Afternoon,
I have now had a response please see below, one thing to add the address they refer to as my previous we still have access to & we do not recall ever receiving this letters & also back when we parked in these premises the signs all had different wording & times etc.
We write in response to correspondence received in our office dated 31st March 2025.
We have made a record that’s you dispute this parking charge. In addition to this we have made a record of your two questions:
1. Whether the debt recovery fee is inclusive of VAT
2. Whether the Parking Charge is being pleaded as damages or as consideration for parking.
Each of the points raised in your correspondence are dealt with in turn below. We now respond to the same as follows
Prior to the issue of the parking charge, our Client applied to the DVLA for the details of the Registered Keeper of the Vehicle. Your name and address (-------- )were provided. Our Client therefore correctly issued correspondence to you at that address. Having not received payment, address verification was carried out prior to the Letter of Claim being sent. Your new address was located and as such the Letter of Claim was issued to you at the traced address.
Our client took reasonable steps to identify you and your correct address; but it is ultimately your responsibility as the vehicles registered keeper, to update the DVLA of any changes to your registered address through the use of your vehicles V5.
The parking charge was not affixed to the vehicle because our client utilises Automatic Number Plate Recognition (“ANPR”) technology on the land where the parking charge was issued in order to manage the parking. This means that cameras capable of accurately recognising the vehicle registration number of a vehicle are constantly monitoring the entrance and exit to the land. A photograph is taken of each vehicle as it enters and exits the land. Any vehicle found to have breached the terms of parking will be issued with a parking charge via the post.
When parking on private land, the contractual terms of the site are set out on the signs. You are entering a contract and agreeing to the terms by parking and staying on the site. Parking in breach of the terms as stipulated on the signage means that you are then breaking the terms of the contract. The breach in contract would make you liable for a parking charge.
The terms and conditions on the signs stated 150 minutes maximum stay, or otherwise a parking charge notice would be issued. The vehicle was recorded on the land for 329 minuets on 16th September 2019, 179 minuets on 7th October 2019 and 355 minuets on 6th March 2020, which was at all material times in excess of the maximum time permitted. As such the parking charges was issued correctly.
The Notices to Keeper were issued to you on 20th September 2019, 13th October 2019 and 11th March 2020. You were afforded the opportunity to; appeal the parking charge, transfer liability to the driver (if it was not you) or make payment. Neither a successful appeal, nor an adequate nomination were received, yet payment remains outstanding.
The Reminder Notices were issued to you upon receipt of the Notices to Keeper. This notice reiterated that payment was outstanding and confirmed that legal action may be taken and additional costs incurred if the parking charge was not paid.
In regard to the debt recovery fee of £70.00 being claimed, you would have been made aware of this through the signs available on the car parks site as previously mentioned above. This does not include any VAT. The HMRC ‘VAT Supply and Consideration manual’ (VATSC06140), which was last updated on 02 September 2020, confirmed that parking charge notices falls out of the scope of VAT. There is no requirement for a VAT invoice to be issued to you.
Further to the above, in accordance with the appeal decision made on 29th July 2020 in Britannia Parking Group Ltd v Semark-Julien [2020] EW Mis 12 (CC), it is not correct to propose this claim should be struck out as an ‘abuse of process’ due to the contractual costs claimed.
With reference to the above, this parking charge is being pleaded as a breach of contract to which damages are payable in light of the matters raised in this correspondence.
Pursuing a legally owed debt is not harassment. You may wish to seek independent legal advice in this regard. Our client pursuing this matter through the Small Claims Court is the correct course of action.
DCB Legal have been instructed as all previous attempts to resolve the matter have been unsuccessful.
You have 30 days from the date of this letter to pay the outstanding balance of £480.00. Failure to do so will result in a claim being issued against you without further notice.
What are my next steps
