Free Traffic Legal Advice

Show the back of the Notice to Keeper (NtK).

7 minutes to drive in, find a space, exit the car, find and read terms and conditions, decide you don’t want to accept the contract on offer, go back to your car and exit the car park takes more than 5 minutes.

I would be appealing as keeper saying the driver arrived at the car park, located the Ts&Cs, read and digested them and decided they didn’t want to be bound by them so left the car park immediately

As no contract was entered into the pcn must be cancelled

7 minutes to drive in, find a space, exit the car, find and read terms and conditions, decide you don’t want to accept the contract on offer, go back to your car and exit the car park takes more than 5 minutes.

I would be appealing as keeper saying the driver arrived at the car park, located the Ts&Cs, read and digested them and decided they didn’t want to be bound by them so left the car park immediately

As no contract was entered into the pcn must be cancelled

Unless the car park has more than 500 spaces, the consideration period won't be more than 5 minutes. It is still an arguable point at court if it were ever to get that far (unlikely).

A successful initial appeal to the operator is as rare as hens teeth.

ParkingEye’s reply is just a generic template trying to get you to name the driver, which you’re not required to do. Unless there’s a clear tactical reason for naming the driver (and in this case there isn’t), it’s advised not to, especially when their NtK isn’t PoFA compliant.

Here’s a short follow-up you can send to keep the pressure on and move things towards either a cancellation or a POPLA code:

Subject: Re: PCN Ref [Insert Reference Number] – Response to Appeal Holding Letter

Dear Sir or Madam,

Thank you for your letter dated [insert date of ParkingEye's letter].

For the avoidance of doubt, I am the registered keeper of the vehicle, and I am under no legal obligation to name the driver. Furthermore, you have not addressed the substantive grounds of my appeal, which included:

Your Notice to Keeper fails to comply with the mandatory wording required by Paragraph 9(2)(e)(i) of Schedule 4 to the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012. It does not include a statement inviting the keeper to pay the unpaid parking charge, which is a statutory requirement for keeper liability to arise.

You are put to strict proof that you hold a valid and current contract with a party with sufficient interest in the land (i.e. the landowner) that authorises you to issue and pursue parking charges at this location. Given that the Poole Quay Hotel has been closed for some time, there is serious doubt as to whether any such contract remains enforceable or even exists.

As your Notice to Keeper is not PoFA-compliant, you cannot invoke keeper liability, and therefore, this charge has no basis in law against me as the registered keeper. Please either cancel the charge or issue a POPLA code so I may escalate the matter.

Yours faithfully,

[Full Name]
Registered Keeper

@b789  I've just received a reply to your above draft, having added that due to sudden illness, no-one actually left the vehicle, and we therefore left after 7 minutes.

Their following reply (below) doesn't address the question about their legal right to enforce parking on this land, since the closure of the hotel, whilst saying this is the final shot at their internal appeal procedure. Is this worth pursuing, or am I as well just to pay the currently discounted rip off?:-

"15 May 2025Reference: Parking Charge Notice - 188444/090003POPLA Ref: 
Dear Sir / Madam, Thank you for your appeal in relation to the Parking Charge incurred on 27 March 2025 at 15:11, at Poole Quay Hotel (1) car park.We  have  reviewed  the  details  outlined  in  your  appeal,  but  we  are  not  in  receipt  of sufficient  evidence  to  confirm  that  the  terms  and  conditions  were  not  breached.  Our records confirm that no parking was purchased on the date of the parking event, despite there being payment methods available. We are writing to advise you that your recent appeal has been unsuccessful and that you have now reached the end of our internal appeals procedure. If  you  wish  to  have  your  case  independently  assessed,  please  be  advised,  there  is  an independent appeals service (POPLA) which is available to motorists who have had an appeal rejected by a British Parking Association Approved Operator. Contact information and further information can be found enclosed. See also www.popla.co.uk By law we are also required to inform you that Ombudsman Services (www.ombudsman-services.org/) provides an alternative dispute resolution service that would be competent to deal with your appeal. However, we have not chosen to participate in their alternative dispute  resolution  service.  As  such  should  you  wish  to  appeal  then  you  must  do  so  to POPLA, as explained above.Please  note,  if  the  Parking  Charge  was  issued  in  Scotland/Northern  Ireland,  only  the driver can appeal to POPLA (Parking on Private Land Appeals). As a gesture of goodwill, we have extended the discount period for a further 14 days from the date of this correspondence. If you appeal to POPLA, you will not be able to pay the discounted amount in settlement of the Parking Charge, and the full value of the charge will  be  outstanding.  In  addition,  if  your  appeal  to  POPLA  is  unsuccessful,  you  will  no longer be able to pay the discounted amount and the full value of the charge will be due.A  payment  can  be  made  by  telephoning  0330  555  4444,  by  visiting www.parkingeye.co.uk/payments  or  alternatively  by  posting  a  cheque/postal  order  to Parkingeye Ltd, PO Box  117, Blyth, NE24 9EJ. Please ensure you write your reference number on the reverse of any cheque/postal order so the payment can be allocated. If  you  have  received  this  correspondence  via  email,  please  allow  24  hours  for  our systems  to  reflect  the  discounted  value  before  making  a  payment  via  our  automated payment line or website."

Thanks for reading.

If all you're interested in is the "mugs discount", then pay it.