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Equita "Enforcement Agents" hand delivered letter for Dart Charge


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Hello,

 

this has been an on going thing since 2015 ! it's a long and boring story but i hope someone can give me some advice.

 

i'll try to start at the beginning and explain the situation as best I can.

 

At the end of 2015 I was selling a car that i personally owned, it was a cheap skoda that I sold for ~£500, this was around november/december (sorry I dont remember the exact date) the buyer requested that he keep the full V5 as he was driving the car out of the country to his home country that same day (Czech i assume)

 

his english was really poor and it was difficult, but we agreed the price and made the deal, I wrote a receipt for both him and me, it was very basic just saying something like, this is a receipt for the vehicle XX that was paid in full by mr. X on X date for whatever amount,

 

it was a cheap car and i wasn't too bothered but since he had the full V5 i wanted something, we both signed both copies. however he only wrote "wezdara" and made a squiggle (looked like a 5 year old's first attempt at a signature - but what can you do, can hardly accuse someone of not knowing how to sign their own name.

 

Something else that I want to note, the V5 state clearly that is it not proof of ownership so I wasn't too worried about handing it over.

 

A few weeks later I get a dart charge notice, now sorry for the hazy details, this was all over a year ago so i dont really know any details, but the letter first requested a dart charge (plus some sort of late fee) iirc it was around £50 or so the first time they asked (very unfair on a £2.5 toll i think)

 

I called them instantly and explained the situation, they seemed very understanding and said no problem, we'll sort it out you dont have to worry. that's the end of it i though

 

another month or so later i get another letter requesting the money again, i call them again now they weren't as friendly, i explained all that had happened, and said i have a receipt also.

 

They asked me to send my evidence along with an explanation to them, which I did. Another few weeks later they send me another letter saying they dont' accept my evidence and I am still liable to pay.

 

Honestly I know I should have sorted this out sooner but i feel really strongly that it's not my fault and that I shouldn't have to pay this, so i just started to ignore them, coupled with the fact this was a very stressful time for me AND i didn't have much spare time (was selling car to start a business) which I have been running since then.

 

after that i didn't really hear much for a long time, then a few weeks ago I started getting letter's from Equita, the first said i can just pay in full their latest amount (something ridiculous ~£200) and they won't add on their own charges, I ignored this, now today I have received a hand posted letter.

 

This letter that i received today is requesting a payment of £425 (115.50 debt, 75£ compliance fee 325£ enforcement fee.)

 

It states an Enforcement Agent has attended my property today with the intention of removing goods "for unpaid liability warrant"

 

Now, I know it's not necessary for the post but I feel it shows who I am, i've got perfect credit and never had so much as a speeding ticket, or anything to do with court, im still fairly young and never had any experience with a situation like this, it is quite distressing and i dont know exactly what to do. I have also spoken with citizen's advice, who were quite helpful but didn't really tell me much that i didn't know (go to court and fight it, or pay up - basically)

 

From my understanding because it hasn't gone to court yet their "enforcement agents" don't have any special powers at all, and the only way they could get a thing off me at this point is if i willingly give it to them ?

 

One more thing, personally I would be fine coming face to face and negotiating with one of their agents if they did ever come to my house, but I also live with an elderly relative who i fear would allow them in, and let them take/do whatever they wanted if he were to answer the door.

 

Whatever advice people have would be appreciated. Also I really don't feel like this situation is fair at all, if I had done something or owed money i'd be happy to work out something, but i feel like companies who practice these underhand and dirty tactics to get people's money really need to be removed/restructured especially when they're providing public services like roads/maintenance.

 

Regards, Matthew

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At the end of 2015 I was selling a car that i personally owned, it was a cheap skoda that I sold for ~£500, this was around november/december (sorry I dont remember the exact date) the buyer requested that he keep the full V5 as he was driving the car out of the country to his home country that same day (Czech i assume)

 

his english was really poor and it was difficult, but we agreed the price and made the deal, I wrote a receipt for both him and me, it was very basic just saying something like, this is a receipt for the vehicle XX that was paid in full by mr. X on X date for whatever amount,

 

it was a cheap car and i wasn't too bothered but since he had the full V5 i wanted something, we both signed both copies. however he only wrote "wezdara" and made a squiggle (looked like a 5 year old's first attempt at a signature - but what can you do, can hardly accuse someone of not knowing how to sign their own name.

 

A few weeks later I get a dart charge notice, now sorry for the hazy details, this was all over a year ago so i dont really know any details, but the letter first requested a dart charge (plus some sort of late fee) iirc it was around £50 or so the first time they asked (very unfair on a £2.5 toll i think)

 

I called them instantly and explained the situation, they seemed very understanding and said no problem, we'll sort it out you dont have to worry. that's the end of it i though

 

another month or so later i get another letter requesting the money again, i call them again now they weren't as friendly, i explained all that had happened, and said i have a receipt also.

