Free Traffic Legal Advice
Live cases legal advice => Private parking tickets => Topic started by: Ali_1 on June 01, 2025, 09:44:13 pm
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What "fine"? You haven't been "fined" at all. UPE are not an authority of any sort that can impose "fines" on anyone. All that has been received is a speculative invoice for an alleged breach of contract by the driver.
Just because you receive an invoice, do you just pay it, whether you believe you owe it or not?
They will add a fake £60 or £70 charge before it even goes to litigation. If/when a claim is made they will also add a fixed claim fee of £35 and fixed legal costs of £50. If it ever got to the stage that a judge wail consider the claim (highly doubtful it would ever get that far) and you were unsuccessful, then the fake added fees are never allowed.
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Thanks. Learning from my mistakes.
Are they likely to increase the fine when sending LoC?
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SO you managed to FUBAR your position with your ill informed communications with the operator and the useless IAS.
For now, all you can do is wait and see if they decide to issue a Letter of Claim (LoC). If/when they do, come back and we will advise on how to proceed.
In the meantime, you can safely ignore all useless debt recovery letters. Debt collectors are powerless to actually do anything except to try and persuade the low-hanging fruit on the gullible tree to pay up out of ignorance and fear. Simply ignore them and we don't need to know about any of those useless letters.
Come back if/when you receive an LoC.
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@b789 Thanks for detailed response.
If I had known about this site before, I would have come here for guide. I have attached the pictures they have on their website with no one in the parked car.
As for th appeal, I based it on th basis that I received original PCN very late and was honest that I went I shop next door to use the toilet thinking honesty will pay off but from my experience, they care more about money than nature call.
The fact of the matter is, it was evening never so realised there was the notice and made my way to shop next door when they said, there is no customer toilet on site.
They also posted a picture of me entering the petrol forecourt and no one on passenger seat.
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Thank you. What about what you put in your appeals to UPE and the IAS?
What evidence have you seen to prove that "passenger or driver left premises while vehicle on site"? Have you checked their appeal website for any evidential photos they have? It is almost impossible for them to prove that the driver left the site as until you blabbed the drivers identity, they had no idea who it was.
A sign cannot legally require a driver to stop a passenger from leaving the site. This kind of rule is unfair and unenforceable. It goes against the Consumer Rights Act 2015, which says contract terms must be fair and not put an unfair burden on someone. A driver cannot control what another person does, so it's not reasonable to expect them to keep a passenger on the site.
Only the driver (or possibly the keeper) might be bound by signs in a car park. A passenger is not part of any contract, so their actions should not affect the contract. Also, signs that say “do not leave the site” are often vague. They don’t explain clearly what counts as “the site” or how long you’re expected to stay. If the signs are unclear or the terms are hidden in small print, they cannot form a proper contract.
On top of that, parking companies can’t prove whether someone leaving the site was a driver or a passenger, and they can’t prove what anyone agreed to. So they usually don’t have any usable evidence.
In short, a sign, basically saying the driver must stop passengers from leaving the site is not reasonable, not fair, and certainly not enforceable in law.
The ONLY way you are going to end this ridiculous farce of a PCN is by letting them try to take you to court over the alleged debt. I will put a £100 bet on that it never reaches a courtroom and as long as it is defended, with our advice, any claim will be struck out or discontinued.
The only thing going for you is their utter incompetence. It's just a pity that you didn't come here before digging the great big hole you are now in.
No evidence of any contract formed and no evidence of the driver leaving the premises. Those are your lifelines.
For now, answer the questions about what exactly you put in your appeals and show us any photographic evidence they have that the driver left the premises.
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Thanks for your reply @b789. Please find attached original PCN
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Welcome... everything you have done so far is WRONG!!!! You have successfully dug a hole for yourself with your actions. FUBAR
In order to try and advise you on how to try and extricate yourself from the hole you have made for yourself, we need to see the initial Notice to Keeper (NtK) you received, both sides with ALL dates and times visible. We DO NOT need to see any reminders or useless debt collector threat-o-grams such as the one from TNC collections you have shown us.
Also, show precisely what you put in your various, futile appeals. WE are not interested in anything you said to the powerless TNC. All they or any other debt collector can do is to try and persuade the low-hanging fruit on the gullible tree to pay up out of ignorance and fear.
READ THIS FIRST - Private Parking Charges Forum guide (https://www.ftla.uk/private-parking-tickets/read-this-first-private-parking-charges-forum-guide/)
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Date of Event = 31/01/2025
Date of Notice: 5 February 2025
Received: First week of April 2025
- Received PCN as I parked the car at petrol station and as they had no customer toilets went to the shop next door.
- I did not realise that I could not leave the car unattended, the signs were present but as it was in the evening so did not check the signs.
- Upon receiving PCN , contacted the company that I accept that I was on premises but just received the letter so happy to pay the reduced rate but not the full one
- Universal Parking Enforcement said that they have already passed the case to debt collection agency and I should speak to them.
- Spoke to them and they advised that they I must pay the full amount + their admin fees. When asked about appealing, I was advised to contact Universal Enforcement .
- I contacted Universal Enforcement again and then said that they cannot do anything so I should contact IPC (Independent Appeals Service) and they are unable to assist.
- I contact IPC, who asked me to contact them via post as they cannot accept via email / online portal; I posted my appeal to them.
- Today, I got a reply from Universal Parking Enforcement that they received appeal from IPC and they have already responded to them that they are not willing to withdraw the the PCN as there are no public toilet facility at the petrol station so I should taken the car off the court and "offsite or roadside parking could have been sought for this purpose". As for not received the letter in time of reduced rate "Our office dispatched the letter on 5 February 2025 and it become the responsibility of Royal Mail hence Universal Parking cannot be held accountable for late delivery.
- To date, the IAS have not replied
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I firmly believe that as they have not been able to provide me the proof of posting and reading other reviews online, I am tempted to ask them to take the case to the court.... I accept, I parked after filling the petrol for using toilet next door but do not accept paying such heavy fees especially when I did not receive the original PCN on time
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