Free Traffic Legal Advice

Welcome John. The first thing you may want to do is redact your name and address above. Secondly, can you post a picture of the original Notice to Keeper (NtK) you received from OPC. Both sides.

Once we can review the NtK, we can advise on the next steps to take.

Is this the company: Observices Parking Consultancy Ltd?

If so, they are BPA members. If they have not accepted your appeal and not provided a POPLA code then we have several avenues we can take.

I have not dealt with this company before and I certainly have not seen anything to suggest they are litigious.

Just posting this here as I refuse to keep downloaded docs from others. I just wish people would use Imgur to host their images.





I don't see any mention in the NtK of an appeal deadline. The BPA/IPC Private Parking Single Code of Practice (PPSCoP) states the following in section 8.1.2:

8.1.2.
The parking operator must ensure that a notice informs the recipient:
a) of the contact details of the parking operator (e.g. telephone number, email address, website) and of those to which appeals should be made (where different);
b) the parking charge was incurred on private land;
c) of the process by which the recipient may appeal against the parking charge;
d) that in the event of the recipient appealing the parking charge and that appeal being rejected, they have a further right of appeal to the Appeals Service but that the discounted rate no longer applies should they appeal to an Appeals service;
e) that if the recipient appeals within 28 days of receiving the parking charge, the right to pay at the rate applicable when the appeal was made must stand for a further 14 days from the date (subject to 8.1.2d) they receive
notification that their appeal has been rejected;

I don't see that as having been complied with.

As for the deadlines for submitting an appeal, the PPSCoP goes on to state:

NOTE 1: Where the 14 days to pay was at the reduced rate a further 14 days should be offered to make payment at the full rate.
NOTE 2: A notice sent by post is to be presumed, unless the contrary is proved, to have been delivered on the second working day after the day on which it is posted; and for this purpose, “working day” means any day other than a Saturday, Sunday or a public holiday in England and Wales. Therefore, parking operators must retain a record of the date of posting of a notice, not simply of that notice having been generated (e.g. the date that any third-party Mail Consolidator actually put it in the postal system.)

f) of the operator’s complaints procedure in accordance with Clause 11; and
g) if payment is made, they cannot appeal.

SO, if the alleged contravention took place on Thursday 14th November 2024 and the PCN was "issued" on Tuesday 21st November 2024, then it was deemed given on Monday 25th November 2024. Point 'e' above states quite clearly that "...that if the recipient appeals within 28 days of receiving the parking charge, the right to pay at the rate applicable when the appeal was made must stand for a further 14 days from the date (subject to 8.1.2d) they receive notification that their appeal has been rejected".

So, the Keeper has 28 days from the date the PCN is "received" which is the same as "given". 28 days from the date of receipt (deemed, not actual) was Monday 23rd December 2024.

This response from the intellectually challenged employees at this rogue operator said:

"Please be advised, the issue date of PPC 572323 was the 21/11/2024.  Your appeal was sent on 19/12/2024, therefore as previously stated the appeal was received out of the required ‘within 28 days from issue date’ to appeal.  Not from when the Private Parking Charge was received."

So, as you can see, you are dealing with utter morons and you need to make a formal complaint to the operator pointing out their utter incompetence and demanding that they accept that your appeal was submitted within the timescales as required in the PPSCoP. If they do not respond or accept your appeal, you can then escalate it to the BPA.

Would you like a suitable formal letter of complaint to submit to the operator?

Observices Parking Consultancy Ltd
PO Box 956
St Albans
AL1 9HJ

By email: enquiries@observices.co.uk

[Date]

Subject: Formal Complaint Regarding Mishandling of Appeal for PCN [INSERT PCN NUMBER]

To the Complaints Department,

I am writing as the Registered Keeper to submit a formal complaint regarding the handling of my appeal for Private Parking Charge Notice (PCN) [INSERT PCN NUMBER]. Your rejection of my appeal is based on a fundamental misunderstanding of the BPA/IPC Private Parking Single Code of Practice (PPSCoP) and the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 (PoFA).

Your failure to recognise that my appeal was submitted within the prescribed 28-day timeframe, combined with your refusal to issue a POPLA code, demonstrates a breach of the regulations you are required to follow as a BPA member. I will outline your specific failings below.

Assessment of Your Procedural Errors

There is no mention in the NtK of an appeal deadline. The BPA/IPC Private Parking Single Code of Practice (PPSCoP) states the following in section 8.1.2:

8.1.2.

The parking operator must ensure that a notice informs the recipient:

a) of the contact details of the parking operator (e.g., telephone number, email address, website) and of those to which appeals should be made (where different);

b) the parking charge was incurred on private land;

c) of the process by which the recipient may appeal against the parking charge;

d) that in the event of the recipient appealing the parking charge and that appeal being rejected, they have a further right of appeal to the Appeals Service but that the discounted rate no longer applies should they appeal to an Appeals service;

e) that if the recipient appeals within 28 days of receiving the parking charge, the right to pay at the rate applicable when the appeal was made must stand for a further 14 days from the date (subject to 8.1.2d) they receive notification that their appeal has been rejected.

