My wife parked my car in a Morrisons free for 3hrs carpark in January for longer than allowed. We received a charge for £85 or £50 if payed within time limit.
I ignored the first letters from parking eye and have now received a letter before county court claim.
Any advice on what to do? I have six days before court proceedings

plenty online but if you broke the Terms of the agreement then pay the fine.

Is it definitely county court ….. Or just something that looks like it might be ,…… Read carefully !

[/URL]]

That’s just another threat and intended to scare you into paying.

Up to you whether you ignore it. My experience is these people hope you cough under threat. They can’t afford to chase every non-payer through the courts it costs them more than the fine.

Only advice I can offer is to pay it if you were there longer than the agreed 3hrs.

No pudding for her! 😡

You (she) was in the wrong , just pay the fine

She was there longer than allowed, called into Morrisons for lunch and walked around the corner into the office forgetting the time limit.
She broke the rules, but the amount just seems unfair for a free carpark compared to highway fines.

Pretty stupid to have ignored it, especially seeing as a quick Google would’ve pointed out what to do.

Take a look at MSE’s parking fines forum.

You might be too late though seeing as ignoring the letters to this stage possibly reduces any chance you have of appeal. Had you read followed the MSE procedure you would have responded to the initial claim, sent off your appeal to POPLA and then had your fine overturned.

It’s not about “you parked in the wrong so cough up”. Most of these companies are complete sh1sters and only make money through intimidation. They really are ****s. Yet they open themselves up to loopholes that can be exploited provided you play the game.

FTR I won a claim against Parking Eye in a Morrisons car park.

I’ve just won a claim for £820.00 against a local garage & that’s the sort of letter I issued them with at first.

hmmm….

She broke the rules, but the amount just seems unfair for a free carpark compared to highway fines.

Back when I was being useless with parking fines in the UK (about 10 years ago) £50-80 was normal. It’s there to deter you from abusing the car park that Morrisons subsidise on behalf of their customers. You know you she was wrong, she probably knows she was wrong and the people who manage the system know she was wrong. Then when presented with clear evidence of such wrongdoing you chose to ignore it and hope it went away because parking fines are so unfair.

plenty online but if you broke the Terms of the agreement then pay the fine.

You (she) was in the wrong , just pay the fine

It’s not a fine.

You have 28 days to register an appeal with POPLA.

From the date of notification. Witch is the 27th February on your letter.

Do it quick!

Why is it not about ” if she is wrong cough up”

Time to pay up, I’d read a few years ago to ignore as they’re not fines but invoices that don’t have to be paid as there is no loss to the company, looks like that was wrong or things have changed.
Cheers for the advice.

Why is it not about ” if she is wrong cough up”

Because the parking operators are ****s. They draft hundreds (if not thousands) of tickets/letters each week and most people pay up through fear or laziness. They make out the driver has been in “breach of contract” and other BS – and that’s exactly what it is. BS. They are scum.

Some even alter POPLA reference codes so as to make the appeal out of date before the appellant has even received it.

The MSE forum I referred to shows exactly how to handle them.

Try these http://www.parkingticketappeals.org.uk/. I used them and I got a letter from the parking enforcer dropping the charge.I think it was set up by some guys from MSE.

http://www.popla.org.uk/receivedaPCN.htm#post

The vehicle was not improperly parked;
The vehicle was stolen;
The parking charge (ticket) exceeded the appropriate amount;
I am not liable for the parking charge.

Because the parking operators are ****s. They draft hundreds (if not thousands) of tickets/letters each week and most people pay up through fear or laziness. They make out the driver has been in “breach of contract” and other BS – and that’s exactly what it is. BS. They are scum.

So which of the grounds of appeal is the right one? Excessive charge? 50-85 seems in line with most other ones. Why are they scum? How is it different to a council enforced ticket? Why do people think that everything should have a loophole just for them. Perhaps they are drafting all these letters because people can’t park properly, can’t remember when to leave and don’t bother checking when they park what the rules are.

If it was a case that you were only there for 10 mins or that something else was wrong then go for an appeal but by overstaying the time limit???

Why is it not about ” if she is wrong cough up”

…

How is it different to a council enforced ticket?

Because, legally, a private company cannot issue fines. A council can (or a company operating on their behalf), but a private company can only recover their losses from you parking there, which in a free car park is probably “nothing at all.” So yes, “excessive charge” is exactly what it is.

looks like that was wrong or things have changed.

