UKPC parking invoice - tesco Faraday retail park,Coatbank Street, Coatbridge. ML5 3SQ scotland

[aliceh]

Hi All

What a great web-site! Anyway, I live on a private estate that has UKPC parking control. When driving around on Saturday, I noticed a yellow penalty envelope under my windscreen but with nothing inside it and totally unsealed. I thought it might have been issued on the estate when my car was parked momentarly, but am not sure. Have tried all available numbers for UKPC to be met with recorded messages from the phone handlers for the company or to be told noone is available. Very frustrating! I am fully expecting something through the post but what grounds does one have to challenge situations where no ticket has actually been issued?

[Filthy Monkey]

You don't need any grounds to challenge it, to be honest. There is no real way to enforce the tickets in the first place, so I wouldn't worry about it. Don't waste your time with their appeals process either. They run it themselves, so it's pointless and somewhat less than impartial...

[Filthy Monkey]

It almost makes you want to patrol these car parks searching for ticketed cars, kind of a Civil Penalty Charge equivalent of anglegrinderman (the clamped wheel liberator!)

 

I've always thought I'd look good in lycra, especially on the front page of the local papers

 

Well, in preparation for your impending fame and notoriety, how about posting the picture here first and we'll all give you our opinion...?

[aliceh]

Thanks. So from reading the above; I take it that I state the case clearly to them by letter that they need to prove I am the driver of the vehicle and see what they've got. If they present evidence that suggests I was the driver where does that leave me though?

 

Alice

[youdon'tgetmymoney]

Well, in preparation for your impending fame and notoriety, how about posting the picture here first and we'll all give you our opinion...?

 

lol, being in the Nowhere-Special News is one thing.....no I think I'll pass on that one but thanks for the offer

 

Good luck all, give 'em hell

[Filthy Monkey]

Thanks. So from reading the above; I take it that I state the case clearly to them by letter that they need to prove I am the driver of the vehicle and see what they've got. If they present evidence that suggests I was the driver where does that leave me though?

 

Alice

 

Well, to be honest, it leaves you in pretty much the same place as when you started. They would still have to prove in court that you agreed to a contract and that their parking costs are justified due to actual loss, and are not just a penalty charge.

 

The crux of the matter is that these charges are not enforceable and the chances of a company taking anybody to court over them are so slim, as they do not want a court to set a precedent that would, effectively, ruin their [causing problems] business. They simply rely on scare tactics to make motorists pay up and the percentage that do seems to be high enough to make them a tidy profit.

[bankbustermum]

The number for Hunter Forrest & Co is 01527 571060, and the address is: Hanbury Stoke House

Saxon Business Park

Hanbury Road

Stoke Prior

Bromsgrove

Worcestershire

B60 4AD

 

Just received a letter from them this morning saying that having looked into my query (that the issue should not have been passed to them since i'm disputing the ticket) and it says "unfortunately we have not been advised of any letter received by our client and therefore...will continue with recovery action"

 

I have sent two letters to ukpc disputing the case and yet they have "no record". Both of the letters went recorded delivery (although i've lost my tracking numbers) and so can't prove this.

 

Should I just send UKPC another letter or is it too late for this? Where should I go now??

[Rob S]

Just write back to Hunter Forrest and point out (AGAIN) that the matter is in dispute and that you do not accept that you are liable for the invoice, and advise them that they have no choice but to pass it back to UKPC.

 

Without a judgement from a county court there is nothing they can do to recover the funds. And if they go so far as to register the alleged debt with a credit reference agency, then you will have them all by the short and curlys with regards to a breach of the Data Protection Act.

[bankbustermum]

Thanks, I hope it doesn't get to that stage, much as I like the idea of having "them by the short and curlys".

[bankbustermum]

just wondering if this should do the trick??

 

Dear Sirs

 

RE: Penalty Notice 0000000000

Having received your letter of 29 March 2007, I write to advise you, again, that the parking penalty issued to myself from UK Parking Control Limited, is currently being disputed. As such, this matter should not have been passed to your company in the first instance and indeed should be referred back to UK Parking Control Limited.

 

Although I am the registered keeper of the vehicle, I was not the driver at the time the ticket was issued and therefore can not be held liable for the alleged contravention.

 

 

Yours faithfully

[Notpayinapenny]

Bankbustermum

Don't you think its strange that the Registered Office for UKPC and the address that you gave me for Hunter Forrest & Co are identical..............

[bankbustermum]

From what I've read here, and elsewhere, I don't find it strange at all... Seems these companies think nothing of ripping us off at every opportunity.

[bankbustermum]

Got a letter fro HF & Co this morning telling me that if payment is not made within 7 days they will commence enforcement proceedings via the County Court.

 

Called them to tell them (again) that the matter is under dispute; and that two letters to this effect had been forwarded to them. The girl on the phone became really stroppy at this point and insisted that I forward another letter outlining the dispute.

 

Should I just pay? I can't afford to have a CCJ at this point as I am in the process of trying to buy a new house.

 

Bankbustermum

[Zamzara]

Got a letter fro HF & Co this morning telling me that if payment is not made within 7 days they will commence enforcement proceedings via the County Court.

 

Called them to tell them (again) that the matter is under dispute; and that two letters to this effect had been forwarded to them. The girl on the phone became really stroppy at this point and insisted that I forward another letter outlining the dispute.

 

Should I just pay? I can't afford to have a CCJ at this point as I am in the process of trying to buy a new house.

