3. Fixed Charge Notice from Napier Parking - Sleaford Town Centre
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Fixed Charge Notice from Napier Parking - Sleaford Town Centre
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Hi all,
A Fixed Charge Notice has been received for £100 from Napier Parking (to be reduced to £60 if paid within 14 days). The driver entered the car park and left 15mins later waiting for their daughter to finish an exam. The incident was recorded by ANPR cameras.

Having read on MSE forums and, a generic template appeal was sent requesting evidence held, grace periods etc but the appeal has been dismissed - they answered questions relating to the evidence and signage, but remained silent on the grace period.

Seems that £100 or even £60 is disproportionate to the losses Napier have incurred as a result of the stay in the car park.

Is this worth fighting?
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Re: Fixed Charge Notice from Napier Parking - Sleaford Town Centre
« Reply #1 on: »
We need to see the back of the notice. Photos of the signs at the site would also be useful.

Regarding your point around the charge being disproportionate to any losses, they are not claiming for losses. Their claim is based on the argument that the driver entered a contract whereby he agreed to pay £100.
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Re: Fixed Charge Notice from Napier Parking - Sleaford Town Centre
« Reply #2 on: »
Full FCN attached. Will upload the evidence provided by Napier including signage if needed

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Re: Fixed Charge Notice from Napier Parking - Sleaford Town Centre
« Reply #3 on: »
The signage will be useful.
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Re: Fixed Charge Notice from Napier Parking - Sleaford Town Centre
« Reply #4 on: »
A "Fixed Charge Notice"... interesting terminology for a private parking charge notice.

Interestingly, one of the clauses in the upcoming Private Parking (Code of Practice) Act 2019 that is not changing is the following:

Quote
Annex E: Terminology in parking operator/debt recovery agent communication

E.1 General

"The terminology used in a notice of parking charge must be clear, concisely conveying to the reader what they are being asked to pay, why, how to pay, the consequences of not paying, and how to appeal against the charge, but must not misrepresent to the reader that the parking charge arises from the exercise of the statutory powers of the police or any other public authority. Therefore the notice of parking charge must not use terms which imply that parking is being managed, controlled and enforced under statutory authority, nor pressurise the reader such that they do not consider all their options or make a decision that they might not otherwise have made.

E.2 Wording used in operator notices

Operators must not use the following terms:

* offence, offender, offending vehicle
* order for recovery
* Notice of Intended Prosecution
* illegal parking
* crime
* violation
* (anything impersonating a council PCN)
* “Fixed” charge or anything impersonating a “NIP” (Police wording);
* fine or penalty
* Bailiff
* Penalty Charge Notice

This is not an exhaustive list.

Operators must also not use terminology likely to be read as a Penalty Charge Notice (e.g. Notice to Owner, Charge Certificate, Order for Recovery) or a Notice of Intended Prosecution (e.g. fixed charge)."

I would think that "Fixed Charge Notice" sails pretty close to the wind with regards to the above, non-exhaustive list.
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Never argue with stupid people. They will drag you down to their level and then beat you with experience” - Mark Twain
Re: Fixed Charge Notice from Napier Parking - Sleaford Town Centre
« Reply #5 on: »
pdf response to appeal attached with signage evidence provided by Napier (although dated 22nd Feb despite alleged 'offence' on 17th April). They haven't acknowledged the request for details of grace period.

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Re: Fixed Charge Notice from Napier Parking - Sleaford Town Centre
« Reply #6 on: »
From the original post it's not entirely clear: is there a reason the driver did not pay for their stay in the car park?
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Re: Fixed Charge Notice from Napier Parking - Sleaford Town Centre
« Reply #7 on: »
Would guess it was only intended to be a quick pick up (ended up being a 15 min stay). The street in question is narrow and a dead end so opportunity to turn can be tricky hence using the in and out of the car park.
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Re: Fixed Charge Notice from Napier Parking - Sleaford Town Centre
« Reply #8 on: »
Hi, thank you for advice thus far. Is there any opinion on whether this is worth fighting based upon the screenshots (i.e. wording of 'fixed charge') or is it better to just pay the £60 (2 days until fee goes up)?

They state their internal appeals process is over so is it worth sending anything further to Napier or would any appeal (if considered a fair chance of success) need to go through the IAS?
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Re: Fixed Charge Notice from Napier Parking - Sleaford Town Centre
« Reply #9 on: »
Quote from: frostyjack27 on June 03, 2024, 05:43:05 pm
Would guess it was only intended to be a quick pick up (ended up being a 15 min stay). The street in question is narrow and a dead end so opportunity to turn can be tricky hence using the in and out of the car park.
But why did it take 15 minutes to pop in and out of the car park if it only did so intending to “turn” due to the narrow confines of the dead end street?

Personally, I am loath to pay a penny to the scamming ex-clampers in most situations. However, you have not provided enough evidence of their behaviour being outside the scope of their remit.

The NtK appears to be compliant with the requirements of PoFA to be able to hold the keeper liable if the driver remains unidentified. The 15 minute stay has not been explained other than as a parking event. You have not explained any other extenuating circumstances that can be explored.

You have to decide whether you think it is worth the £40 bribe discount or that the FCN is is so unjust that it is worth fighting it all the way up to a county court claim. It may never get that far.

The PPC could decide that it is worth threatening the keeper with DRAs or even a claim in the hope that it will be enough to scare the keeper into paying the, by then, inflated charge, but may then just give up as not worth it to pursue further. Who knows?

It may be worth seeing what other regulars think.
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Never argue with stupid people. They will drag you down to their level and then beat you with experience” - Mark Twain
Re: Fixed Charge Notice from Napier Parking - Sleaford Town Centre
« Reply #10 on: »
I'm struggling to see any particularly strong grounds of appeal so far. The driver spent 15 minutes in a pay and display car park, seemingly had the opportunity to pay, but did not. From what we've seen, the signage looks pretty clear and prominent. The notice Napier have subsequently issued looks compliant with PoFA such that they can recover the charge from the registered keeper.

As b789 says, you can roll the dice if you want and see if they take the matter to court - they have 6 years from the date of the parking event to do so, but it's your money so that's your call to make.

Like b789, I'm no fan of these companies, but one could argue this is exactly the sort of incident that leads to them being employed...
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  3. Fixed Charge Notice from Napier Parking - Sleaford Town Centre