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Hello all,  I wonder if someone could please help.  (And I hope I posted to the correct forum, many apologies if I didn't)

On Friday 9th I received a letter from Pay My Fuel informing me that I did not pay for my fuel at my local Morrison's service station.
Although I don't clearly remember doing this (I use that station as well as another local one very regularly, for fuelling my wife's car as well as mine), and I have heard of such scams, I think it's genuine, as there are photos of my car and myself in my work uniform (I was in work that day), and the time and date is consistent with me fuelling up after work.   The amount of fuel they claim matches with the sort of amount I would usually put in (I'm a bit odd in that I always match the amount of pounds and pence, eg £27.27 or £42.42, etc), and there are also no records of any bank transactions (and I don't usually use cash to pay for fuel.   I normally use pay-at-pump so I am not usually even entering the kiosk).
Like I said, I have no clear recollection of doing this, but due to stresses and tiredness, I am probably guilty of the offence and feel pretty embarrassed to say the least, as this is something I would never do intentionally.

Anyway, I'm now being charged for the fuel I took, plus an extra penalty charge of £50.

I'm obviously more than happy to pay for the fuel I took, but money's not something I have loads of, and I can really do without wasting another £50 on a penalty charge.


Can anyone advise me please?

possibly, though some of the pumps at that particular Morrison's do not have a pay-at-pump option.  I really can't remember to be honest

what did morrisons say when contacted them?

good

Can you show us the letter you have received?

The 'penalty' sounds a lot like a payment in return for them not shopping you to the police.

I very much doubt they used the word "penalty". They'll probably claim it's an admin charge for chasing and handling the non-payment.

Morrisons are unlikely to relent if you went to the store and offered to pay: they're probably not set up to take such late payments, and they'll claim it's out of their hands and has been passed on to Pay My Fuel.

I would be interested to know the purported legal justification for the demand.

On the face of it, it is a deterrent charge very much in the same vein as private parking penalties issued under a conveniently 'clarified' interpretation of contract law - the legal basis of which is that the defendant entered into a contract with the PPC to pay the penalty if he breached the conditions.

Absent an appropriate offer communicated to the driver, it is difficult to see how the clarified principles of contract law could apply.

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That is a legal hodge podge.

They refer to their letter as a Notice of Intended Enforcement/Prosecution, implying a criminal prosecution may be forthcoming.

They then refer to a "penalty fee" of £50. Elsewhere they talk of a "penalty charge" of £145 with a £95 discount for prompt payment.

Then they say that if you don't pay, they'll refer to a debt collector and may instigate County Court (aka civil) action.