Trace Debt Collection (Gatwick Pickup PCN)

Yes, tell sister to relax and take it easy. There is no route to liability. Even if they issue a County Court Claim it will be super easy to defend.

They will discontinue before any hearing (99.5% probability).

Now we wait I suppose



Edit: the image isn’t showing but I emailed them.

https://postimg.cc/BXTp3mf2

Moorside legal have replied to me with a rather brutal response. Not sure how to respond.

Please read below

We write in relation to the above matter.

 Although this Parking Charge Notice was not issued under POFA 2012 and therefore does not allow us to pursue the registered keeper for payment, we are still legally entitled to seek payment from the driver of the vehicle at the time of the incident. If you were the driver, or if you are able to identify the driver, we ask that the outstanding charge be settled or the driver details provided so we can direct further correspondence appropriately.

 
We confirm that the evidence currently held is limited to the information supplied by our client.


 By entering and parking the vehicle on our client's private land, you agreed to enter into a contract with our client and to be bound by the terms and conditions of that contract. The terms and conditions were clearly displayed in prominent places within the car park. Due to your failure to comply with the terms and conditions, our client has issued the PCN therefore if we are instructed to issue a claim the reason would be for Unpaid parking charges/breach of contract.


 Considering the evidence, we are satisfied that the PCN has been issued in line with industry standards and is compliant with the International Parking Community’s (IPC) code of practice. The signage of the car park also complies with the International Parking Community’s Code of Practice.


 Having reviewed our client’s systems, we can see no appeal was made and we must advise that all appeal avenues have now expired.


 Please be advised that the original amount of the PCN was £100.00. As outlined in the notice, a reduced amount of £60.00 would have been accepted as full and final settlement if payment had been received within 14 days from the date of issue. Unfortunately, as no payment was received within that time frame, the opportunity to pay the reduced amount has now expired. As a result of continued non-payment and additional charges, the balance has increased and now stands at £170.00.


The additional charge which has been levied on your Parking Charge of £70 is the amount set out in both the British Parking Association and International Parking Community Codes of Practice as the amount which may be added to a Parking Charge when a Parking Charge remains unpaid and when further recovery is required. Our client is a member of the International Parking Community which is a government approved Accredited Trade Association (ATA) for Private Parking. Our client adheres to the ATA’s Code of Practice. The £70 does not represent the cost of recovery but is a reasonable amount in relation to the Parking Charge amount, in order to encourage early payment of the Parking Charge without the need for debt recovery. It is a fair amount set by our client’s government-approved Accredited Trade Association Code of Practice. There are however also costs incurred by our client in relation to debt recovery services.


 Please note that we will not be addressing any further correspondence related to disputes of the same nature, as we have already provided you with a response. However, should you wish to raise a new dispute, we will investigate the matter further and respond accordingly.


 It is unclear why you would need to inspect any agreement between our client and the landowner as you are not party to that agreement, nor could it aid your dispute or any potential defence. Therefore, this will not be provided.


 We ask that you make the full payment of £170.00 within 7 days of receipt of this email.
 

 You can make payment in the following ways: 
Contact us on 0330 822 9950 (our opening times are Monday- Friday 9:00- 17:00);
portal.moorsidelegal.co.uk - Login to our portal
https://pay.moorside.legal - Quick Pay


 If you fail to respond or make payment, we may be instructed by our client to issue legal proceedings against you. This will incur further costs and fees that will be added to the outstanding balance. You may wish to seek independent legal advice. 
 

 Yours sincerely,
Moorside Legal

It's not brutal, it's boilerplate, intended to intimidate you, and legally flawed.

By entering and parking the vehicle on our client's private land, you agreed to enter into a contract with our client

- no, the driver entered into a contract, you didn't. They can't suddenly switch from "the driver" to "you" without either your admission of being the driver or by the valid use of PoFA 2012.

Just search the forum for loads of similar examples, as already advised. We will help you but you also need to help yourself.

Don't respond. Think about a defence for the county court claim which will follow.

Thank you for showing me where they were sloppy with their wording. That gives me hope. I also appreciate you actually read it too, I feel like a lot of people just skim read and don’t really care.

I have read through a few other examples on here, but it’s just that it’s my first time dealing with this and I’m just worried is all.

As sad as it is, I did punch all the details into ChatGPT. I asked it to condense its findings into probabilities of the possible outcomes. Let me know if these are accurate.

My best estimate from where you stand right now, assuming your sister keeps all contact details current and responds properly to any real court papers, is:

* 40–50%: no County Court claim is issued, or the matter goes dormant for a long period.
* 25–35%: a County Court claim is issued, but it ends before a final hearing — for example discontinuance, strike-out, or the claimant choosing not to continue.
* 12–20%: it reaches a final hearing and your sister successfully defends it.
* 5–10%: it reaches a final hearing and Times24 wins.

We can't reliably give you probabilities. We see a fraction of a % of the private parking court claims that are issued. The advice I always give is to work on the assumption that the Defendant will have to go to court. If they do, they're prepared. If they don't, great.

Its been over 30 days, nearly 40 in fact, and they’re offering me a “final opportunity” to pay the £170.

The fact they’re even offering this after the initial 30 day deadline is kinda stupid, hints that they haven’t got a case at all.

I assume I just ignore this again.




(Here’s the link in case the embed didn’t work: https://postimg.cc/VSgh8mGP)

Yes, ignore. Should they be daft enough to issue a claim, your defence can simply be the first para of their response to your LOC reply where they admit there is no route to liability. From their point of view, that was a monumentally stupid thing to say 😂

Desperation on their part.

They know that the claim is easy to defend.