Free Traffic Legal Advice

Hello,

Sorry for vague response it’s a refund of the &464 paid to the bailiffs

Good news.

You still play a straight and polite bat, the process isn't concluded yet.


Thank you for your email dated **** acknowledging your error in this matter.

As you know, I had to pay your agents £****(the precise amount) in order to prevent my goods being seized. In order to bring financial closure to this part of the matter, this amount should be remitted by the council promptly and I do not think it unreasonable to ask for this to be paid within the next 7 working days from the date of this request. My bank details are as follows:

A/c name:
A/c number:
Sort code:

Thank you.



*- 7 working days is the same period given in a Notice of Enforcement( . This gives a clear and in my experience achievable timeframe, but only if this is specifically 'owned' within the council and not subjected to the normal payment process.

Don't push your luck by trying to get your £70 refunded because you'd be mixing compensation with a refund. Keep them separate....which isn't to say we won't be returning to the matter. 

No complaints, no recriminations......yet.

Hello,

UPDATE:

‘Good afternoon
 
Thank you for providing the information requested.
 
Your refund is currently being processed by our accounts team and will be credited to your account in due course.
 
 
Cofion/Regards‘

Quote from: RhysGrif on June 26, 2024, 06:21:18 pm

...............
Hello,

So I would I be correct in saying that they have confirmed that the document was posted on 26th and not 25th therefore giving me a 28 day period of 27th November due to the working day falling on the Monday.

Not the 27th Nov, the 28 day period ended Sunday the 26th Nov.

26/10/2023 = Thursday = Date of NTO = Date of Posting
30/10/2023 = Monday = 2nd working day after posting = Deemed date of service = Day 1 of 28
26/11/2023 = Sunday = Day 28 of 28 day relevant period = Payment of £70 made

@cp8759
Per the below. It's the additional £464 that he had to pay to the bailiff that he's trying to recover. The £70 paid to close the PCN would be a bonus, of course.

Quote from: cp8759 on June 26, 2024, 11:31:05 pm

I would suggest you want to start drafting your OOT application. If you can get this accepted and the matter is referred to the tribunal, I have little doubt you can get the £70 refunded. Depending on how much of a fuss the council makes, you might even get a costs order.

Update:

‘Good Morning
 
Thank you for your email.
 
After a further review of your case and the mitigation you have described we can confirm that your case has been recalled from the Enforcement Agent and you payment of £70.00 has been accepted to close your case.
 
We hope that this assists with your enquiry and apologise for any inconvenience caused.
 
 
Cofion/Regards‘

Quote from: RhysGrif on June 26, 2024, 06:21:18 pm

...............
Hello,

So I would I be correct in saying that they have confirmed that the document was posted on 26th and not 25th therefore giving me a 28 day period of 27th November due to the working day falling on the Monday.

Not the 27th Nov, the 28 day period ended Sunday the 26th Nov.

26/10/2023 = Thursday = Date of NTO = Date of Posting
30/10/2023 = Monday = 2nd working day after posting = Deemed date of service = Day 1 of 28
26/11/2023 = Sunday = Day 28 of 28 day relevant period = Payment of £70 made

@cp8759
Per the below. It's the additional £464 that he had to pay to the bailiff that he's trying to recover. The £70 paid to close the PCN would be a bonus, of course.

Quote from: cp8759 on June 26, 2024, 11:31:05 pm

I would suggest you want to start drafting your OOT application. If you can get this accepted and the matter is referred to the tribunal, I have little doubt you can get the £70 refunded. Depending on how much of a fuss the council makes, you might even get a costs order.

Hello,

So therefore they’ve confirmed I’ve paid within the 28 day period as the document was posted on the 26th.

Hello,

Swansea council have sent me the following:

‘Good afternoon
 
Thank you for your email.
 
We have reviewed your case and can confirm the following:
 
A Notice to Owner was sent for printing and posting on 25/10/2023 however, due to an internal issue it appears that the documentation failed to print. For this reason, the Notice to Owner was requeued and subsequently printed and posted on 26/10/2023 to the address provided to us by the DVLA as being that of the registered keeper, which was still within the legal timescales to serve a Notice to Owner.
 
The Notice to Owner documentation advised that a payment of £70.00 was outstanding to be paid within 28 days of the date the Notice was deemed served, which in this case was no later than 25/11/2023. The Notice also advised that failure to make payment before the end of the 28 days period would result in the penalty increasing by 50% taking the total to £105.00. 
 
Due to a payment of £70.00 not being received until 26/11/2024 which was after the 28 day period, the case progressed as an underpayment and we issued a Charge Certificate requesting the outstanding balance of £35.00 (£105.00 minus £70.00 received).
 
As no further payment or correspondence was received in response to the Charge Certificate, the case continued to progress and we issued an Order for Recovery (TE3 TE9) on 20/12/2023 which incurred further charges.
 
