Free Traffic Legal Advice

Something like this?

I am writing to ask that you exercise discretion in relation to this PCN and allow me to pay the original £3.50 crossing charge.

The crossing was recorded at 06:04. At the time, I genuinely believed it was just before 6am and therefore outside the charging period. My clock was incorrect and I did not realise I had crossed four minutes after charging commenced. I accept that I should have checked the time more carefully and that the £3.50 crossing charge was due.

The reason I was unable to take advantage of the first-time concession offered in the PCN is that I was actually on my way to Dover to catch a ferry when the crossing took place. I left the UK that day and was away for approximately a month. I can provide my ferry booking/details as evidence of this.

Consequently, I did not see the PCN until I returned home, by which time the 14-day period allowing me to pay £3.50 and have the penalty cancelled had already expired.

The PCN itself confirms that this was the first time this vehicle had crossed without payment and that, had I received and seen the notice while I was at home, I would have been able to resolve the matter simply by paying the £3.50 charge. I would certainly have done so.

I am therefore asking you to take into account the circumstances which genuinely prevented me from responding within the 14-day period and to exercise discretion by reinstating the original offer, allowing me to pay the £3.50 crossing charge and cancelling the penalty.

I am not seeking to avoid the crossing charge and am happy to pay the £3.50 immediately.

Thank you for considering my representation.

Or should I just call them and see if they're nicer on the phone?

Sorry....

So they replied the same day with the usual standard email

Thank you, we are in receipt of your appeal. Please ensure that you have read the below information.

All complaints in relation to a Parking Charge Notice will be treated as an appeal unless clearly stated otherwise by the motorist/keeper. Or unless an appeal has already been submitted.

Once an appeal has been received, the Parking Charge Notice (PCN) and subsequent charges are put on hold.

A member of our appeals department will complete a review of the PCN, and any valid mitigating circumstances provided in the appeal. They will only be able work with the parameters of the system and the Parking Contract, to ensure personal opinions do not cause biased or unfair appeal decisions.

A decision will be made, and the outcome letter will be sent via the same method we received your appeal, unless stated otherwise, with any payment due or timeframes being applicable from the date of the appeal decision notice.

Appeal evidence

Please ensure that you have provided all you necessary supporting evidence for your appeal, this may include, copy of blue badge, proof of payment for parking, proof of purchase or any other evidence you believe to be relevant to your case. If they have evidence which you did not provide with your appeal, you can email it to parkingcharges@britpark.com, as soon as possible in order for it to be considered, along with your appeal.
More than one Parking Charge Notice?

When appealing via our website, you must ensure that each Parking Charge Notice is appealed separately if you have been issued more than one.

Time frames

If your appeal was submitted within the discounted period, you will be given a further 14 days to pay the notice at the discount rate.

If your appeal was submitted outside of the discounted time frame an additional discounted period will not be offered.

We have an internal 28-day timeframe in which to reply to appeals, so please regularly check your spam/inbox for correspondence as well as post. You may also wish to add our email address to your safe list – parkingcharges@britpark.com

We may ask for additional evidence to support your appeal. In these instances, we will write to you stating the additional evidence required and you will be given 14 days to produce this additional evidence. Please be aware due to waiting for additional evidence your appeal response may exceed our 28-day deadline.

Outcome

Your appeal response will inform you if your PCN has been cancelled, reduced, or declined.

If your appeal was submitted within the discounted period, you will be given a further 14 days to pay the notice at the discount rate.

If your appeal was submitted outside of the discounted time frame an additional discounted period will not be offered.

Independent Appeal Ombudsman Service -POPLA

If we decline your appeal, you will be provided with details of how further appeal to POPLA, along with a unique reference number. You will be given a full 28 days to submit an appeal to POPLA.

If you opt to pay the PCN, you will be unable to appeal further. If you pay the PCN before you submit a POPLA appeal, or at any point after, we will notify POPLA of your payment and your appeal will be closed and not considered for assessment.

Please note that if you wish to make an appeal to POPLA, you will lose the right to pay the PCN at the discounted rate, should POPLA decline your appeal.

Should their decision not go in your favour you will be required to pay the full amount of the PCN within 28 days.

Parking Charges Department

Britannia Parking


But in the meantime they still sent me" parking charge Final reminder"

https://imgur.com/a/i2RnhAq

It's almost as if they don't want me to appeal or the right hand doesn't know what the left hand is doing

surprise surprise

It's been awhile since I had a ticket, what I normally used to do is just tell them that I was the registered keeper and declined to tell them who is the driver was and they normally went away has this changed now?

For example this is worked for me many times (Response from another parking company):

In your appeal you have explained that you are the registered keeper of the vehicle and declined the invitation to provide us
with the full name and address of the driver.
On this occasion we are prepared to exercise our discretion and have now cancelled this Parking Charge but must inform
you that the terms and conditions in this location advise the driver that they must pay for each visit to the site. Signage is
displayed at the approach to this drop off area, along the location and upon exit, advising all motorists that a payment to use
the drop off area is required to be made online or by phone. As stated above, the terms and conditions of using the drop-off
zones are displayed by way of clear signage. It is the responsibility of the motorist to read and comply with the signage on
site.

Something more like this?

Dear Sir/Madam,

I am the registered keeper of vehicle registration [XXXXXX] and I am appealing Parking Charge Notice [XXXXXX].

Your Notice to Keeper fails to comply with the mandatory requirements of Schedule 4, Paragraph 9(2)(e)(i) of the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012. The Act requires the notice to:

“…state that the creditor does not know both the name of the driver and a current address for service for the driver and invite the keeper to pay the unpaid parking charges.”

Your notice does not contain any such invitation to me, the keeper, to pay the unpaid parking charge if the driver is not identified. Instead, it only states that the driver is liable, and that you have the right to recover from the keeper if the charge is unpaid or the driver is not named. This is not compliant wording and is a clear procedural failure.

Because of this failure, Britannia cannot transfer liability from the driver to me under Schedule 4, and you may only pursue the driver, whose identity you do not know.

Please therefore confirm that the Parking Charge Notice has been cancelled.

Should you reject this appeal, I require a POPLA verification code so I may escalate the matter.

 sorry, I thought I'd left them there but I also wrote them above