APCOA - Heathrow T4 - Use of Drop Off Zone without making a valid payment

Hi folks, this PCN arrived in the post from APCOA.
It is for "Use of Drop Off Zone without making a valid payment" at Heathrow Terminal 4.
Are there any grounds for appeal?
I have seen templates for appealing on the forum previously, not sure of they are relevant in this exact circumstance? if so, can somebody can post a link to the template.
The discount period expires on the 11th August (in 3 days) so any quick advice would be greatly appreciated.
Apologies for the late notice, I was away on hols and only just got back.

Thanks.

If you do a search on here on airport you will see that they are covered by bylaws, and therefore not relevant land for POFA purposes and the parking co have no route to transfer liability.  In your case, it being a hire car adds a further layer of complication - presumably there were no accompanying documents with the NTH?  In general APCOA don't litigate, and often roll over if a decent appeal is put before them.  You have 2 points:

1.  Airport so not relevant land and there is no route via POFA for transfer of liability
2.  Not withstanding 1, the vehicle was on hire, and they have not supplied the required paperwork to transfer liability, so even if 1 didn't apply, they would not be able to hold the hirer liable.

Just make sure in any appeal you do not identify the driver, even incidentally by saying 'I did'!

@RichardW
Thanks for the advice.
I have just drafted a template using one sourced from another post and your advice.
Does this seem to cover it?

I am appealing this Parking Charge Notice in the capacity in which APCOA has purported to pursue me, without any admission as to who was driving the vehicle on the date in question.

1. Heathrow Airport is not "relevant land" - there is no statutory route to keeper (or hirer) liability

APCOA will be well aware that Heathrow Airport operates under statutory byelaws made under the Airports Act 1986 and is not "relevant land" for the purposes of Schedule 4 of the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012. Where land is excluded from Schedule 4 in this way, there is no statutory mechanism to transfer liability from the driver to the registered keeper, and, by extension, no mechanism to transfer liability onward from the keeper to a hirer under paragraph 14 either, since that provision only operates within a valid Schedule 4 scheme.

If Heathrow Airport wished to hold owners, keepers, or hirers liable, that would be a matter for the landowner acting under the airport byelaws, not for APCOA, which is not the landowner, has not pleaded any byelaw contravention, and has instead framed this charge purely as a contractual breach by the driver. APCOA's "parking charge" is not a penalty payable to a public authority; it is a sum retained for APCOA's own commercial benefit, further confirming this is a contract law claim against the driver alone, with no keeper or hirer liability provisions available to it in law.

2. In any event, no valid transfer of liability under the hire provisions

Without prejudice to point 1 above, and notwithstanding that POFA does not apply to this site at all, I note that the registered keeper of this vehicle is Arval UK Limited, not myself. Paragraph 14 of Schedule 4 only permits liability to move from a hire company to a hirer where the hire company has, within the prescribed period, supplied the creditor with a copy of the hire agreement and a statement signed by the hirer accepting liability. No hire agreement or hirer's statement has been supplied to APCOA. In the absence of this, APCOA has no mechanism even setting point 1 aside entirely, by which liability could ever pass from Arval UK Limited to any hirer.

Conclusion

The registered keeper cannot be presumed or inferred to be the driver, and liability cannot be pursued via a strained interpretation of agency law. APCOA's Notice can only ever have bound the driver, and, for the reasons above, has no lawful basis to bind either the registered keeper or any hirer of this vehicle on this site. APCOA has no realistic prospect of success at POPLA. I invite APCOA to save both parties the wasted time of a POPLA appeal and cancel this Parking Charge Notice now.

2. In any event, no valid transfer of liability under the hire provisions

Without prejudice to point 1 above, and notwithstanding that POFA does not apply to this site at all, I note that the registered keeper of this vehicle is Arval UK Limited, not myself. Paragraph 14 of Schedule 4 only permits liability to move from a hire company to a hirer where the hire company has, within the prescribed period, supplied the creditor with a copy of the hire agreement and a statement signed by the hirer accepting liability. No hire agreement or hirer's statement has been supplied to APCOA. In the absence of this, APCOA has no mechanism even setting point 1 aside entirely, by which liability could ever pass from Arval UK Limited to any hirer.

The point here should be that APCOA are required to send the documents(*) with the NTH, regardless of whether or not they were supplied by the hire co.

* - confirmation that from hire company that the vehicle was hired, copy of hire agreement, a copy of statement of liability signed by hirer, a copy of the original NtK

Rest looks good.

Hi @RichardW,
Apcoa accepted the appeal. Thanks for your help

We refer to your recent correspondence relating to Parking Charge HF20339638.
We have carefully reviewed your appeal, taking into consideration the points you have raised. On this
occasion, we have decided to cancel this Parking Charge.
The Heathrow Terminal Drop-Off Zone operates within a chargeable area. A charge of £7.00 applies for
each visit.
Payment must be made online or via the automated telephone service by midnight on the day following
the visit. Payments may also be made in advance, with prepaid credit remaining valid for 12 months. An
Autopay option is also available.
The site is monitored using ANPR cameras, which record vehicle registrations on entry and exit.
Payments must therefore be made using the correct vehicle registration number.
Failure to make a valid payment in accordance with the terms and conditions may result in a Parking
Charge being issued.
As this Parking Charge has been cancelled, no further action is required.