Gemini/Gladstones - Small Claim

FJ1000 · 25 May 2018 at 9:10AM

How about this?

Dear Emily,

Per the witness statement you have sent me, there was no parking contravention. Please refer to your own documentation again; the free parking period is 3 hours (per the signage images in your pack), the car was parked for 2:53 (per the penalty charge notice in your pack) - and yet your basis for a claim is that the maximum free parking time was exceeded.

<insert screenshots>

If this goes to court, I will be arguing that you have acted unreasonably, pursuant to Civil Procedure Rule 27.14 (2)(G), for the following reasons:

- Your pursuit of of this claim, despite your own evidence showing that the claim was completely baseless
- Your submission of a blank Directions Questionnaire to me and the court, until I pointed it out to you
- Your refusal to settle, per my offer to you sent 22nd Nov 2017
- Your refusal to share documentation prior to witness statements, per my email 04/05/2018
- Your underhanded practice of allowing Debt Recovery Plus to pose as Gladstone Solicitors. (I have kept records of correspondence and postage receipts between myself, Debt Recovery Plus and Gladstones evidencing this)

I will therefore be claiming the following costs when this case is thrown out:

Loss of earnings/leave - 0.5 day salary: £201.92
Return mileage from home address: £4.68
Parking: £6.00
8 hours research, preparation and drafting of documents: £152.00
Mileage to travel to Gambado to collect information and images: £8.55

Total: £388.15

However - As a goodwill gesture, and without prejudice save as to costs, in order to achieve a settlement; I suggest that your client makes an offer of no less than £200 in respect of the points above. This sum reflects my costs to date (£160.55) and a small sum as damages.

nosferatu1001 · 25 May 2018 at 9:45AM

Your normal costs is capped at £95, plus mileage and parking

You then have a seperate cost heading UNREASONABLE BEHAVIOUR with your time listed out as above - shocked you only spent 8 hours? I would split it out - initial correspondence, resaerching defence, completing witness statement, reading thier WS and finding the info they shouldnt have witheld from you, etc

I wuld suggest you add on that your offer has real value to them, as it will prevent their client being billed for a representative to turn up and have their case dismissed...

FJ1000 · 25 May 2018 at 10:06AM

Thanks very much for the feedback. I'll try again...

Dear Emily,

Per the witness statement you have sent me, there was no parking contravention. Please refer to your own documentation again; the free parking period is 3 hours (per the signage images in your pack), the car was parked for 2:53 (per the penalty charge notice in your pack) - and yet your basis for a claim is that the maximum free parking time was exceeded.

<insert screenshots>

If this goes to court, I will be arguing that you have acted unreasonably, pursuant to Civil Procedure Rule 27.14 (2)(G), for the following reasons:

- Your pursuit of of this claim, despite your own evidence showing that the claim was completely baseless
- Your submission of a blank Directions Questionnaire to me and the court, until I pointed it out to you
- Your refusal to settle, per my offer to you sent 22nd Nov 2017
- Your refusal to share documentation prior to witness statements, per my email 04/05/2018
- Your underhanded practice of allowing Debt Recovery Plus to pose as Gladstone Solicitors. (I have kept records of correspondence and postage receipts between myself, Debt Recovery Plus and Gladstones evidencing this)

I will therefore be claiming the following costs when this case is thrown out:

Ordinary Costs:
Loss of earnings/leave: £95
Return mileage from home address: £4.68
Parking: £6.00

Costs Related to Unreasonable Behaviour
Loss of earnings/leave over and above £95 cap: £106.92
Research, preparation and drafting of defence - 8 hours (£19/hr): £152.00
Research, preparation and drafting of witness statement - 4 hours (£19/hr): £76.00
Reading and responding to correspondence - 2 hours: £38.00
Stationary, printing, photocopying and postage: £15.00
Mileage to travel to Gambado to collect information and images: £8.55

Total: £502.15

However - As a goodwill gesture, and without prejudice save as to costs, in order to achieve a settlement; I suggest that your client makes an offer of no less than £250 in respect of the points above. This sum reflects my costs to date (£213.55) and a small sum as damages.

This offer represents a saving to your client, as they would otherwise be charged the cost of a Gladstone representative attending court, as well as the full costs outlined above, when the case is thrown out, using the evidence you yourselves have sent to the court.

Should you refuse to take up my offer, and proceed in wasting the time of the court, myself, and your representative - I intend to present this email to the judge.

I suggest you discontinue the case immediately, and respond to my offer within two days.

nosferatu1001 · 25 May 2018 at 10:09AM

You cannot go abpove the cap, I dont believe. Given you get half a day so 3.5 hours at £19 per hour you are already compensated.
But dont ask, dont get

FJ1000 · 25 May 2018 at 10:31AM

I'm going to give it a bash...sent to Gladstones

Can they just drop the case without paying me to settle? Would I then have to counter-claim?

It's astounding they're this stupid

nosferatu1001 · 25 May 2018 at 10:40AM

Of couse they can discontinue. Its their claim, not yours.
You couldnt then counter-claim, because there would be no original claim any longer. It would be a fresh claim. however you cannot claim for costs for the first claim.

Coupon-mad · 26 May 2018 at 11:18PM

They often discontinue when they can see they've got no hope.

LOL!

FJ1000 · 31 May 2018 at 12:02PM

Maybe I should've kept quiet! Oh well - better get my witness statement finished

Good Morning

We acknowledge receipt of your email dated the 25th May.

Whilst noted, we refer you to the attached sign confirming that, at the time the charge was applied, free parking was in fact limted to 2 hours and not 3 hours.

Please accept our apologies for enclosing the incorrect sign within our Bundle – we have today filed a copy of the correct sign with the Court.

Further, I can confirm that I have today contacted our Client and they have confirmed the site changed from 2 hours to 3 hours free parking on the 6th January 2017.

Kind Regards

Coupon-mad · 31 May 2018 at 8:56PM

Send a SAR to the parking firm, asking for all data held about your car and you, and why the time was changed from 2 hours to 3 hours, who made that decision and based upon what information.

Or have you sent them a SAR anyway?

EITHER WAY - SOMETHING TO DO TOMORROW:
Also send the 'leisure' park owner/agent (or Gambado softplay) an urgent email asking why and when the free parking time was changed from 2 hours to 3 hours? Tell them you are defending a claim and urgently need to know what led to the decision and at what point were the parking firm told to change it, assuming the change was led by the retailers and complaints. If so, please can they tell you urgently how many complaints they have had about the insufficient free parking time over, say, the past 18 months?

Do that tomorrow and NOT signed-for, contact the park owner by email.

If you get a useful reply admitting 2 hours was clearly insufficient or Gambado softplay asked for longer due to the wealth of complaints, add that email into evidence late and state it has been obtained in response to Gladstones suddenly ambushing you with new information, changing their signage evidence.

FJ1000 · 1 June 2018 at 9:24AM

Thanks Coupon Mad

I've emailed Gemini's Data Protection Officer with the SAR, and sent Gambado a follow up email with regards to the free parking period (I'd already sent a similar question, to which they haven't responded). Unfortunately I can't find an email address for the landowner.

There's a couple of complaints about the parking (when it was only 2 hours free) on tripadvisor and Facebook - worth including in the evidence?

Gemini/Gladstones - Small Claim

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