Show Posts - mjlazer

Thank you, this is extremely helpful and appreciated.For the POPLA appeal, am I right in thinking I would need to select 'Other' as the reason rather than 'I was not the driver or the registered keeper of the vehicle at the time'?

Next up, this is the POPLA appeal I've drafted based on examples I've found. Any feedback more than welcome. I have about a month to submit it.Evidence to upload:

• Hertz email forwarding the PCN
• GroupNexus’ original document sent to Hertz (the original NTK quoting para 9)
• The notice they sent to me (re-addressed, with no hire docs)

POPLA verification number [1753445551]Parking charge notice [2000064523643]

• Operator CP Plus Ltd t/a GroupNexus
• Vehicle OY26 VKY
• Site Moto Blyth Services
• Date of event 27/10/2025

I am the hirer of the vehicle. I deny any liability. The appeal is allowed on the following grounds.1. No keeper/hirer liability under POFA 2012 schedule 4 (hire vehicles)GroupNexus has not complied with the strict requirements of Schedule 4 paragraphs 13–14. What I received is plainly a re-addressed copy of the original Notice to Keeper to Hertz that still purports to rely on paragraph 9. For a hire vehicle, a valid Notice to Hirer must be served with all of the prescribed documents:

• a copy of the hire agreement
• a statement of liability signed by the hirer
• a copy of the original notice

None of these documents were enclosed. In addition, the operator has provided no evidence that any Notice to Hirer (with all enclosures) was delivered within the statutory timescale in para 14(2)(a). POPLA will be able to see from the operator’s own rejection letter that they assert “we are holding the registered keeper liable”. The registered keeper is Hertz, not me. In the absence of full compliance with Sch 4 paras 13–14, the operator cannot transfer liability to the hirer/keeper. I am not naming the driver.This ground alone requires that the appeal be allowed.2. No evidence of landowner authorityThe operator is put to strict proof of a current, unredacted contract with the landowner (not merely a site agreement with an agent) that:

• grants CP Plus/GroupNexus authority to manage parking, issue PCNs, and pursue charges to POPLA/court, and
• covers this specific site and the material period

If such authority is not produced, the charge is invalid under the BPA Code of Practice (section 7).3. Inadequate and non-prominent signage, including at EV charging baysThe terms relied upon (free 2-hour limit and tariff thereafter) were not prominently brought to the attention of drivers using the EV charging area. The operator must supply a contemporaneous signage plan and dated photos showing: entrance signage legibility from a moving vehicle, the font sizes of the core terms, and the signs positioned at the EV chargers. Under the BPA Code (sections 19 & 21), core terms must be clear and prominent. In ParkingEye v Beavis, the Supreme Court stressed that charges are only enforceable where the signage is “clear and prominent”. That standard is not met here.4. No evidence of a compliant “period of parking” and failure to allow grace/consideration periodsThe times shown are ANPR entry/exit times, not the mandatory “period of parking” required by PoFA Sch 4. They will include circulation, queueing for a charger, connecting/disconnecting, and exiting. The BPA Code requires both a reasonable consideration period on arrival and a minimum 10-minute grace period on leaving. The operator is put to strict proof that both were allowed and that the alleged overstay is not merely ANPR timestamp padding.5. Unfair/unclear consumer termsIf the operator relies on any alleged contractual term, it must be transparent and prominent. Given the EV-charging context and the absence of prominent warnings at the chargers themselves, any purported agreement to pay £100 is not transparent or fairly incorporated (Consumer Rights Act 2015). The operator is put to strict proof.ConclusionBecause GroupNexus failed to comply with PoFA Schedule 4 for hire vehicles, they cannot transfer liability to me as hirer/keeper. The remaining points (authority, signage, and grace periods) give further independent reasons to allow the appeal. I request that POPLA uphold this appeal and direct the operator to cancel the charge.