I don't see any of that as having been complied with.

As for the deadlines for submitting an appeal, the PPSCoP goes on to state:

"NOTE 1: Where the 14 days to pay was at the reduced rate a further 14 days should be offered to make payment at the full rate.

NOTE 2: A notice sent by post is to be presumed, unless the contrary is proved, to have been delivered on the second working day after the day on which it is posted; and for this purpose, “working day” means any day other than a Saturday, Sunday or a public holiday in England and Wales. Therefore, parking operators must retain a record of the date of posting of a notice, not simply of that notice having been generated (e.g., the date that any third-party Mail Consolidator actually put it in the postal system.)

f) of the operator’s complaints procedure in accordance with Clause 11; and

g) if payment is made, they cannot appeal."

It does not take much intellectual effort to work out that if the alleged contravention took place on Thursday 14th November 2024 and the PCN was "issued" on Thursday 21st November 2024, then it was deemed "given" (legal jargon meaning "received") on Monday 25th November 2024. Sub paragraph (e) in section 8.1.2 of the PPSCoP clearly states that:

"...that if the recipient appeals within 28 days of receiving the parking charge, the right to pay at the rate applicable when the appeal was made must stand for a further 14 days from the date (subject to 8.1.2d) they receive notification that their appeal has been rejected".

In order not to tax your minds too much, what that means is that the Keeper has 28 days from the date the PCN is "received", which is the same as "given". Therefore, 28 days from the date of "receipt" was Monday 23rd December 2024.

This response from an obviously intellectually challenged employee handling appeals at your company wrote:

"Please be advised, the issue date of PPC 572323 was the 21/11/2024. Your appeal was sent on 19/12/2024, therefore as previously stated the appeal was received out of the required ‘within 28 days from issue date’ to appeal. Not from when the Private Parking Charge was received."

This is blatantly wrong and highlights the gross incompetent or deliberately mendacious behaviour of your employee.

Transparency and Compliance Failings

1. Failure to Display Registered Address

Your website does not display your registered address, and your Privacy Policy includes a blank postal address. This is a breach of:

• The Companies (Trading Disclosures) Regulations 2008, which require companies to display their registered name and office address on websites and correspondence.

• Section 8.1.2(a) of the PPSCoP, which requires operators to provide clear contact details.

2. Non-Compliant Privacy Policy (DPO Contact Details)

Your Privacy Policy fails to provide a postal address for your Data Protection Officer (DPO), instead listing only an email address and phone number. This violates:

• Articles 13 and 14 of the UK General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which require full DPO contact details, including a postal address.

These omissions undermine transparency and accountability, making it harder for individuals to contact you regarding appeals or data protection concerns.

Resolution Required

I demand that you:

• Cancel the PCN immediately, acknowledging the appeal was submitted on time or

• Provide a POPLA code if you refuse to cancel the PCN, in line with BPA requirements.

• Immediate publication of your registered address and correction of your Privacy Policy to include a proper postal address for your DPO.

If I do not receive a satisfactory response within 14 days, I will escalate this matter to the British Parking Association (BPA), Companies House, and the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) as appropriate.

Sincerely,

[Your Full Name]
[Your Address]
[Your Email Address]

Keep this screenshot of their Privacy Policy t0 use in your complaint to the ICO:

Just received from OPC:

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Private Parking Charge:     XXXXX
Issue date:                 21/11/2024
Vehicle registration:       XXXXXX
Location:                   St Johns Retail Park, Wolverhampton
Reason for issue:           overstayed the maximum time allowed by the terms & condition

Dear Mr XXXXX,

We write further to your email dated 24/01/2025, the contents of which have been noted.

After reviewing your appeal, although all requirements have been met by OPC, we have, as a gesture of good will, cancelled PPC XXXXXX, on this occasion.

Please be advised, parking at St Johns Retail Park, Wolverhampton states on the signage throughout the retail park there is a maximum stay of 2 hours.  There is also a telephone number, on the signage that can be used at the time, in any unforeseen circumstances, causing an overstay.  This will prevent any further private parking charges being issued to you.

 
Yours sincerely,
Appeals Department
OPC
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Thank you very much for your help, I assume to make them more work, I should reply thanking them for their kind allowance but also ask if they are going to answer my other points of complaint, update their website privacy policy etc etc.

I'm happy to expend some effort to help them become compliant / be annoying

Thank you again @b789!

Personally, I'd give them hell if they have not addressed all the points in the formal complaint. You can raise it to their ATA and also the DVLA if necessary.