Hospital parking ticket nightmare!! - Indigo/Wright Hassell

[Mrsjj123]

Hi all wondering if some one can help me

 

Back in November I went to the local hospital with my son around 9.30pm I went in to the a and e car park which normally is a barrier ticket on arrival system which sometime later at night is kept up

 

So In my rush to go in I didn't notice due to work it had been removed and replaced with pay and display there was a board running threw middle of car park which meant I had to go up stairs to find a space up stairs was in complete darkness

 

I went in to a and e and when I came at at 4am there was a ticket on my car still not understanding why I seen a sign on way out of car park saying to pay and display the ticket was only 20 pound but due to my above story I was determined to appeal but with it being close to xmas my husband working away I forgot.

 

W weeks ago I received a letter from a solicitor fine is now 190 so I been trying to figure out what to do and then yesterday another one comes threating ccjs is there anything I can do or do I just except my bad luck and pay it?

 

Really want to do something good to sort today lost sleep over it last night thank you

Edited February 10, 2017 by honeybee13
Paras.

[honeybee13]

Hello and welcome to CAG.

 

I'll move you to the private parking forum for advice from the guys there. They should be along over the course of the day.

 

Can you tell us who runs the car park, which hospital and the name of the solicitors please? It will help us to advise you.

 

My best, HB

[Mrsjj123]

Thanks so much

The company are indigo

Hospital was university hospital of wales

Solicitors are Wright hassell

[Oddfellow]

It's odd ... Wright Hassall try to come across as a legit solicitors' practice (big swanky offices in Leamington Spa, TV & newspaper ads, etc), but they have some very lowlife bedfellows, and they also seem to struggle with certain aspects of the law (like why their "claim" is up to £190 for a contract that was originally £20).

 

 

Oh, and as many on here will tell you, it's not a 'fine', it's a parking charge (or speculative invoice!)

[honeybee13]

Thank you for the extra information, it's useful.

 

Can you tell us how they've arrived at the £190 figure please? The guys will tell you more, but if you do what they say, it's unlikely you'll need to pay this.

 

They'll doubtless have some more questions, so please bear with us.

 

HB

[ericsbrother]

This is the nub of the matter, they cannot justify this hike as it has no legal basis but they do it because they have a deal with ther parkinmg co's to effectively work on a contingency fee basis where they get nothing if the punter doesnt pay up but trouser the £90 above the £100 parking charge if successful.

 

Why £190? well if it was over £200 no-one would pay up and they would start to look into the charge in some depth. One thing you can do is see if the company acting as a debt collector is registed with the FCA as a licenced credit broker or provider becasue the only way the bill could leap to this amount is via some credit agreement you signed witht ehm.

 

Now we know that this didnt happen and if they arent licenced they can get into trouble with the FCA but more importantly, if you oay them the debt isnt legally settled and the parking co can still demand you pay them (if the debt was real!).

 

So, how did you first get notified that Indigo were wanting money? ticket on car so when did you get the notice through post? Do you still have the correspondence you received at the time? Can you get hold of any evidence of the old barrier system (hospital photos from their web site maybe), anything that shows that things have changed and that the offer made to you at the time is not the same as the current set up.

 

This will demolish their claim as the consideration of contract wil havea different mechanism..

Edited February 10, 2017 by honeybee13
Paras.

[honeybee13]

I hope you're starting to get an idea of how these companies work, Mrsjj.

 

I've amended your thread title to give the extra information.

 

HB

[Homer67]

There is a route to follow with a private parking charge which is what you have got - let me reassure you that Right Hassle (yes I know) have got no right to demand any money from you at all and you can safely ignore them. Did you receive a notice to keeper after you got the windscreen ticket? Give the information on the dates etc and in the meantime stop panicking, you aren't liable and you won't be paying these people anything. Also get a complaint in to the NHS Trust that runs the site and copy in the Patient Advice and Liaison Department and the CEO's email address if you can find it.