 

They asked me to send my evidence along with an explanation to them, which I did. Another few weeks later they send me another letter saying they dont' accept my evidence and I am still liable to pay.

 

Honestly I know I should have sorted this out sooner but i feel really strongly that it's not my fault and that I shouldn't have to pay this, so i just started to ignore them.

 

After that i didn't really hear much for a long time, then a few weeks ago I started getting letter's from Equita, the first said i can just pay in full their latest amount (something ridiculous ~£200) and they won't add on their own charges, I ignored this, now today I have received a hand posted letter.

 

This letter that i received today is requesting a payment of £425 (115.50 debt, 75£ compliance fee 325£ enforcement fee.)

 

From my understanding because it hasn't gone to court yet their "enforcement agents" don't have any special powers at all, and the only way they could get a thing off me at this point is if i willingly give it to them ? Regards, Matthew

 

Matthew,

 

I hope that you do not mind but I have shortened your post to show the relevant information only.

 

Unfortunately, by giving the V5C to the purchaser knowing that he would be taking the car out of the country, it should have alerted you to the prospect of the purchaser not advising DVLA of the new ownership.

 

Personally, (and I know that you will disagree with me....it would have been wise to have paid the Dart Charge at the £50 rate and just put the matter down to experience. Ignoring all the following correspondence has been a big mistake and has led to the debt being registered at court and a warrant being issued. The good news is that the debt is NOT recorded on your credit agency file.

 

When your 'appeal' was rejected, you should have been sent a Notice of Rejection advising you that you could take your appeal to the Adjudicator. Did you receive this document?

 

As a matter of urgency, you need to speak with DVLA to ascertain whether the purchaser advised them of the new keeper details. If so, what date was given for the change of ownership?

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As new owner was going to Eastern Europe, it is entirely possible there was never a notification of change at DVLA.

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you need to speak to the TEC and find out if the matter has been sent to court. The hand delivery of the notice suggests that it has. The dartcharge people will know the wheres and whens so use your existing paperwork reference no to find out

 

Hi this has been sent to court, however I am a bit confused, there was never a court case as such so how/when do i get a chance to defend myself?

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Matthew,

 

I hope that you do not mind but I have shortened your post to show the relevant information only.

 

Unfortunately, by giving the V5C to the purchaser knowing that he would be taking the car out of the country, it should have alerted you to the prospect of the purchaser not advising DVLA of the new ownership.

 

Personally, (and I know that you will disagree with me....it would have been wise to have paid the Dart Charge at the £50 rate and just put the matter down to experience. Ignoring all the following correspondence has been a big mistake and has led to the debt being registered at court and a warrant being issued. The good news is that the debt is NOT recorded on your credit agency file.

 

When your 'appeal' was rejected, you should have been sent a Notice of Rejection advising you that you could take your appeal to the Adjudicator. Did you receive this document?

 

As a matter of urgency, you need to speak with DVLA to ascertain whether the purchaser advised them of the new keeper details. If so, what date was given for the change of ownership?

 

Hi there,

 

i never received a formal appeal letter, when i say that I appealed the charge, this was soon after receiving the first payment charge and i just wrote my own letter with my receipt as proof, also I never received any form of rejection letter at all.

 

regarding the DVLA at the same time as sending the dart people a letter i also wrote to the DVLA to make sure they had removed me from being the registered owner. so that's one thing i dont have to worry about.

 

-Matthew

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Hi there,

 

i never received a formal appeal letter, when i say that I appealed the charge, this was soon after receiving the first payment charge and i just wrote my own letter with my receipt as proof, also I never received any form of rejection letter at all.

 

regarding the DVLA at the same time as sending the dart people a letter i also wrote to the DVLA to make sure they had removed me from being the registered owner. so that's one thing i dont have to worry about.

 

-Matthew

 

There are two 'appeal' stages. It would seem that you made an informal representation and that is why the notice that you received from Highways England was not a formal Notice of Rejection.

 

Technically, you could submit an Out of Time witness statement with the Traffic Enforcement Centre. All bailiff enforcement would then be placed on hold for approx 6 weeks. If your application were to be accepted, the Dart Charge notice would be 'rewound' back to the 'appeal' stage once more. Being brutally honest, I cannot see your application being accepted but that should not stop you submitting the forms.

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There are two 'appeal' stages. It would seem that you made an informal representation and that is why the notice that you received from Highways England was not a formal Notice of Rejection.

 

Technically, you could submit an Out of Time witness statement with the Traffic Enforcement Centre. All bailiff enforcement would then be placed on hold for approx 6 weeks. If your application were to be accepted, the Dart Charge notice would be 'rewound' back to the 'appeal' stage once more. Being brutally honest, I cannot see your application being accepted but that should not stop you submitting the forms.

 

Hi thank you for your reply,

 

At this stage I may as well apply for the out of time witness statement, this whole process feels extreamly unfair but I do really appreciate the help here.

 

Regards, Matthew

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