Things have changed, the law was amended and “ignore it” hasn’t been recommended advice for some time now. Parking Eye in particular are well known for pursuing their money rather than getting bored and going away. You need to appeal it (as per nealglover’s post), you’ve just got time to do it.

Because, legally, a private company cannot issue fines. A council can (or a company operating on their behalf), but a private company can only recover their losses from you parking there, which in a free car park is probably “nothing at all.” So yes, “excessive charge” is exactly what it is.

So you park there, forget you did and occupy a space that is provided for customers using the store hence preventing further legitimate users from parking there. Sure there is a loss in there somewhere. Seems like the legislation is still loopholed and grey. How is the charge excessive? Is there a set value for the revenue derived from granting free parking to the customers?
The cost of the parkin is not really a fair valuation of the cost of providing it or the losses incurred. If a business chooses to include in it’s business model car parking for it’s customers they have factored in what the revenue vs the cost of operating tickets is. Add in fee’s for enforcement and I’d say it’s a reasonable charge.

So you park there, forget you did and occupy a space that is provided for customers using the store hence preventing further legitimate users from parking there.

So there’s a loss if the car park is full, perhaps.

How is the charge excessive? Is there a set value for the revenue derived from granting free parking to the customers?

It’s free for three hours and £50 for three hours and a minute, and you don’t see how that’s excessive?

Anyway, it’s not for us to decide, it’s for POPLA. We’re speculating. Why don’t we wait for the OP to tell us what happens?

Only if the car park is full, which is unlikely apart from a few days before Xmas.

The cost of the parkin is not really a fair valuation of the cost of providing it or the losses incurred. If a business chooses to include in it’s business model car parking for it’s customers they have factored in what the revenue vs the cost of operating tickets is. Add in fee’s for enforcement and I’d say it’s a reasonable charge.

Except they’re not allowed to include the cost of policing it, because that’s not actually a cost involved directly in running the car park. It’s rather unlikely that the cost to them in providing the space (either on the basis of the amount it directly costs them, or the amount of profit they expect to make from a car parked there) is anywhere near £50, let alone £85. Even if they include a realistic figure for the cost of enforcement it’s not that.

edit: oh snap

All the private parking fines are so excessive that the govt, including previous ones, is so stoopid to let it be.

A very simple solution is to have a requirement for ALL private parking companies to erect parking toll booth(s) with a barrier then charge accordingly. i.e. you take a ticket with your time stamped on it when you enter the car park and pay accordingly when you exit the car park using the ticket with your time on.

I mean how bloody hard is that? My view is that these companies are simply sinister to the core.

Something like the picture below. Even in Borneo they got this sort of thing and sometime you get a parking toll booth type with a lady sitting in the booth all day collecting money, air condition btw …

🙄

edit: People do forget when they are shopping etc so is it reasonable to penalise them so excessively? Even in Borneo the charge/fine is between RM10 to RM30 if you over parked. The companies here are charging how much? Pui! Pui! Pui!

http://liverpool.gov.uk/parking-travel-and-roads/pay-a-parking-fine/ £70
http://www.harrow.gov.uk/info/200072/parking/580/parking_fines_and_traffic_violations £60-130
https://www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/cms/content/pay-parking-or-bus-gate-fine £90
http://www.northamptonshire.gov.uk/en/councilservices/Transport/parking/Pages/Parkingfine.aspx £50-70
http://www.newcastle.gov.uk/parking-roads-and-transport/parking/parking-tickets-and-enforcement/pay-a-parking-fine £50-70
With most offering 50% discount for 14 day payment.

We received a charge for £85 or £50 if payed within time limit.

All the private parking fines are so excessive that the govt, including previous ones, is so stoopid to let it be.

They seem broadly comparable.

mikewsmith – Member

They seem broadly comparable.

That is why the nation is screwed! Screwed! 😡

What with all this bureaucratic appeal shite … simply give them between £10 or £30 fine and not that sort of over the top numbers.

There is this parking area in the GeordieLand city centre where the parking warden (not sure if it is private or council) would purposely comes out at 9pm to check parking then gives out fines to people who either over parked or did not pay. FFS! It’s night time and it is not as if the whole car park is so packed that the whole city parks there. Give people a break …

Sainsburys near us has started charging as people simply parked for free then went off to work. You get your money back if you shop there and leave within the two hour max. I think thats the right way fwd. Pay n display upfront. Anyone else should be charged heftily.

http://parking-prankster.blogspot.co.uk/

Some interesting things here

It is not a fine it is a letter before action for breach of contract brought by someone who did not enter into a contract with the customer and did not supply any service and therefore arguably has no cause of action. If they do breach of contract provides damages for actual loss not a fictional amount.
There is no guaranteed win for either side in this but a significant number of county court judges have sided with the customer when these have resolved in court.

