Good evening, I just want to say thank you for any help that may be offered. I've done some initial research but still have a few questions and seek some advice if possible.
The Situation: I've come home to find a letter from DCB Legal Ltd and after some initial research online it appears that I may have received a formal "Letter of Claim" from them (DCB Legal Ltd) acting on behalf of Smart Parking Ltd.
Car History:I am the Registered Keeper of a vehicle that I purchased sometime in November/December 2024 which has an additional driver. Before that, I was the registered keeper of another car that I had for a few years that also had an additional driver. However, from what I can tell, the letter does not state which vehicle is being discussed.
1. The EventDate: (I'm guessing some time 3-5 years ago but genuinely do not remember parking there).
Location: Waldorf Astoria Edinburgh (The Caledonian).
Reason: The letter states "Outstanding Parking Charge (PC)-711200576728SMP-Waldorf Astoria; Edinburgh - £170.00" but gives no specific contravention details.
Driver Identity: Due to the significant passage of time, I have absolutely no memory of this event. I do not know who the driver was on that day, and I have no recollection of receiving the original PCN and can't seem to figure out which vehicle they are referring to.
2. The Correspondence: I have uploaded a redacted copy of what may be a "Letter of Claim" here:
https://ibb.co/F4wg22Pzhttps://ibb.co/jPZ9RHk53. From my initial research, it appears that the Location of the parking is Rutland Street. Here is the Google Street View of the location:
https://ibb.co/DHr4gm9yhttps://tinyurl.com/Astoria-Parking (live Google Maps)
I understand that as this occurred in Scotland, the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 (POFA) does not apply, and the keeper liability provisions of the Transport (Scotland) Act 2019 have not been commenced. Prior to finding this forum and having a quick read, my intention was to:
Contact the Landowner and send a complaint to the General Manager of the Waldorf Astoria (Nitin Ramtri) to request cancellation but we may be past this point.
Submit a Subject Access Request (SAR) to Smart Parking to obtain the original evidence (photos/letters) as I have no data on this to determine what's going on and when.
Reply to DCB Legal and send a robust response denying liability as the Keeper and putting them to strict proof of the driver's identity. I have seen some of the templates advised to use in other DBL threads but wasn't quite sure if an exact copy and paste of one would be sufficient.
My Questions:1. Does my lack of memory regarding the driver strengthen my position in a Scottish Simple Procedure claim, provided I stick to "I am the Keeper, put the Pursuer to strict proof"?
2. Is there any specific wording I should add to my response to DCB Legal to highlight the "Scottish Anomaly" regarding keeper liability?
3. I have read some of the Newbies thread and understand the "ignore debt collectors / reply to solicitors" rule but I couldn't quite tell if I should treat this as a formal Letter of Claim as there were a lot of "may"'s contained within the letter, so it reads as though they are still debating whether to refer this to solicitors in Scotland?
4. Should I go to the Astoria parking if I get the chance and determine if there's any signage? Given that I have no recollection of parking there, if the event itself is several years old, would this be of any use?
Any advice is appreciated.
