Private car parking fines

[Cuchilo]

I got nabbed this morning in a free car park for parking outside the box This was at Isleworth halfords , ivy bridge estate . Myparkingcharge.co.uk are the private company running the stitch up .
I remember a thread a while ago about not paying as the fines where not valid . Is this still the case ? I'd rather not give away £100

 

[Drago]

I wouldn't pay it myself. They will take some to court, but the numbers are so vast they can't afford to do them all, so the odds are still with you.

 

[Milkfloat]

Have you got a letter or just something stuck on your windscreen. Until you get a letter, don't do anything. They are the front for Excel / VCS. So you could search for outcomes on these companies.

 

[classic33]

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.php?t=5583800

 

[Milkfloat]

I forgot to say - don't go online to put in the reference number and look at their evidence. That could change the status from a random bit of paper to a 'Notice to Driver'.

 

[nickyboy]

I will give you my personal experience from a couple of years ago and then you can draw your own conclusions

I went to visit a company and parked in the car park in front of their offices. I thought it was a "company car park". It wasn't, it was a privately run car park for which employees had permits and visitors had to pay. There were signs but I didn't notice them

When I came out of the meeting I had an enforcement notice on my windscreen for (I think) £50. There was the usual stuff in the letter attached that the fine would increase, court proceedings etc etc. I decided to ignore it

Over the next few months I got several letters. They were always from some firm threatening to commence court proceedings to recover the money from me with "evidence" that they would be successful if they did so. At no point was I ever issued with a court summons. After a few months and several letters, all correspondence stopped and that was the last I heard from them

 

[Pale Rider]

I got nabbed this morning in a free car park for parking outside the box This was at Isleworth halfords , ivy bridge estate . Myparkingcharge.co.uk are the private company running the stitch up .
I remember a thread a while ago about not paying as the fines where not valid . Is this still the case ? I'd rather not give away £100

Simply not paying a private ticket used to work quite well.

However, the recently decided case of Beavis effectively ruled in the private companies' favour - a High Court judge said the charge was not unreasonable.

Each case is case specific, but Beavis has made ignoring private tickets much harder.

The parking companies know if they do take you to county court, there's a good chance the district judge will follow Beavis.

Lots online, and you may quickly lose the will to carry on, but this from mse is a reasonable summary.

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/reclaim/private-parking-tickets

 

[Beebo]

So it was a free car park, but you parked outside the box.
Where is the financial loss for the landowner?
Seems very odd to me.

 

[Welsh wheels]

I got nabbed this morning in a free car park for parking outside the box This was at Isleworth halfords , ivy bridge estate . Myparkingcharge.co.uk are the private company running the stitch up .
I remember a thread a while ago about not paying as the fines where not valid . Is this still the case ? I'd rather not give away £100

Definitely worth trying. Someone I know made a fuss about a valid parking ticket and they gave up.

 

[Electric_Andy]

Also try the Pepipoo forum - lots of advice and sticky threads on there. Lots of my colleagues have got tickets at work (for failing to display their permit) but have all ignored it and nothing came of it. This is not going to work for everyone though. If you say it's up to them to prove how you parked, they may well have a photo or CCTV from the shop. They will probably not have all bases covered though, and that will also depend on the signage in the car park which technically you have agreed to abide by when parking.

Good luck

 

[nickyboy]

Simply not paying a private ticket used to work quite well.

However, the recently decided case of Beavis effectively ruled in the private companies' favour - a High Court judge said the charge was not unreasonable.

Each case is case specific, but Beavis has made ignoring private tickets much harder.

The parking companies know if the do take you to county court, there's a good chance the district judge will follow Beavis.

Lots online, and you may quickly lose the will to carry on, but this from mse is a reasonable summary.

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/reclaim/private-parking-tickets

I do wonder, however, that for so long as a reasonable % of those issued with fines and chasing letters just pay up, these private companies will not be bothered with the hassle of pursuing through the courts

 

[swee'pea99]

View: https://youtu.be/2Gkiw7zpULo

 

[Deleted member 1258]

I paid when I got done at the beginning of the year, initially I ignored it, but eventually a debt recovery firm got involved, about six or seven months on, after a while I decided it wasn't worth the hassle and cut a deal with the recovery people and paid it.

 

[Deleted member 26715]

So it was a free car park, but you parked outside the box.
Where is the financial loss for the landowner?
Seems very odd to me.

Possibly they could argue that the OP stopped another vehicle parking so they suffered a financial loss, although if it was free I'm not sure how that works, unless they could prove that the person who didn't park was going to spend money in the shops & didn't.

I've had 2 of these tickets in the last 5 years, funnily enough both times in my wifes car, on each occasion I have just ignored them & after many months they just stop trying, however with Beavis I also understand this is not the way to do it.

 

[NorthernDave]

Presumably you bought something at Halfords?
Email them, with a copy of their receipt and the "parking notice" and politely ask if this is how they treat their paying customers?

Chances are they'll have the 'ticket' cancelled for you.