Civil enforcement ltd County Court Claim Form

Foxybadger

I received a PCN in April 26 for £170 claiming I hadnt registered my car for free parking whilst playing pickleball at Everyone Active in Hemel Hempstead on Dec 21st 2025. I emailed and asked for evidence as it was the first correspondence I had received about it. I didnt get any response until a county court claim form issued on 25.6.26.

I then realised that my wife who was also playing had entered her registration number as she would usually be in her own car. Simple human error. I do have a screen shot of successful registration albeit of the wrong car.

Is this worth defending ?

Gr1pr

Its always worth defending a court claim

Post a redacted picture of the POC from the lower left of the claim form below after hiding the VRM details first

Post the Issue date from the top right of the claim form below too

Is it an in-house CEL court claim. ? ( no legal company involved. )

Coupon-mad

It is a no-brainer to defend ANY parking claim (regardless of facts) because even people who get as far as a hearing and lose only pay £212.

And CEL claims aren't reaching hearings. They've gone into discontinue mode with defended cases. Easy to see off. I have a friend with one right now and she won't be paying, just using the Template Defence.

Foxybadger

Its an in house claim issue date 25.6.26

Coupon-mad

The breach has been pleaded which seems to be CEL's new POC, so just use the usual Template Defence.

Le_Kirk

With an issue date of 25/06/26 and providing you complete(d) the AoS before or on 14/07/26 your defence deadline date is 4.00 p.m. on 28/07/26

Foxybadger

I have used the template defence and they have come back with a copy of their N180 still waiting for court to send mine for completion. Spoken to Which Legal and I said its a major keying error so they said to make a without prejudice offer of £20. I have a screen shot that I put my reg in instead of my husbands.

Is it a good idea to make any offer at this stage?

Gr1pr

Definitely Not, any such offers should be at the Mediation stage, if at all. !

The CNBC will post your N180 out, ( no court is involved yet. )

Coupon-mad

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82086246#Comment_82086246

Did Which Legal not even tell you about Mediation?! Hopeless. Yes, you could offer £20 but no, not just yet and you already know all about Mediation stage because it's in your 8 steps you are following.

Foxybadger

Yep I do know about mediation. She also said that if we went to court and lost even if we paid within 30 days it would affect our credit rating for 6 years. I don't think thats true !!

Thank you for responses.

Coupon-mad

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82086571#Comment_82086571

No, she's completely wrong about that!

If that was true, think about it, LOL… no defendant would ever defend a court claim!

I would put in and escalate a complaint to Which Legal about plainly incorrect legal advice. No defendant in small claims risks a CCJ if they defend and follow all directions, not even if they lose at a hearing, because they'd simply pay what the judge ordered within 30 days and no CCJ remains. Not even one marked 'satisfied'. Nothing. Nada.

Anyway show us what you put in as your facts in para 3. Did you call it a keying error?