HX Car Park Management Ltd - Gladstones - CCJ Set Aside

Gooding

Hi guys, I'm conscious that I may be dangerously close to being too late for our application. So we are urgently looking to submit an application tomorrow for the CCJ to be set aside.

The invoice was sent to an old address and relates to a vehicle that my wife drives. The invoice was for an improper parking in a bay at the Willow Brook Centre in Bristol. Below I've set out what I believe is the correct form of documentation after carefully reading through some of the threads here relating to setting aside a judgment. I would greatly appreciate the feedback on whether I have missed anything or should tweak things to better reflect my case.

The timeline goes back around a month where we applied for a remortgage and my wife was going to be added to that for the first time. Our mortgage broker advised that she had a CCJ against her. So we checked her credit "file". We immediately contacted Gladstones who advised what it was in relation to.

We then sent a complaint as the only notice we received regarding this invoice was a letter before claim in January 2024. Upon receipt of which we immediately registered on their website, logged into their portal and submitted an "appeal".

We heard nothing from them subsequent to that and up until last month did not know that it had led to a CCJ. In fact we have an email from Gladstones (03/02/2026) acknowledging that they were delayed in their response and apologising for that. The email is worded in such a way so as to imply no action had yet been taken.

Following no response to our complaint, my wife requested a DSAR and we received the bundle yesterday which shows that the letter to our current address was the last letter they sent before sending a claim to the old address. It also shows the complaint that we raised and the fact that no response to that complaint has been made.

I note that the newbies thread suggests no more than 2 weeks be afforded them, and we are now over that. I didn't find this forum until this week, so didn't use the much better worded complaint format either.

Draft Order

IN THE COUNTY COURT
Claim No: [CLAIM NUMBER]

BETWEEN:

HX Car Park Management Ltd
Claimant

-and-

[DEFENDANT]
Defendant

DRAFT ORDER

UPON reading the Defendant’s application dated [DATE OF N244] and the witness statement of the Defendant dated [DATE]

AND UPON it appearing that the Claimant had reason to believe that the address used for service was no longer the Defendant’s current address, had obtained and written to an alternative address before issue, but the claim was nevertheless pursued to default judgment using the earlier address

AND UPON the Defendant seeking a mandatory set aside pursuant to CPR 13.2 and, in the alternative, relief pursuant to CPR 13.3

IT IS ORDERED THAT:

1. The default judgment dated [JUDGMENT DATE] be set aside.
2. The claim be struck out on the basis that the claim form was not validly served.
3. In the alternative to paragraph 2, if the Court is not with the Defendant on strike out, the Defendant shall file and serve a defence within 14 days of service of this order, and the claim shall thereafter proceed in the usual way.
4. The Claimant shall pay the Defendant’s application fee within 14 days of service of this order.
5. Enforcement of the judgment be stayed pending determination of this application and, if necessary, pending further order.

Witness Statement

IN THE COUNTY COURT
Claim No: [CLAIM NUMBER]

BETWEEN:

[CLAIMANT]
Claimant

-and-

[DEFENDANT]
Defendant

Witness Statement of the Defendant

I, [DEFENDANT NAME], of [CURRENT ADDRESS], say as follows:

