Private ticket (Group Nexus) at a retail car park in Croydon

Stranger_80

Hi everyone,

Seeking an advice on a particular situation (have trawled through the newbies section but could not find an exactly the same one).

So, my mother in law who is a citizen and a resident of a non-EU country, was visiting us in recently at the end of April and I let her use our car (for which I am a registered keeper). She went shopping in Croydon retail park and based on the attached private parking ticket, overstayed there.

On that day (29 April) I was in the office in central London and can probably get a witness statement to confirm that (any other ideas how to prove it are welcome).

We spoke to my mother in law and she is fine to be identified as a driver (noting that she resides abroad). Due to family situation, I may not be able to dedicate a lot of time to managing the appeals process.

Would passing on my mother-in-law's details formally discharge my obligations and Group Nexus will have the pleasure of writing letters to her in another country? I'm fine to pay the private ticket too to avoid the hassle.

Many thanks

Gr1pr

Yes you should give them the name and address of the foreign driver, as is your legal right under POFA 2012, as mentioned on the back of the pcn, to discharge your RK duties and transfer liability

Personally, I would also follow plan A as keeper and complain about it to the retail park management company or landlord or landowner too, with a copy of the pcn, especially if the driver was a genuine customer, ideally with proof of patronage

Coupon-mad

Would passing on my mother-in-law's details formally discharge my obligations and Group Nexus will have the pleasure of writing letters to her in another country?

Yes. Do that now.

Stranger_80

Hi,

I received a letter from GroupNexus ("GN") just yesterday and wanted to provide a recap of the process:

29/04/2026 - my mother-in-law went shopping in Croydon using my car and overstayed. I was in the office in central London at that time and I can prove it if need be.

05/05/2026 - GroupNexus issued a PCN asking to name the driver or to pay £100 (reduced to £60 if paid within 14 days)

17/05/2026 - I appealed using GroupNexus' online portal following their process (as outlined on the back side of their original letter - attached below), identified the driver by providing my mother-in-law's name and her overseas address as requested in the GN's letter of 05/05/2026. GN acknowledged the receipt of the appeal and advised that "Further action on your Parking Charge has been put on hold - please wait to hear from us.
We aim to write back to you within 14 working days, but certainly, no more than 28 days after your representation is received."

28/05/2026 - I also wrote to Savills who are the agent and share a proof of patronage and asked to liaise with GN to cancel the appeal - no response.

28/09/2026 - a letter from GN received (see below) with a number of typos.

• GN attempt to transfer the liability back to me although I identified the driver
• GN acknowledged on 17/05/2026 that the further action has been put on hold and said they would respond within 14 working days but not later than 28 days. The response came 67 days after my appeal.
• The letter does not address my appeal, does not identify as an appeal rejection, does not provide the POPLA code
• GN increased the amount to £100 despite clearly saying they would give another 14 days to pay at the reduced rate if they reject my appeal.
• GN letter does not provide access to POPLA.

I would very much welcome your thoughts on whether GN followed the process / made any errors in the process, and my next steps this interesting case

Many thanks

Gr1pr

Your September date is incorrect, presumably you meant 07 , not 09

Use the complaint link on the BPA AOS members list to complain about the fact that the keeper identified the driver, with a serviceable address, plus no popla appeal code has been provided either

Remind them of what the April 2026 Code of Practice says, plus the recent open letter by the CMA too

Stranger_80

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82084818#Comment_82084818

You are right, the letter from GN was 26/07/2026.

"Use the complaint link on the BPA AOS members list to complain about the fact that the keeper identified the driver, with a serviceable address, plus no popla appeal code has been provided either" - shall I complain to GroupNexus or BPA? BPA says "complain to them once the complaint to the member has been exhausted".

"Remind them of what the April 2026 Code of Practice says, plus the recent open letter by the CMA too" - I am afraid I'm lost here…

Many thanks for the advice

Gr1pr

My point was to complain about it to the private parking company, first, because as you say, you cannot complain to the BPA until after complaining about it to the parking company

The focus is currently aimed at GN, I would have thought that it was obvious, due to receiving paperwork from GN

Coupon-mad

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82084864#Comment_82084864

Oooh @Stranger_80

…there's more than that to be done! IMHO, Group Nexus need investigating for this course of multiple rogue conduct.

Not just by their mates at the BPA!

I believe the CMA should see ALL your evidence because they are investigating the parking industry RIGHT NOW:

Evidence like this will probably lead to various parking firms being hugely fined by the CMA, so it's the ultimate fightback by consumer victims.