The amount parking eye iniated 30k in one year?! Eurocaparks who me and mrchrispy are facing….10

I’m not sure the “28 days to appeal to POPLA” is an option for the OP as he/she failed to respond to previous correspondence. A POPLA appeal requires a legitimate reference number to be raised by the parking operator (PE in this instance) once the appellant has started their appeal direct to them. One cannot appeal to POPLA without the reference.

The “28 days” refers to the window in which the reference number is valid once raised.

So it seems that everybody saying “you broke the rules, pay the fine” have frotted themselves senseless against the moral high ground they think they’re stood on and actually know sweet FA about private parking invoices, particularly those who don’t think the amount is excessive.

http://www.parkingcowboys.co.uk/enforcement/

mikewsmith:

The difference is that your links concern local authorities, and parking tickets issued by local authorities are penalties provided for by law.

PPCs are not allowed to impose penalties, only claim breach of contract, and as such are only legally able to recover damages to return them to the position they would have been in had breach of contract not occurred. In a free car park, that doesn’t involve being enriched to the tune of £85. That is if they’re even able to prove they’re an “injured party”.

So it seems that everybody saying “you broke the rules, pay the fine”

That’s the mentality that these operators thrive on … they raise the tickets and 90% of people pay up without argument. Those that do argue tend to give up after the first rejection.

All it takes is a bit of Googling the first time you receive one, a couple of hours of legwork and you’ll realise in most cases you have a 99% chance of winning so long as you follow the guidance.

particularly those who don’t think the amount is excessive.

So the amount is similar to those from councils

If it was a council car park would everyone be happy to pay up? Or is just because there are loop holes that allow people to go against the rules and get away with it?

As much as you wish it were otherwise, how much councils charge is irrelevant. It’s a distinction of law. Penalties vs damages.

It is and one that could do with being fixed, why should a private company not be able to protect its investment and to impose suitable penalties on those that break the terms of use? Or should we all just park how we want and then stick 2 fingers up to the man. It may explain why I saw more barriered car parks and pay and display ones when I last came back to the UK.

Advice….

Start reading.
Parking eye are sending out hundreds if not thousands of claims at the moment. They are anticipating the outcome of a court of appeal case going there way.

Go to parkingprankster website and there is a guide you can download to help you defend this.

You’re to far gone through the process to use something like parking ticket appeals. There was also one of those companies that disappeared with a fair few people’s money.

Whatever happens DO NOT ignore court papers. They will be stamped from Northampton CC.
You can defend this, but it’s now going to take some work

Agree with mikewsmith. In the case of my local* Sainsburys I remember (before they introduce charges) you’d struggle to find a space to park full stop. This is from someone who wants to park/shop at Sainsburys.

Funnily post-charging etc you can always find a space.

I’ll put this in bold:

People will always look for ways to find parking for free. They’ll roll out of bed later than everyone else then park whereas left nearest to their work and leave it there all day.

How is that right?

What isn’t right is if you are 5 minutes late back and you are hit for £60. 1hour+ definitely (as you are restricting trade for the business/land owner). You know. Theres no denying ‘oh I didn’t realise/forgot’, you notice traffic lights and you notice stuff like this on the news and press so its in your mind. Its for people who are blatantly caught then play ‘oh its unfair why should I pay it’.

*Its 2miles away- Tesco’s is 0.6miles away. No ta.

Question to anyone who thinks tough – what if it was a LBS’s carpark and people wanted to visit the bath showroom opposite?….

Currently having sport with parking eye after I parked in Forestry commission Scotland forest car park. I am following this advice
http://www.aberdeenshire.gov.uk/tradingstandards/parkingchargesleafletforwebsite.pdf

I don’t think there would be such an issue if the parking fines were in line with the council ones.

£25 if paid within 14 days in my area. At least twice that on most private PCN’s, often 3x.

Then it would be a case of ‘it’s a fair cop’ but as it isn’t of course people are trying to find ways to wriggle out, and until the court ruling is in then they have a pretty good case as it can be challenged under unfair contracts and penalties.