Gladstones / Euro Car Parks / CCJ / Wrong Address

So I've had my hearing date back which is 3 months away, was hoping to be a little sooner but nevermind.

What should I do next?

I know I need to prepare a Defence statement, do I wait to receive paper from Gladstones, in the same breath what if they don't send me anything?

Any advice to get a headstart and keep on top of it with it being 3 months away would be wonderful.

Thanks in advance!

Umkomaas wrote: »

If you’ve got a hearing date, it’s too late for a ‘Defence statement’. Do you mean a Witness Statement?

The NEWBIES FAQ sticky, post #2 takes you through the entire court process from LBC to the hearing.

I have already written and sent my Witness Statement which resulted in me getting the hearing date.

From what I have read I thought I had to have a well prepared Defence together for when I appear at my hearing to have a good chance of a set aside?

Is that not correct?

Apologies, In my previous posts I was referring to the Draft Defence for my hearing.

Below is a copy of my Witness Statement that I sent to the court last month with an extra copy for Gladstones along with a Draft Order.

Details of situation are in original post, but let me know if you need any other info.

===================

In the County Court Business Centre
Claim Number XXXXXX


BETWEEN:
Euro Parking Services Limited (Claimant)
v
XXX XXXX (Defendant)




________________________________

WITNESS STATEMENT

________________________________

I am XXXX and I am the Defendant in this matter.
This my supporting Statement in support of my application dated 19/10/17 to:
· Set aside the Default Judgement dated 14/02/17 as it was not properly served at my current address;
· Order for the Claimant to pay the Defendant £255 as reimbursement for the set aside fee;
· Order for the original claim to be dismissed.

1. Default Judgement
1.1. I understand that the Claimant obtained a Default Judgement against me as the Defendant on 14/02/17. However, this claim form has not been served at my current address and I thus was not aware of the Default Judgement until 07/10/17 when I was attending a meeting with a mortgage advisor with my fianc!. I understand that this Claim was served at an OLD ADDRESS (XXX XXXX ). However, I moved to a new address on 09/11/14. In support of this I can provide confirmation of updated banking information and I was registered on the electoral roll.

1.2. I have also never received any previous documentation from the Claimant in this matter and I thus was never able to properly challenge the Claimant’s claim.

1.3. On the 09/10/17 I contacted County Court Business Centre to find out details of the Default Judgement. The court papers contain no details of the alleged incident and I do not know what the Default Judgement relates to.

1.4. On 10/10/17 I attempted to contact the Claimant using information given to me by County Court Business Centre. I phoned Gladstones Solicitors who were unable to provide any information and asked me to email them which I am still waiting for a reply.

1.5 On 18/10/17 I contacted the County Court Business Centre again to ask for a copy of the judgement to be emailed to me after not being contacted by Gladstones Solicitors for 8 days. This means as the Defendant, I still do not have any details of the incident the Claimant alleges has taken place, other than the summary of charges now owed, which is shown on the Court papers.

1.6. I believe the Claimant has behaved unreasonably in pursuing a claim against me without ensuring they held the Defendant’s current and correct contact details. According to publicly available information my circumstances are far from being unique. The Claimant’s persistent failure to use correct and current addresses results is an unnecessary burden for individuals and the justice system across the country.

1.7. On the basis provided above I would suggest that the Claimant did not fulfil their duty to use the Defendant’s current address when bringing the claim.

1.8. Considering the above I was unable to defend this claim properly. I thus believe that the Default Judgement against me was issued incorrectly and thus should be set aside.



2. Order dismissing the Claim

2.1. I further believe that the original Claim by the Claimant has no merit and should thus be dismissed. I understand that the Claimant is a Parking Company which seeks to claim for “Parking Charge Notices” which the Claimant believes are due as a result of an alleged breach of contract for parking by a motorist.

2.2. If the Claimant has obtained details of the vehicle for which the Defendant is the Registered Keeper, and used those details to make a claim for a “Parking Charge Notice’’, I thus dispute the claim in its entirety as I do not know the wording of the contract nor do I know the means by which the contract was alleged to come into force.

2.3. If the Claimant can evidence that the alleged incident relates to a vehicle for which the Defendant is the Registered Keeper, any Notice to Keeper served by the Claimant would have needed to comply with the requirements of Schedule 4 of the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012. Otherwise, the Claimant is required to prove the driver of the vehicle they claim was involved in the alleged incident. I submit that the Claimant cannot provide such evidence and further submit that the Claimant does not include ‘Protection of Freedoms Act 2012’ wording on the Parking Charge Notices they issue and therefore cannot hold the Defendant automatically liable for the alleged incident merely for being the Registered Keeper of a vehicle.

2.4. A requirement of the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 is that this any Notice to Keeper served by the Claimant must be served within 14 days of the date of the alleged incident. Since I have not received any documentation from the Claimant prior to finding out about the Default Judgement, I submit the Claimant will not have complied with the requirements of the Act and thus cannot claim this charge against me as the Registered Keeper in any case.

2.5. I further submit that the Claimant’s claim is without merit due to substantial issues in law. This is for the following main reasons:
2.5.1. Lack of Standing by Claimant: The Claimant is unlikely to be the landowner of the car park in question, and will have no proprietary interest in it. This means that the Claimant, as a matter of law, will have no locus standi to litigate in their own name. Any consideration will have been provided by the landholder, and only they would have been able sue for any damages or trespass.
2.5.2. No Loss Suffered by Claimant: Their claim is presumably based on damages for alleged breach of contract. It is a fundamental principle of English Law that a party who suffers damages through breach of contract can only seek through court action to be put back in the same position as they would have been if the breach had not occurred. In order to do so, they must demonstrate their actual, or genuine, pre-estimate of loss. I submit that no loss has been suffered by the Claimant as a result of any alleged breaches of contract on the part of any motorist of the vehicle of which I am the Registered Keeper. I further submit that any loss to the landholder (which would be the only party able to claim such losses) would be at most a few pounds.
2.5.3. Claimed charge is an Unenforceable Penalty: I further submit that the Parking Charge that the Claimant claimed, given it is not based on any loss suffered due to the alleged breach, is nothing but an unenforceable penalty.
2.5.4. No contract with the claimant: Any contract must have offer, acceptance and consideration both ways. There would not have been consideration from the Claimant to the motorist; the fee for parking benefits the landowners, not the Claimant. Therefore, there is no consideration from the motorist to Claimant.

2.6. On this basis I believe that the Claimant has not provided any reasonable cause of action and thus the claim should be dismissed in its entirety.
2.7. In order to make informed decisions and statements in my defence as keeper of the vehicle, I will require copies of all paperwork and pictures of all signs from the Claimant.


Statement of Truth:
I believe that the facts stated in this Witness Statement are true.
Full name: XXX XXXXX

Dated 19/10/17

Signed: __________________________________

Hey Coupon-mad,

Firstly, am I correct in spending my time before the hearing putting together a draft defense to take with me (or submit to them whichever is right).

Secondly, how do I write a draft defense when/if I never received any paperwork from Gladstones, or will that come in the post? (Probably the day before the hearing right?)

Thirdly, any recommendations on how to approach my draft defense based on my first post information and when do I start talking about the photo evidence I have of the correctly parked car.

Thanks in advance!