Hi allFor some reason, when I try and copy and paste an email (like the one below) it refuses to preview with paragraphs. It just blobs together into one big wall of text.EDIT: Please delete this. It's just in preview that the formatting doesn't work. When posted, it looks fine 🤦🏻‍♂️Example:Dear Sir, Madam,We would like to remind you of this Hertz invoice that was recently sent by post as it remains unpaid. We will also send this invoice by email for your ease of reference.We inform you that the invoice amount 42.00 GBP is regarding an administrative fee and / or fine due to a traffic violation that you received during your rental with Hertz.An administration fee is billed each time the local authorities contact Hertz for information.Should the invoice not include a fine amount, this means the fine will be issued to you directly by the authorities. The fine invoice from the authority will include all the necessary payment details.Please ensure the payment of 42.00 GBP reaches us, within the next 7 days via the following bank account details, quoting the invoice number as reference:Owner: Hertz UK LtdBank: Deutsche Bank AGIBAN: GB73 DEUT 4050 8119 7965 00BIC: DEUTGB2LFor an online payment with your Visa, MasterCard, or Amex please visit our secure website: https://www.hertzonlinepayments.com/gb/enCheques are no longer accepted.Should a payment have been sent prior to this notification, please advise details.It is important to note that failure to pay this open balance in full, will result in escalation of this debt to an external debt collection agency, where additional fees may be incurred. This will also impact your ability to rent with Hertz Globally in the future. Please ensure all payments are made to the bank details outlined in this communication using the Hertz Invoice number as reference, to ensure accurate allocation to this debt. Please ensure any disputes with all relevant details and paperwork are sent to this email address using the invoice number as reference within 5 working days, receipt of this notification means any disputes previously raised to any division of Hertz have been closed and charges deemed correct and due. Please see https://www.hertz.co.uk for details of our Terms and Conditions of Rental and our privacy policy.Thanking you in advance for your business and anticipating a prompt payment response.Yours Sincerely,Your Hertz Collections Team

Legend, thank you that's more concise and it's gone straight over to the Hertz Collections team.

So, now Hertz are chasing me for this £42 "admin fee" and telling me it needs to be paid in 7 days. This is the suggest response I've found. Is this an appropriate action?EDIT: Sorry for the quality, not sure why ImgBB compressed it so much and copying the email as text just creates a blob of text with no paragraphs for some reason. Let me know if you can't read it.

Somebody has put a quid in GroupNexus because their responses are flying out. Here's the latest response to my previous email which includes a POPLA code. I will look up next steps/templates, but assuming I now start the appeal with POPLA?QuoteDear Sir/Madam,Thank you for your correspondence relating to your Parking Charge.The Charge was issued and the signage is displayed in compliance with The British Parking Association’s Approved Operator Scheme Code of Practice and all relevant laws and regulations. Clear signs at the entrance of this site and throughout inform drivers of the requirement to pay for parking in excess of the free 2 hour period, and it is not possible to access any part of the premises without passing multiple signs. Your representations are not considered a mitigating circumstance for appeal.We confirm the Charge was issued under Schedule 4 of the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012. As no driver details have been provided, we are holding the registered keeper of the vehicle liable.In light of this, on this occasion, your representations have been carefully considered and rejected.We can confirm that we will hold the Charge at the current rate of £60 for a further 14 days from the date of this correspondence. If no payment is received within this period, and no further appeal to POPLA is made, the Charge will escalate and further costs may be added.Please find below the payment options: [Payment details]----------You have now reached the end of our internal appeals procedure. This correspondence represents our final stance on the matter and we will therefore not enter into any further correspondence.CORRESPONDENCE RECEIVED FOLLOWING THE REJECTION OF AN APPEAL WILL NOT CHANGE THE OUTCOME OR EXTEND THE DATE IN WHICH PAYMENT SHOULD BE MADE.Although we have now rejected your appeal, you may still have recourse to appeal to Parking On Private Land Appeals (POPLA), an independent appeals service. An appeal to POPLA must be made within 28 days of the date of this correspondence.  POPLA will only consider cases on the grounds that the Parking Charge exceeded the appropriate amount, that the vehicle was not improperly parked or had been stolen, or that you were otherwise not liable for the Parking Charge.  To appeal to POPLA, please go to their website http://www.popla.co.uk and follow the instructions. If you would rather deal with this matter by post, please contact our Appeals Office and we will send you the necessary paperwork. Your POPLA reference number is: [Reference number]Please note that if your appeal does not relate to the above criteria or is rejected by POPLA for any reason, you will no longer qualify for payment at the reduced rate. POPLA will not consider any cases where payment has been made. You must pay the charge or appeal to POPLA, you cannot do both.By law we are also required to inform you that Ombudsman Services (www.ombudsman-services.org/) provides an alternative dispute resolution service that would be competent to deal with your appeal.  However, we have not chosen to participate in their alternative dispute resolution service.  As such should you wish to appeal then you must do so to POPLA, as explained above.Yours faithfully,CP Plus  Ltd

