Letter of claim from bwlegal

I am probably using descriptive English as for the situation around it, translating thoughts and facts as I remember them, am trying my best, I have got deadline today, been abroad, so as soon as I came posted it here...

As for Daniel San suggestion, well letter of claim I received contain info sheet, reply form, except from expenditure and mentions protocol etc, so it seems the other part is learning from their mistakes with plenty of court claims their client is submitting, so maybe it is getting more difficult to defend.
( I have to admit it is not easy for me because I was not expecting this hassle for 10 minutes of being late due to poor health omitting faulty machine)...

Dear Sirs,

Thank you for your letter of (date)
When your client's debt collectors first started contacting me, I asked them for details of the basis upon which money was being claimed. Extraordinarily, I was told by DRP that no such evidence would be provided. I tried to come to an agreement with your client without any luck as they refused £10 for 10 minutes and asked for £100 from previous £60. I could not contact landowner directly to sort it out as landowners changed at a time, too.
All this caused significant distress to me and my family for over 12 months.

I was not feeling well enough to drive, so I paid another £1 (for another ticket) and have proof it was done 10 minutes after first ticket expired.

You have now sent a Letter of Claim. However, your letter contains insufficient detail of the claim and, again, fails to provide the photographic evidence which I requested as long ago as 2014/ 2015. No cause of action is stated. Nor does it contain any mention of what evidence your client intends to rely on, or enclose copies of such evidence.




This action on the part of your client is a clear breach of its pre-action obligations set out in the Practice Direction - Pre-Action Conduct, with which as solicitors you must surely be familiar (and with which your client, a serial litigator of small claims, must also be familiar). As you (and your client) must know, the Practice Direction binds all potential litigants, whatever the size or type of the claim. Its express purpose is to assist parties in understanding the claim and their respective positions in relation to it, to enable parties to take stock of their positions and to negotiate a settlement, or at least narrow the issues, without incurring the costs of court proceedings or using up valuable court time.


Nobody, including your client, is immune from the requirements and obligations of the Practice Direction. Your client cannot simply refuse to provide the relevant information "until this gets to court" [or whatever they said].

I require your client to comply with its obligations by sending me the following information/documents:

1. an explanation of the cause of action
2. whether they are pursuing me as driver or keeper
3. whether they are relying on the provisions of Schedule 4 of POFA 2012
4. what the details of the claim are (where it is claimed the car was parked, for how long, how the monies being claimed arose and have been calculated, what contractual breach (if any) is being claimed)
5. a copy of the contract with the landowner under which they assert authority to bring the claim
6. a copy of any alleged contract with the driver
7. a plan showing where any signs were displayed
8. details of the signs displayed (size of sign, size of font, height at which displayed)
9. If they have added anything on to the original charge, what that represents and how it has been calculated.

I am clearly entitled to this information under paragraphs 6(a) and 6(c) of the Practice Direction. I also need it in order to comply with my own obligations under paragraph 6(b).



Until your client has complied with its obligations and provided this information, I am unable to respond properly to the alleged claim and to consider my position in relation to it, and it is entirely premature (and a waste of costs and court time) for your client to issue proceedings. Should your client do so, then I will seek an immediate stay pursuant to paragraph 15(b) of the Practice Direction and an order that this information is provided.

Yours faithfully,
XY

Good Morning



Thank you for your recent email, the contents of which have been noted on file.



Please be advised that you have previously appealed this matter directly to Our Client.



Our Client rejected your appeal and sent you an appeal rejection letter. This letter outlined reasons for the rejection, you then appealed further with POPLA which still was not upheld. No more appeals can be made after this, the full Balance is Due.



Our Client's cause of action is that you breached the terms and conditions of the contract which you entered into by parking your vehicle in the car park, by failing to display a valid Pay & Display Ticket (PDT).


Our Client is pursuing you as the registered keeper of the vehicle.


Our Client does intend to reply on Schedule 4 of Protection of Freedoms Act 2012.


The details of the claim are that your vehicle parked without displaying a valid PDT.


The Parking Charge Notice (PCN) which you have been issued with is for a breach of contract. The only right which you have to enter the land in question are on the terms and conditions which apply. It is unnecessary to apply an analysis of offer, acceptance and consideration quite simply because the contract was formed on mutual promises. By parking your vehicle in the car park you have entered into a unilateral contract with Our Client. Acceptance does not have to be communicated, the act of parking your vehicle is acceptance.


This is not a claim for trespass.


Please be aware that the contract between Our Client and the landowner is a legally privileged document which you have no right to inspect. However, should this matter progress to court, the contract will be adduced as evidence.


Our Client is under no obligation to supply this.


As established members of the Independent Parking Committee, Our Client adheres to their Code of Practice for Private Enforcement on Private Land and Unregulated Car Parks ('Code of Practice'). This Code of Practice gives recommendations in regards to the signage within the Car Park. The signs within the car park comply with the recommendations in the Code of Practice and are therefore deemed reasonable.


£100.00 remains unpaid for the Parking Charge Notice. Additionally, you are also liable for our £60.00 instructions fee as your file has been passed to us.


This will be issued in due course.


Accordingly, the full Balance is Due.



Please contact us within 7 days of the date of this email to discuss repayment.





Should you have any queries please contact our office or alternatively sign in or register on our Online Customer Portal at https://www.bwlegal.co.uk.



Kind Regards,



bwlegal