1. I am the Defendant in this matter. I make this witness statement in support of my application to set aside the default judgment dated [JUDGMENT DATE].
2. This application is made primarily pursuant to CPR 13.2 on the basis that the judgment was wrongly entered because the claim was not validly served. In the alternative, I rely on CPR 13.3.
3. At all material times when the claim was issued and served, I was living at [CORRECT ADDRESS AT THE TIME]. I was not residing at [OLD ADDRESS USED FOR SERVICE] at that time. I moved to the correct address on [DATE]. Proof of my residence at that address is exhibited at [EXHIBIT REF].
4. I understand that the Claimant’s solicitors first sent a Letter Before Claim dated [DATE] to the old address. That letter is exhibited at [EXHIBIT REF].
5. The Claimant’s solicitors then sent a further Letter Before Claim dated [DATE] to my correct address. In that letter, they expressly stated that they had carried out a trace and that the trace had produced that address as a possible alternative address, and that they were writing there in order to establish whether it was my usual residence. That letter is exhibited at [EXHIBIT REF].
6. On [DATE], a reply was submitted using the Claimant’s solicitors’ own online portal in response to that Letter Before Claim. An automated acknowledgment confirmed receipt of a Pre-Action Protocol reply and recorded that the debt was disputed. That acknowledgment is exhibited at [EXHIBIT REF].
7. I therefore engaged promptly with the matter using the exact route I had been directed to use. After that portal response, I received no substantive reply to my dispute and no proper follow-up alerting me that proceedings had been issued.
8. I did not receive any claim form, particulars of claim, or other court documents at my correct address. I had no knowledge that the matter had proceeded to a claim and then to judgment.
9. The post-judgment correspondence I later obtained shows that judgment had been entered under this claim number on [JUDGMENT DATE], and that correspondence was addressed to the old address. That document is exhibited at [EXHIBIT REF].
10. The Subject Access Request material is highly relevant. It shows that the Claimant’s solicitors held both the old address and the correct address on file, but that the court claim was still associated with the old address. That material is exhibited at [EXHIBIT REF].
11. In my respectful submission, those documents show that the Claimant and/or its solicitors had reason to believe that the old address was no longer current, had traced and written to the correct address before issue, and yet the court claim was still pursued using the old address.
12. I first became aware of the CCJ on [DATE IN MONTH/YEAR] when [HOW DISCOVERED]. I was shocked to discover this, as I had not previously known that proceedings had been issued.
13. The CCJ caused real prejudice. In particular, it adversely affected my credit record and contributed to the loss of a remortgage opportunity. Evidence of that is exhibited at [EXHIBIT REF].
14. Once I became aware of the CCJ, I acted to investigate what had happened. I contacted the Claimant’s solicitors, raised a complaint, and sought disclosure. I also made a Subject Access Request because the key documents about the address history and pre-action correspondence were in their possession.
15. I rely in particular on the fact that the Claimant’s solicitors later accepted there had been a delay in responding and placed the matter on hold to allow review of the evidence and further representations. That correspondence is exhibited at [EXHIBIT REF].
16. This is not a case where I ignored correspondence or deliberately failed to respond. The evidence shows the opposite:
    a. the Claimant’s solicitors wrote to my correct address after conducting a trace;
    b. a prompt portal dispute reply was submitted and acknowledged;
    c. the claim and judgment trail nevertheless remained tied to the old address; and
    d. I did not receive the claim form and therefore had no fair opportunity to defend the claim.
17. I therefore say that the claim was not validly served. The Claimant had reason to believe the old address was no longer my current address and had, in fact, identified and used my correct address before issue. In those circumstances, the judgment was wrongly entered and should be set aside pursuant to CPR 13.2.
18. In the alternative, I say there is at least some other good reason to set the judgment aside under CPR 13.3, because I did not have any fair opportunity to defend the claim due to the failure of service.
19. I also ask the Court to strike out the claim. If the Court is not with me on strike out, I ask that I be given permission to file and serve a defence within 14 days.
20. I further ask that the Claimant reimburse the court fee for this application, because this application has been made necessary by the Claimant’s conduct in pursuing the claim to judgment at the wrong address.

Statement of Truth

I believe that the facts stated in this witness statement are true.

Signed: ______________________

Name: [DEFENDANT NAME]

Dated: ______________________

Proposed exhibits to attach to witness statement.

