Non payment of ticket, Now referred to Debt Collectors Options

[emm48]

On 8th November 2019 I paid £2 to park for 12 hours in a private car park. For 28 years I have had a personalised plate on my car, then had it changed. In a moment's absent mindness, I forgot this and entered the wrong VIN into the machine. I didn't know this at the time, but a few weeks later got a claim from Premier Park for parking without paying. I immediately wrote back and explained, giving a copy of the ticket and a copy of the log book showing transfer of registration. They have relentlessly pursued me for the money, first I think, £70 or £50 if paid at once. POPLA refused my claim, saying the ticket was issued correctly, my MP tried to make them see reason but they are still hounding me and the fine went up to £100. On 30th March they sent me a final warning that unless I paid £115 within 2 weeks, they'd put it to debt collectors. I again wrote back, explaining I am an OAP, getting on in years, and the owner of the land had been paid for my spot so no loss was incurred. This has always been my position. Today I received a letter from a Debt Collection Agency demanding £170 within 2 weeks, and offering a sympathetic ear to those worried about CoronaVirus. I am absolutely adamant that this is not money I should have to pay. Can anyone please help in solving my problem? It is a horrid situation, and very worrying. Thank you. Liz

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[nosferatu1001]

VRM, not VIN.
Yawn, debt collectors are completely and utterly ignorable.
They have NO powers, they can just write rubbish letters.

PP arent known for court cases, so i would sugegst - file any paperwork, for 6 years, and get on with your life. IF they send a letter of (or before, or somethign else) claim, or a court claim form, THEN you need to take more action.

[Jlc]

PP arent known for court cases

Premier Parking Solutions had 114 hearings in 2019. Premier Park 30.

Can anyone please help in solving my problem?

You could offer them £20. There's a very specific reason why...

The BPA's Code of Practice was updated in January this year to include 'major keying errors':

In these instances we would expect that such errors are dealt with appropriately at the first appeal stage, especially if it can be proven that the motorist has paid for the parking event or that the motorist attempted to enter their VRM or were a legitimate user of the car park (eg a hospital patient or a patron of a restaurant). It is appreciated that in issuing a PCN in these instances, the operator will have incurred charges including but not limited to the DVLA fee and other processing costs therefore we believe that it is reasonable to seek to recover some of these costs by making a modest charge to the motorist of no more than £20 for a 14-day period from when the keying error was identified before reverting to the charge amount at the point of appeal.

Unfortunately, your parking was before this CoP - but the principle remains that the tariff was paid.

They will reject but it's all about positioning for any potential court claim.

This post has been edited by Jlc: Fri, 29 May 2020 - 14:49

[hcandersen]

Did you pay, yes or no?

Post their parking charge notice pl.

IMO, the ONLY issue which could concern a court as regards the charge itself at the time of parking is whether payment was made. Keying-in a VRM is a process, not a condition, or if it is a condition and by other means you can satisfy the court that you paid then the only breach is that you keyed in the wrong number.

So, let's see exactly what they're claiming in the PCN.