's landowner dashboard forcing the on-site businesses to play 'musical chairs' by having to remove exempted vehicles before they can add new staff or customer VRMs to the unworkably restricted whitelist, set up to deliberately and unfairly expose authorised staff to unfair parking charges & litigation.
• This lacks the 'legitimate interest' seen in ParkingEye v Beavis, and
• champerty is illegal in Scotland and this threatened legal claim bears all the hallmarks of champerty & maintenance, with DCB Legal (otherwise strangers) set to be enriched from claims and certainly exerting undue control. Tell them to seek real legal advice if their young turkey-teeth flashing staff are oblivious to the above issues.