• Exhibit 1 — proof of residence at the correct address at the relevant time

• Exhibit 2 — Letter Before Claim sent to old address

• Exhibit 3 — Letter Before Claim sent to correct address after trace

• Exhibit 4 — portal / PAP acknowledgment email

• Exhibit 5 — judgment or post-judgment letter sent to old address

• Exhibit 6 — SAR material showing both addresses on file

• Exhibit 7 — evidence of credit/remortgage prejudice

• Exhibit 8 — complaint / apology / hold email chain

——————

In addition to any advice offered on the above, I would like to query the best course of action with respect to the claim itself. As I understand, usually it is necessary to have a cursory mention of the defence, or at least the putative defence. In this case, I'm uncertain, as the invoice includes pictures which aren't entirely helpful to our case, in that they depict the vehicle parked over the line of a demarcated space. Obviously, we would dispute that that merits an invoice of the£100 that they have raised, but I'm not sure how to best characterize this in our application.

Coupon-mad

I'd say:

• add a para about Chan and Akande because Gladstones claims don't include the breach
• add a para about VCS v Carr (read the thread by @Brightonrock123
• change your SoT at the end to the right version. This is 5 years out of date:

"I believe that the facts stated in this witness statement are true."

Oh - and you are not timebound because your application is under CPR 13.2 and is a mandatory CCJ set aside. Promptness is not a consideration under CPR 13.2.

Gooding

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81930290#Comment_81930290

Noted, thank you.

I have revised the two pieces accordingly.

Going to call the court today to get the PoC, but from reading here it seems a done deal that it will be bare.

I also understand that if the strike out is mandatory, then there's an underlying presumption that the original case ought to also be set aside. please tell me if that's correct?

——————-

Draft Order for Court

IN THE COUNTY COURT
Claim No: [CLAIM NUMBER]

BETWEEN:

[CLAIMANT]
Claimant

-and-

[DEFENDANT]
Defendant

DRAFT ORDER

UPON considering the Defendant’s application dated [DATE OF N244]

AND UPON reading the witness statement of the Defendant and the exhibits attached thereto

AND UPON the Court noting that the Claimant had reason to believe that the address used for service was no longer the Defendant’s usual or current residence, had obtained and written to an alternative address before issue, but nevertheless proceeded to default judgment using the earlier address

AND UPON the Court noting that the Defendant’s case is that the claim form was not validly served, such that the default judgment was wrongly entered and falls to be set aside pursuant to CPR 13.2

AND UPON the Court further noting, in the alternative, that the Particulars of Claim fail to plead with sufficient clarity the conduct said to amount to the alleged contractual breach

IT IS ORDERED THAT:

1. The default judgment dated [JUDGMENT DATE] be set aside.
2. The claim is struck out.
3. The Claimant shall pay the Defendant’s application fee of £313 within 14 days of service of this order.
4. All enforcement of the judgment be stayed pending determination of this application and, if necessary, pending further order.

———————-

Witness Statement for Court

IN THE COUNTY COURT
Claim No: [CLAIM NUMBER]

BETWEEN:

[CLAIMANT]
Claimant

-and-

[DEFENDANT]
Defendant

Witness Statement of [DEFENDANT]

I, [DEFENDANT NAME], of [CURRENT ADDRESS], will say as follows:

