The IAS is a kangaroo court. It is NOT independent and its adjudicators are anonymous, even though they claim to be solicitors or barristers. That is an outright lie. They have one ex-barrister who is an advisor and that is it.
The IAS decision is as expected and is not binding on you. It has no effect on anything going forwards.
The odds of you actually having to appear in court are less than 1%. Any claim issued is easily defended with our assistance and will either be struck out or discontinued.
As for debt recovery letters, you can safely ignore any of those. Debt collectors are powerless to do anything except to try and persuade the low-hanging fruit on the gullible tree to pay up out of ignorance and fear.
This whole process is designed to pick the ripe fruit off the gullible tree. There is no danger of a CCJ, even if it was one of the less than 1% that ever do reach that stage and you were unsuccessful. I will add why you cannot get a CCJ after this.
Any claim will would be in the small claims track where costs are fixed. If a claim is issued and the defence was unsuccessful, the judgment amount would be less than the claim amount because these firms add a fake £70 to their claims that most judges would never allow.
All you have to do now is ignore all the reminders and debt recovery letters. We don't need to know about those. When you receive a Letter of Claim (LoC), come back and we will provide a suitable response.
Here is the process to getting a CCJ:
Nothing we advise on here will make anyone get a CCJ.
A County Court Judgment (CCJ) does not just happen—it follows a clear legal process. If someone gets a Parking Charge Notice (PCN) from a private parking company, here's what happens step by step:
1. Parking Charge Notice (PCN) Issued• The parking company sends a letter (Notice to Keeper) demanding money.
• This is not a fine—it’s an invoice for an alleged breach of contract.
2. Opportunity to Appeal• The recipient can appeal to the parking company.
•If rejected, they may be able to appeal to POPLA (if BPA member) or IAS (if IPC member).
• If an appeal is lost or ignored, the parking company demands payment.
3. Debt Collection Letters• The parking company might send scary letters or pass the case to a debt collector.
• Debt collectors have no power—they just send letters and can be ignored.
• No CCJ happens at this stage.
4. Letter Before Claim (LBC)• If ignored for long enough, the parking company (or their solicitor) sends a Letter Before Claim (LBC).
• This is a warning that they may start a court case.
• The recipient has 30 days to reply before a claim is filed.
• No CCJ happens at this stage.
5. County Court Claim Issued• If ignored or unpaid, the parking company may file a claim with the County Court.
• The court sends a Claim Form with details of the claim and how to respond.
• The recipient has 14 days to respond (or 28 days if they acknowledge it).
• No CCJ happens at this stage.
6. Court Process• If the recipient defends the claim, a judge decides if they owe money.
• If the recipient ignores the claim, the parking company wins by default.
• No CCJ happens yet unless the recipient loses and ignores the court.
7. Judgment & Payment• If the court rules that money is owed, the recipient has 30 days to pay in full.
• If they pay within 30 days, no CCJ goes on their credit file.
• If they don’t pay within 30 days, the CCJ stays on their credit file for 6 years.
Conclusion
CCJs do not appear out of thin air. They only happen if:
• A parking company takes the case to court.
• The person loses or ignores the case.
• The person fails to pay within 30 days.
If you engage with the process (appeal, defend, or pay on time), no CCJ happens.
Finally, if you are worried about what "going to court" in a civil small claims case, it is not Rumpole of the Bailey. Have look at this short video of what to expect on the day, assuming a case like this ever gets to that point, which is about as likely as finding a hens tooth:
https://youtu.be/n93eoaxhzpU?feature=shared