 

Bankbustermum

 

I've just re-read you OP and assuming it is accurate you have nothing to worry about. Nothing can happen without a hearing, so just explain to the judge what happened, that you are a blue badge holder etc. If they show their photo, point out the the angle is deliberately designed to hide the badge and ask them why they didn't take it from a clear angle. Remember the premises you are visiting are also bound by the Disability Discrimination Act to provide you with assistance.

 

If they actually took this to court not only would they lose, but there is a reasonable chance they would be prosecuted IMO.

 

Even if you did lose, you don't get a CCJ unless you refuse to pay the court judgement.

[Rob S]

Enforcement proceedings??? They can only enforce this when they have got a judgement at the county court, and to do that they will have to prove to the court who was driving and the fact there was a contract in place between them and the driver. And even then they can only claim for reasonable damages that they have incurred, not for the full amount of the "Penalty notice". And if they do go to county court, you will have an opportunity to go to court and defend yourself.

 

You have written to them plenty of times now ( and I presume you have copies of all your letters). I suspect that writing to them again won't make the slightest bit of difference, so let them make the next move. I would be surprised if they take this to court. And if they do try and register this alleged debt with a credit reference agency you will have no trouble getting it deleted as inaccurate.

 

I wouldn't pay them a penny if I were in your shoes, but its a decision for you to make. But you have come this far, why let them win?

 

They are rogues and charletans who prey on the people not knowing that their practices are shady, but you know this. You know there are plenty of people here who will support you.

[bankbustermum]

Think I'm going to fight it. I'm going to contact my local newspaper too and see if they are interested in running a story on it.

 

I do have copies of all the correspondence between myself, UKPC and HF & Co, so I guess I'm as prepared for a hearing as I need to be?

 

I must admit I didn't think it'd get this far but I guess once you take a stand you have to keep going with it...

[demon_x_slash]

Don't back down. Think of it as this, and it'll prob. get edited, but they are figuratively trying to rob you. They are trying to trick you into paying them by assuming that you are ignorant of the law and talking over you as if you didn't matter. You said yourself that the girl on the phone became stroppy - you need to think: How dare you? How dare you keep interrupting my life with your unlawful demands? Their even assuming that you will be fooled by false assumptions of superiority/legality/officialdom should have you jumping up and down with rage. They're assuming that you're stupid, here. Doesn't that pee you off? It pees me off. You need to use that righteous anger to push you on and keep you going. They have no authority. The burden of proof is on them. You don't need to send them another letter, you've sent two already. Let them do the ineffectual squeaking for once and see how they like it...

[bankbustermum]

Thanks for the advice everyone.

 

I am now going to just sit tight and see what happens... Spoke to my husband last night and he agrees that we shouldn't be bullied into parting with our hard earned cash.

[demon_x_slash]

You go, gel. Don't let them blindside you into giving up, 'cos that's just what they want.

[Hombe]

Hello all.

Hombe here.

 

I am very new to this website and have only registered today.

I felt I had to as the Company I work for has received several UKPC charges for Alleged unlawful parking on site that we are currently developing!

 

We have right of access to the properties we are building and they still continue to send us continuous mail asking us to pay the fines, so this is what we have done so far.

 

On recipt of the fines we wrote to them letting them know who we were and why we were parked there and we pointed out that we were parked legally and also that they had taken photographs of our vehicles whilst they were lawfully engaged in delivering and collecting goods from the properties.

 

we also pointed out that as owners we were not responsible for payment of the charges and if we received any further correspondence from them other than the cancellation of the fines we would regard as harassment and report them to the relevant authorities. This seemed to work! Until......................

[Hombe]

Well, the correspondance still comes, reminder after reminder and warnings of Debt Collectors if we do not pay and a letter stating that our appeal was unsuccessful - what appeal!......So we wrote again reminding them of the 1st letters content and then gave them a list of what we needed to compile our appeal...like.....what regulations they were issuing their charges under, what indipendant legal body they used to take non payers to court, their company reg No that they are registered to collect money under, the name of the attendant who took the photo's and aparently whitnessed the alleged parking offence, proof of the time of day (as the date on their camera is actually wrong!!!) proof of the time span between alledged wrong parking and delivery by us, and the name and address of each driver involved as we have many drivers driving all of our vehicles........we have not recieved anything except another reminder! So.....We wrote to them yet again asking for the information for our appeal (Again) and mentioned again the harrassment wetc and mention that we look forward to recieving their info for our appeal. We recieved ANOTHER rminder! but NO information that we had asked for, so we wrote again stating that we are reporting them and by not supplying us with the information we have requested that they were NOT ALLOWING us the right to compile a case for appeal by not sending us info. WE HAVE NOT HEARD A THING since then!!! which was last week of March! Yipeeee..We will wait and see.

[demon_x_slash]

It's because they're [problematic], my dear, and both you and they know it

[alibobsy]

We got a ticket a few years ago on a local multi storey which is in private ownership. Hubby was advised by someone he knows in the local council who works in the parking enforcement team to ignore it as they will never go to court over it. It was very scary ignoring all those threats but after a couple of months they gave up and we never heard another thing.

Good luck you guys don't let em take your cash!

ali x

[dougiedickson]

anyone want UKPC'S NUMBER?

iTS 08702283344

tHEY DONT WANT YOU TO KNOW IT SO GIVE EM STICK!!

[Zamzara]

anyone want UKPC'S NUMBER?

iTS 08702283344

tHEY DONT WANT YOU TO KNOW IT SO GIVE EM STICK!!

 

Sounds unlikely, seeing as that is a number they have set up specially, and they get paid for receiving calls to it.