1. I am the Defendant in this matter and I make this witness statement in support of my application to set aside the default judgment entered against me on [JUDGMENT DATE].
2. This application is made primarily under CPR 13.2 on the basis that the judgment was wrongly entered because the claim form was not validly served. In the alternative only, I rely on CPR 13.3.
3. At all material times when the claim was issued and purportedly served, I was living at [BRISTOL ADDRESS / CORRECT ADDRESS]. I was not living at [OLD ADDRESS USED FOR SERVICE]. I moved to [BRISTOL ADDRESS / CORRECT ADDRESS] on [EXACT DATE].
4. The address used by the Claimant for the claim was [OLD ADDRESS].
5. I understand that the Claimant’s solicitors first sent a Letter Before Claim dated [DATE] to the old address.
6. The Claimant’s solicitors then sent a further Letter Before Claim dated [DATE] to [BRISTOL / CORRECT ADDRESS]. In that letter they stated that they had carried out a trace and that the trace had produced that address as a possible alternative address, and that they were writing there to establish whether it was my usual residence.
7. On [DATE], a reply was submitted using the Claimant’s solicitors’ own online portal in response to that Letter Before Claim. An acknowledgment was received confirming receipt of the reply and confirming that the debt was disputed.
8. I therefore engaged promptly and properly with the matter using the exact route I had been directed to use. After that portal reply, I received no substantive response to my dispute and no warning that proceedings had been issued.
9. I did not receive the claim form, particulars of claim, or any other court documents at my correct address. I had no knowledge that the matter had progressed to a county court claim and then to default judgment.
10. I first became aware of the CCJ on [DATE IN FEBRUARY 2026] when [HOW DISCOVERED].
11. After discovering the CCJ, I investigated what had happened. The Subject Access Request material shows that the Claimant’s solicitors held both the old address and the correct address, but that the court claim was still pursued using the old address.
12. I respectfully say that this is exactly why service was defective. The Claimant had reason to believe that the old address was no longer current, had obtained and written to the correct address before issue, and had also received my prompt online reply through their own portal. Despite that, the claim was still pursued to default judgment at the old address.
13. I rely on VCS v Carr as the main authority supporting the service point. My case is that, once the Claimant had reason to believe the old address was no longer current and had traced and written to the correct address, it was not entitled simply to continue using the old address for service.
14. Accordingly, I say that the claim form was not validly served and that the default judgment was wrongly entered. The judgment must therefore be set aside pursuant to CPR 13.2.
15. Further and in the alternative, I say that the claim should also be struck out because the Particulars of Claim do not properly identify the conduct said to amount to the alleged breach. They do not explain with sufficient clarity what exactly I was alleged to have done wrong.
16. In support of that alternative strike-out point, I rely on the reasoning discussed on the MSE forum in CEL v Chan and CPMS v Akande, namely that generic parking particulars which fail to specify the actual breach can be inadequate.
17. This is not a case where I ignored correspondence or failed to engage. The evidence shows the opposite:
    a. the Claimant’s solicitors wrote to my correct address after conducting a trace;
    b. I submitted a prompt reply using their own online portal;
    c. that reply was acknowledged;
    d. I received no proper response; and
    e. the claim and judgment were nevertheless pursued at the old address.
18. I had no fair opportunity to defend the claim before judgment was entered.
19. The CCJ has caused me real prejudice. In particular, it adversely affected my credit record and contributed to the loss of a remortgage opportunity.
20. I ask the Court to set aside the judgment, strike out the claim, and order the Claimant to reimburse my application fee.
21. If the Court is not with me on strike-out, I ask that I be given permission to file and serve a defence within 14 days.

Statement of Truth

I believe that the facts stated in this witness statement are true. I understand that proceedings for contempt of court may be brought against anyone who makes, or causes to be made, a false statement in a document verified by a statement of truth without an honest belief in its truth.

Signed: ______________________

Name: [DEFENDANT NAME]

Dated: ______________________

—————————————

So is it okay to be this brief in referencing the caselaw here?And then the whole Dog and Pony show comes out in the defence or skeleton argument. At least that's what I've gathered from reading the threads, but in truth I'm also not sure whether I should be fleshing out my witness statement with more details.

Thanks again!

Coupon-mad

I think you can keep the WS factual like that as long as you attach proof of address changes. Then add a skelly and costs assessment before the hearing.

I also understand that if the strike out is mandatory, then there's an underlying presumption that the original case ought to also be set aside. please tell me if that's correct?

No, but if 4 months has passed from CCJ date to hearing, then you should argue that the claim expired unserved. An expired claim is dead. Loads of examples of that argument and case law here! Not just VCS v Carr which also saw the whole claim dismissed for that reason.