17 year old - Total Car Parks - Popla fail - next steps

bendeneo

Hi all, some advice please.

In a nutshell, a friends 17 year old son sat parked his car in a Total Car Parks whilst he took a foreign language student from his college to town, so she would get some documentation signed off. She took a long time and got lost, so he left the car to find her…. just over 30 mins in total.

He received a £60 fine, and appealed to them to state his error and intentions, and that he didnt mean to incur a fine due to helping the other student, and that as a student he couldnt afford £100.

They refused and said he could go to Popla… Popla of course didnt taken anything into account…. so he now has a Popla fail, and £100 to pay.

What do you think is the best course of action here? Send them another message stating that he was 17 and cannot afford the fine, or go stronger and state that 17 year olds are not privy to quite the same rules, and taking it to court would not be a proportionate option… what do you think?

Thanks in advance.

Half_way

What fine has the driver been issued with?

where does it say fine or penalty on any of the paper work?

Popla is not binding upon the motorist, the parking company is not an authority and popla only look to the riles invented by an out of control parking industry that is currently still un regulated

Car1980

People under 18 generally lack full legal capacity to enter into binding contracts, meaning most agreements they sign are "voidable" by the minor. This means a minor can choose to cancel or walk away from the contract.

As he is under 18 they can't even make a court claim against him.

You can email TPS and explain you are his father and that their contract with your 17 year old son is voided and to cease and desist any contact. Point out that they cannot make a court claim against him.

bendeneo

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82153592#Comment_82153592

Thanks very much for this, that sounds like the most sensible option, and hopefully they will see that.

I guess the slight problem is that he turns 18 next month, and they may spend a couple of months threatening court action before they actually apply to court….. but to check, their 'contract' is based on when he is 17… is that is correct?

bendeneo

This is some wording I have from using AI, that I amended only slightly…. does anyone see any issues with this?

He appealed with full information as to an issue he was dealing with, and you refused his appeal.
I am writing to you to further ask you to cease and desist on this parking fine, and for it to be cancelled immediately due to the following grounds:

1. Lack of legal Capacity (Minor Status):
   At the date and time of the alleged contravention, he was 17 years old and therefore a minor under the law. A parking charge notice relies on the formation of a commercial contract between the parking operator and the driver. As a minor, he did not possess the legal capacity to enter into a binding financial contract of this nature, rendering any alleged contract void and unenforceable.
2. Safety Emergency / Mitigating Circumstances:
   The vehicle was briefly stopped due to an urgent safety issue that required immediate attention before it was safe to continue driving. Parking operators must allow for a reasonable grace period and exercise discretion in situations involving driver safety and emergency halts.

Given his status as a minor and the emergency nature of the stop, there is no lawful or enforceable basis for this charge.Please confirm in writing within 14 days that this Parking Charge Notice has been cancelled and that no further action will be taken.

Gr1pr

Seems ok to me. !

MrJenkinsEsq

A minor can be sued (Civil Procedure Rules 1998, r 21.6(3)), and the contract is not void. Most contracts with a minor cannot be enforced against him unless he ratifies them after 18 (Minors' Contracts Act 1987, s 1), and a few with a continuing interest bind him until he repudiates (Edwards v Carter [1893] AC 360). Repudiating now covers both. After he turns 18 he should not say or do anything that admits the charge or offers to pay.

It must be sent by the son himself, not by a parent or family friend, and ideally before his 18th birthday. Sending it later leaves room for argument.

"PCN [reference]. I was the driver. I was born on [DOB] and was 17 on [date]. Any contract formed is not enforceable against me as a minor and I repudiate it. Please confirm within 14 days that the charge is cancelled."

If anyone would try to a sue a minor it would be a parking company!

Car1980

You cannot use MCOL to make a claim against:

a child under 18

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/money-claim-online-user-guide/money-claim-online-mcol-user-guide

It must be sent by the son himself, not by a parent or family friend, and ideally before his 18th birthday. Sending it later leaves room for argument.

But that would undermine the notion that he lacks legal capacity? He's under guardianship.

MrJenkinsEsq

MCOL cannot be used against a known child (Practice Direction 7C, para 4(5)(b)) but that only rules out one filing route. A paper claim form is still available, though that takes effort they probably wouldn't spend. Once he turns 18 MCOL is open to them anyway.

Nothing described so far suggests he is under guardianship or lacks capacity. A 17 year old can make contracts and the right to repudiate is his own, so a letter from him is the cleanest way to exercise it.

GrumpyDil

Agreed that generally speaking a minor cannot form a binding contract except in a limited number of circumstances which off hand I seem to recall are generally limited to contracts for necessities and possibly employment situations.

I'd concentrate on that element noting that your son needs to send any letter. That said what's the emergency element relate to as I can't see anything in the original post relating to an urgent safety issue?

Coupon-mad

"A 17 year old can make contracts and the right to repudiate is his own, so a letter from him is the cleanest way to exercise it."

Yes, hope this is clear?

The 17 year old repudiates the contract in writing (email) using that word. Not a parent. Do it before he turns 18 and he includes ID proof of his date of birth just to ensure they can't plough on and say there's no evidence he is 17.