Help, Horizon Parking referred to Debt collectors

Groover95

Hello there I am hoping to get some help and advice on how to proceed forwards with the mess i find myself in.

I have read all the newbies advice and previously used the help to dispute parking fines successfully however this time I've missed the letters and now referred to debt collectors.

Horizion manage my local Tesco and recently changed the parking time after 22:00 to 1 hour free dispite the store being open until midnight. I'm a disabled person with a blue badge and when I actually feel well enough to shop (very rarely) I can only do so late at night when the store is quiet.

Ive been staying with my partner due to my ill health and needing more support and missed the letters and its now been referred to debt collectors, I went into the store to see if they could help and also phoned the debt collectors all with no avail.

Citizens advice just told me to write to Horizon explaining and hope they may be sympathetic. However I remember through using this before it says to not admit who was driving.

Im hoping to get some help and advice on what to do and whether to wait for potential CCJ or what to do as i would rather just pay it now than get a CCJ.

I don't see that i should pay at all as I was in the store shopping and as i said Im disabled.

Thanks in advance!

Jame4ters

ignore the powerless debt collectors and ignore Citizens Advice. Don’t bother trying to appeal to Horizon’s better side. They don’t have one

Plan A is to complain to Tesco.

The next steps are in the “Newbies” thread so follow them.

James_Poisson

You don't have a "fine" and you have no debt just a greedy private company that say you owe them money, so stop worrying about that, as you were told on your previous thread.

The advice above is sound, contact Tesco and complain to the manager not CS or contact HO, they should be making reasonable adjustments in this case, and changing the parking time to one hour after 10PM when they open until midnight looks like a trap to me.

Citizens advice are useless with private parking tickets, and you cannot just get a CCJ the regulars on here will help, but you need to keep this thread updated, you never came back to your other thread with feedback.

Car1980

You misunderstand CCJs.

You can only have a CCJ awarded against you if you ignore the court claim letter OR respond and it goes all the way to a hearing in front of a judge AND you lose AND you still don't pay within 28 days of that.

The Equality Act 2010 means they are discriminating with their daft time limit to shop. You have a protected characteristic. That Citizens Advice never mentioned this shows how useless they are.

Ignore the debt collectors but complain to Tesco that their contractor is in breach of the Equality Act as you needed more time to shop and that they are obliged to instruct them to cancel the charge as they are jointly liable.

And even if went to a court claim you have a solid defence. Virtually all single ticket cases are discontinued before any hearing.

patient_dream

AS ABOVE

Write to the CEO asking "What sort of scam is he running" especially for a disabled person

Ask the CEO to cancel the ticket.

Managers at the small stores have no power

Coupon-mad

"Horizon manage my local Tesco and recently changed the parking time after 22:00 to 1 hour free despite the store being open until midnight. I'm a disabled person with a blue badge and when I actually feel well enough to shop (very rarely) I can only do so late at night when the store is quiet."

You certainly need to complain in the strongest terms to Tesco Dundee Head Office.

This is illegal - an Equality Act 2010 breach: a failure to make reasonable adjustments.

I would also suggest you email Horizon's complaints email. Tell them that you are disabled, a blue badge holder and need more time when shopping. Whilst 1 hour might be enough for able bodied people it is not long enough for you, due to your medical condition (explain a bit, if you wish).

Tell them you were staying away from home due to illness and didn't see the PCN and the next letter, until you returned (give approx dates). As such, the Code of Practice recognises that a late appeal must be provided in these circumstances and requires Horizon to reissue the PCN and pause debt recovery. Even better, cancel the PCN.

To your complaint, attach a pic of your blue badge and your receipt or bank statement showing your Tesco spend that day.

(DO NOT TRY TO APPEAL. THAT ISN'T WHAT I SAID).

Groover95

Thanks everyone, I am glad that my outrage was not unjust.

I have been unwell again and unable to action this and now am just setting to it again, it seems I will have to call Tesco Customer Services from the info I could find… I started drafting a complaint to Horizon but even the complaint has to be under 500 characters, I started drafting one and then very quickly realised I was over double that.

I wonder if i should state I have a complaint ref a breach of Equality Act rights, I'm unable to write the complaint in detail due to the limited character allowance but would like the necessary info to be able to send my full complaint? Sorry if this sounds silly to ask but I just want to get the necessary info in and don't see how I can mention theEquality Act breach, My personal circumstances about the shopping and missing tickets due to being away from home due to ill health and the stress the tickets has caused me in under 500 characters.

I would like to write the complaint despite of whatever outcome as if I can do something to get this changed and save someone else the hell of all this, I would like to try. I'd actually like to be able to access the store again without the fear of another ticket if i go over 1 hour etc.

Once again i am truly grateful for every response, your time and advice means a lot to a very anxious and worried hermit like myself!

Coupon-mad

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82141679#Comment_82141679

Yes certainly put in a complaint citing the Equality Act 2010. You are legally entitled to more time. It is appalling that Horizon is limiting complaints to 500 characters!

Is there no screen on the CS desk to enter your VRM for a Blue Badge time exemption? My local Tesco has that - a Horizon tablet - and it's mentioned in small print on the signs too. Easy to miss but it's there and Blue Badge holders must use it every time (a scam in itself, why isn't a car whitelisted for - say - the whole year after one entry and showing your badge to CS staff, I wonder).