Thanks to jfollows and especially b789 for the tailored response. Both of your help is hugely appreciated.I didn't imagine that there would be a way to fight back against these predatory PCNs but I'm learning so much.I've sent the response so let's see what they say.

I've received a reply from GroupNexus (who are still signing off as CP Plus Ltd).It's almost like... they didn't read my email—which very explicitly stated I would not be supplying any names.They are giving me 14 days. Will they automatically reject the appeal after that and provide the POPLA code?QuoteDear Sir/Madam,Thank you for your correspondence relating to your Parking Charge.The representations stated in your correspondence have been noted and considered. Please forward to us the full name and address of the driver at the time this charge was incurred so that we can update our records accordingly.We are placing this Charge on hold for 14 days from the date of this email to allow you to provide the details requested.Yours faithfully,CP Plus Ltd

Correct, it is exactly the same letter they sent to Hertz but it's addressed to me this time.Thank you, I'll send the appeal now and let you know what they say.

Quote from: jfollows on 03 Dec, 2025 13:54That’s a Notice to Keeper, not to Hirer. You were not the Registered Keeper at the time of parking, as claimed.Do you know why GroupNexus has just sent the same thing they sent to Hertz (NtK) rather than a NtH, which I expected to be the next step in the process?

Update: I submitted a complaint to the landowner, Moto Services Ltd., using a successful template I found here on the board.This was the response I got (literally a few hours later):

Quote from: b789 on 03 Dec, 2025 14:19Seriously? Take your tin-foil hat off and show us all the dates and times on that Notice. These firms issue over 40,000+ PCNs every single day of the year. Even if your perverted fantasy about some team of hooded "Yoofs" in a dark room somewhere scouring the internet for posts about a specific PCN were founded, so bloody what? They cannot change anything because the unlawful behaviour is exposed. What on earth do you imagine they could do if they were able to identify your PCN?Mind you, this is exactly what a GroupNexus asset would say...

Wow, apologies to all. I thought I was being prudent erring on the side of caution.I just assumed that it would be best to redact anything that could be linked to the open case.This is my first time doing this. I can assure you I am not a conspiracy theorist or have perverted fantasies()But, easily fixed (see below).So, if this is a NtK not NtH then, given I received it only this morning, am I meant to be waiting longer for a NtH?

Quote from: DWMB2 on 03 Dec, 2025 13:05For completeness can you show us the Notice to Hirer?Sure, I've removed any identifying information in case they're snooping this board.I saw elsewhere that Plan A was a complaint to the client landowner. Shall I submit the appeal, as is, regardless and then also make a complaint to the client landowner?

Okay, here we go. The NtH has been received today, Dec 3, and was issued on Nov 24.Given Hertz forwarded the PCN to me on 12 Nov, I'm assuming that put the GroupNexus deadline at 21 days from that email. That means I received the NtH exactly 21 days later.They did not include any other documents other than the PCN.So, if I am correct in thinking, I now need to appeal using the 'I am the Hirer...' message shared by @b789 and then just wait for the next update?