"plus the recent open letter by the CMA too" - I am afraid I'm lost here"

It was in the news last week, BBC News and on MSE itself:

MSE article: July 2026

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) launched a major crackdown on the UK private parking industry, issuing an open warning over unfair appeals, and advising stricter government oversight CMA takes action on private parking practices.

Is your mother in law elderly or disabled? Needs more time for shopping?

If yes, she qualifies for extended free parking time as a reasonable adjystment under the Equality Act 2010. That would be something extra to tell the CMA.

If no, my word … you have described multiple unfair appeals handling practices by GN!

Not least that:

• you transferred liability with her name and address, which fulfils Schedule 4 of POFA (which deliberately stopped short of requiring a keeper to somehow invent a UK address for the driver, if truthfully naming the driver who lives overseas).
• I repeat (and would say the following to the CMA): you transferred liability - which is your legal right, at any time before court action commences, not just in an arbitrary 28 day window and not just with a UK address for service for thst driver, which POFA 2012 Sch4 doesn't require - and your involvement ended then.

Yet they continued to pursue you and the next letter from GN (with a number of typos) left a lot to be desired and demanded money from you (the keeper) unlawfully.

As you said:

• GN attempted to transfer the liability back to me though I had already identified the driver
• GN acknowledged on 17/05/2026 that the further action has been put on hold and said they would respond within 14 working days but not later than 28 days. The response came 67 days after my appeal.
• The letter does not address my appeal, does not identify as an appeal rejection, does not provide the POPLA code
• GN increased the amount to £100 despite clearly saying they would give another 14 days to pay at the reduced rate if they reject my appeal.
• GN letter does not provide access to POPLA.

This won't be a one-off. It's likely that they routinely (unlawfully) ignore ToL if the driver lives abroad because it's easier to (unlawfully) pursue PCNs with registered keepers and lease firms who are sitting ducks despite having transferred liability, which Sch4 of POFA allows at any time before court action (a small claim) commences.

This was confirmed by the industry themselves, in the BPA's Parking News publication, by a solicitor they asked to wrote an article about determining the timeline for transfers of liability:April 2020

http://portfolio.cpl.co.uk/Parking-News/395/26/   

***SCS Law on what it means to 'begin proceedings' (transfer liability)***
They confirm the correct interpretation.  Useful to screenshot that and use it as an exhibit in a case where a PPC is telling stories to the court about an imaginary '28 day deadline to transfer liability'. Not according to the law.


YOU WILL NEED TO EXPLAIN TO THE CMA THAT DETAIL ABOUT TRANSFER OF LIABILITY RIGHTS UNDER THE POFA BECAUSE THAT'LL BE NEW TO THEM. IT'S NOT SOMETHING THE CMA WILL HAVE HEARD OF BEFORE, AS THIS IS A NICHE AREA OF LAW AND THEY ARE NEW TO SCRUTINISING THE PARKING SECTOR. INCLUDE EVERYTHING I SAID AND THE BPA NEWS ARTICLE PLUS GIVE THEM A LINK TO SCHEDULE 4.

😀

CMA Contact emails (use both, the first one goes directly to their parking investigation) :

• parking@cma.gov.uk
• general.enquiries@cma.gov.uk

Do this SEPARATELY and don't cc in the BPA.

Stranger_80

@Coupon-mad First of all - thank you very much for this insightful advice and your time.

I will dedicate an evening this week to properly describing this to BPA & CMA.

My mother in law is not disabled but she is unfortunately overweight and definitely needs more time shopping - she genuinely overstayed but she couldn't get in the car for a little while when she returned because someone parked their car very close if it helps.

Many thanks again and I will prepare an appeal / complaint text very soon.

Stranger_80

I followed the Path A and following a couple of calls with Savills (who were very helpful) and an email describing the situation + proof of patronage, I received an email from GN where they confirmed they are cancelling the charge:

Dear Sir/Madam,

Thank you for your correspondence relating to your Parking Charge: XXXXXXXXX.

Further to your representations, we have investigated your claims and can confirm that your Charge has subsequently been cancelled in full and no further action will be taken.

Please disregard any letters received that predate this email.

Yours faithfully,

CP Plus Limited

I will complain to CMA just to ensure that their practices won't go unnoticed.

@Coupon-mad and @Gr1pr - thank you for your guidance throughout.

Gr1pr

Excellent news, plan A worked again ! Savills are very understanding when it comes to actual customers who spend money on their sites. !