Due to no payment or completion of the TE3 and TE9 being made within the statutory timescales the case was registered for a warrant of control and was subsequently passed to Andrew James Enforcement on 09/02/2024 to recover the outstanding debt plus Enforcement Fees.
 
Having reviewed your case in full Swansea Council are satisfied that no procedural impropriety has occurred and that the case has progressed correctly. For this reason, we regret that we will be unable to cancel the Charge Certificate and Order for Recovery or recall the case from the Enforcement Agent and issue any refunds of payments made.
 
Your only options at this late stage are to either, lodge an Out Of Time Witness Statement with the Traffic Enforcement Centre (TEC) for your case to be reviewed by a Court Officer if one of the four options on the witness statement apply to your case or your case will remain closed as full payment has now been received by the Agent.
 
Here are the four options you could choose from:
 
*  I did not receive the Notice to Owner / Penalty Charge Notice
*  I appealed against the Local Authority’s decision to reject my representation, within 28 days of service of the rejection notice, but have had no response.
*  I made representations about the penalty charge to the enforcing authority concerned within 28 days of the service of the Notice to Owner, but did not receive a rejection notice.
*  The Penalty Charge Notice was paid in full.
 
To request the relevant documentation to lodge an Out of Time Witness Statement you would be required to contact TEC on 0300 123 1059 (select option 6) or download the relevant forms (TE7 & TE9) online at www.gov.uk (see direct links below)
 
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/form-te9-witness-statement-unpaid-penalty-charge-parking
 
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/form-te7-application-to-file-a-statement-out-of-time-extension-of-time-parking
 
The completed forms must be returned to the Traffic Enforcement Centre at the address they provide or via email to tec@justice.gov.uk .
 
Where possible we would request that you please provide supporting documentary evidence with your statement.
 
Once we are in receipt of notification from TEC that an Out Of Time Witness Statement has been lodged on this case, we will place the case on hold until a decision has been made regarding this matter.
 
Please be advised, should no action be taken, the case will remain active with the Enforcement Agent and further charges may be incurred.
 
Cofion/Regards’

You may revise the wording of the communication to ensure it can be used as evidence if the council does not cooperate and you need to present this letter to the Ombudsman or make a claim for a breach.




Dear Parking Services

I refer to the above matter and the applicable PCN enforcement timetable you recently provided. I emphasise that this is your evidence.

My frustration at being pursued for a penalty is now compounded by my annoyance at the council's blatantly unlawful demand, which should have been evident with proper oversight. Your timeline is attached, from which I have concluded the following:

An entry indicates that a Notice to Owner (NTO) was dated and posted on 25 Oct.
Another entry shows a second NTO was produced, dated, and posted on 26 Oct.
An entry states a Charge Certificate (CC) was produced, dated, and posted on 27 Nov.
An entry shows payment of £70 received on 27 Nov.
An entry shows a CC posted on 27 Nov., citing and relying upon the NTO issued on 26 Oct., which, based on the council's evidence, was an unlawful notice.
A copy of the NTO dated 26 Oct. is provided in the council's evidence.
A copy of a receipt issued by the Council for payment of £70 dated 26 November 2023.

The following points are evident from the above:

a. The unlawful act of issuing a second NTO on 26 Oct.
b. Even if the CC was legitimate, the council's legal right to demand the surcharge penalty arose only on 29 Nov. when the CC (posted on 27 Nov.) was served.
c. The council acted unlawfully by refusing payment of the extant, unsurcharged penalty on 27 Nov.
d and pursuing the owner based on an unlawful NTO and CC.

The Enforcement Agent has taken an unlawful money transfer of £514 under the pain of removing my car. I will now file an Out of Time application to the Traffic Enforcement Centre.

Given the council's actions to date, I expect a successful outcome and anticipate that the council will not object to my application. However, considering the above, it would be in the authority's best interest to cancel the Charge Certificate and Order for Recovery now rather than referring the matter to the adjudicator.

In this context, having been made aware of your actions, should the council object to my submission and it be refused, I will refer this matter to your Complaints Procedure and, if necessary, the Ombudsman. Such action could only be seen as a failure to discharge the council's public duty to act fairly and reasonably.
My bank details for the return of the money are as follows [provide bank details here]. Once the money is returned, I will consider the matter solved.

I have copied your enforcement agent for their information.

Hello,

Am I sending an email to Swansea Council & sending the ‘OOT’ & ‘Witness Statement’ to the TEC

For fear of sounding like a record stuck in a groove, it matters not.

If the full penalty of £70 was paid before a CC was served (which the council's evidence shows is the case) then that's it, there is no further penalty to pay.

It's the law.

Hello,

Yes the penalty was paid on the 26th. I have the receipt and the payment on my card transaction.

Could you please advise what my next steps are?