Free Traffic Legal Advice

You do not have to "find your appeal" or anything. you are supposed to be able to understand exactly what the claim is about based on the Particulars of Claim (PoC). As you can see, they are woefully inadequate and fail to comply with CPR 16.4.

We'll come back to the defence after you have submitted the Acknowledgement of Service (AoS). Please follow the directions in the linked PDF document to submit the AoS and then come back for the defence and accompanying draft order.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/xvqu3bask5m0zir/money-claim-online-How-to-Acknowledge.pdf?dl=0

With an issue date of 3rd October, you have until Tuesday 22nd October to submit the AoS. There is no advantage to delaying the AoS but by submitting it, you then have until 4pm on Tuesday 5th November to submit the defence.

IN THE COUNTY COURT

Claim No: [Claim Number]

BETWEEN:

SIP Parking Limited
Claimant

- and -

[Defendant's Full Name]

Defendant

---

DEFENCE

1. The Defendant denies any liability for this claim. The allegation that the vehicle was on site in excess of the paid-for time or parked without making a valid payment is refuted.

2. There is a lack of precise detail in the Particulars of Claim (PoC) in respect of the factual and legal allegations made against the Defendant such that the PoC do not comply with CPR 16.4.

3. The Defendant is unable to plead properly to the PoC because:

(a) The contract referred to is not detailed or attached to the PoC in accordance with CPR PD 16.7.5;

(b) The PoC do not state the exact wording of the clause (or clauses) of the terms and conditions of the contract (or contracts) which is/are relied on;

(c) The PoC do not set out the reason (or reasons) why the claimant asserts the defendant has
breached the contract (or contracts);

(d) The PoC do not state with sufficient particularity exactly where the breach occurred, the exact time when the breach occurred and how long it is alleged that the vehicle was parked before the parking charge was allegedly incurred;

(e) The PoC does not adequately explain the basis for the £60 claimed as 'debt damage costs,' nor does it provide details of how this amount was calculated or justified;

(f) The PoC states that the Claimant is suing the defendant as the driver or the keeper. The claimant obviously knows whether the defendant is being sued as the driver or the keeper and should not be permitted to plead alternative causes of action.

(g) The statement of truth in the Particulars of Claim does not comply with Practice Direction 22, paragraph 2.1. The form of the statement does not include the required wording that 'the Claimant understands that proceedings for contempt of court may be brought against anyone who makes, or causes to be made, a false statement in a document verified by a statement of truth without an honest belief in its truth.' This omission renders the statement of truth invalid, and consequently, the Particulars of Claim do not comply with the Civil Procedure Rules.

4. The Defendant has attached to this defence a copy of an order made at another court which the allocating judge ought to make at this stage so that the Defendant can then know and understand the case which he/she/it faces and can then respond properly to the claim.

Statement of truth

I believe that the facts stated in this Defence are true. I understand that proceedings for contempt of court may be brought against anyone who makes, or causes to be made, a false statement in a document verified by a statement of truth without an honest belief in its truth.

Signed:


Date:

This is expected. You should download a copy of the N180DQ here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/66a8b019ce1fd0da7b592f43/N180_0724.pdf

No need to print anything. Most of the questions and boxes are fairly self explanatory. For the name of the court, put "Civil National Business Centre". It is being completed by the "defendant".

Mediation is now compulsory. However, it is only compulsory to "attend" the call. The mediator is not a judge or legally trained person. You simply off £0. If they try to suggest or persuade you to settle, ask them what their legal qualifications are and if they cannot or do not tell you, tell them you will be making a complaint as it is not their job to act as a judge or a lawyer. It will be over in less than five minutes and you will have complied with the requirement to "attend" the call.

C1, the claim is suitable for the "Small Claims Track".

D1, the claim is NOT suitable for determination without a hearing, so "NO". In the text box simply put "Given the Claimant is a firm who complete cut & paste parking case paperwork for a living, having this case heard solely on papers would appear to put the Claimant at an unfair advantage, especially as they would no doubt prefer the Defendant not to have the opportunity to expose the issues in the Claimants template submissions or speak as the only true witness to events in question."

The rest is family self explanatory. For F, put the name of your local county court. Use the Court Finder to find your local county court: https://www.gov.uk/find-court-tribunal

You can sign it by simply typing your full name in the signature box. When complete, attach it as a PDF file to a single email addressed to both dq.cnbc@justice.gov.uk and info@sipcarparks.co.uk and CC in yourself. Make sure that the claim number is in the email subject.

After sending, make sure that you receive and auto response from the CNBC.