Free Traffic Legal Advice

Ah, “mugs” discount. Good job you didn’t fall for that one.

Never identify the driver. Only the driver can be liable and VCS have no idea who that is unless the keeper tells them.

Appeal with the following for each PCN, verbatim:

I am the registered keeper. VCS cannot hold a registered keeper liable for any alleged contravention on land that is under statutory control. As a matter of fact and law, VCS will be well aware that they cannot use the PoFA provisions because BRISTOL Airport is not 'relevant land'.

If Bristol Airports landowners wanted to hold owners or keepers liable under Airport Byelaws, that would be within the landowner's gift and another matter entirely. However, not only is that not pleaded, it is also not legally possible because VCS is not the Airport owner and your 'parking charge' is not and never attempts to be a penalty. It is created for VCS’s own profit (as opposed to a byelaws penalty that goes to the public purse) and VCS has relied on contract law allegations of breach against the driver only.

The registered keeper cannot be presumed or inferred to have been the driver, nor pursued under some twisted interpretation of the law of agency. Your NTK can only hold the driver liable. So you are urged to save us both a complete waste of time and cancel the PCN.

For clarity, you'll need to submit a separate appeal for each.

VCS can be a stubborn bunch, so you may be in it for the long haul.

Respond with the following:

Dear Sir/Madam,

Your latest response does little more than confirm your ongoing reliance on the absurd "assumption" that I, as the registered keeper, was the driver. I’m not sure whether to be astonished or amused by this continued strategy, especially considering your firm’s humiliating thrashing in VCS v Edward (2023) [H0KF6C9C] — a claim which has now become persuasive case law. It seems VCS has learned nothing from that ruling, which confirmed that assumptions, without evidence, are worthless in court.

Let me make this clear: it is not my responsibility to disprove your assumptions. The burden of proof is entirely on VCS to provide evidence that I was the driver. As it stands, you have none. If VCS are so confident in their flawed assumption, I invite VCS to put their money where their mouth is and take this to court. It will be interesting to see how far this ridiculous argument gets you — particularly when your own firm’s failed appeal serves as a warning of what happens when you pursue spurious claims based on assumptions.

If you do not cancel this PCN, I am more than prepared to see it through to the inevitable conclusion. It would be an amusing exercise to watch this baseless claim fall apart under scrutiny.

Yours faithfully,

[Your Name]
Registered Keeper

Good morning,

Thank you for your advice to date. I have today received the below email from VCS in respect of the CNs, further to the response which I emailed to them, following your advice above on 2nd October. Am I right in thinking that there is no point in appealing to IAS (as per the option below) as from what I have read, this will not be successful? Is it worth responding to them further at this point or waiting to see if they issue debt recovery action, as per the below threat?

Many thanks
-----------------------------

Dear Mr x,
Re: Parking Charge Notice Number x - Vehicle: x
Site: Bristol Airport Post Code: BS48 3DY
Contravention Date: x
We refer to your appeal in respect of the above Charge Notice (CN) received on x.
Having considered the points you have raised and reviewed our records, we are unable to accept your appeal. Our main reason(s) for this decision are as follows:
The signs at the entrance to Bristol Airport and the access roads within, clearly state "No Stopping", giving clear notice that the land is private property and that a Charge of £100 will be levied if vehicles do stop. The above detailed vehicle stopped in a zone where stopping is prohibited and the driver became liable to pay that Charge.
In your appeal you state you were not the driver when your vehicle was seen to be stopped on the access road.
You state that our Notice is not compliant with the Protection Of Freedoms Act (POFA) 2012 on the Notice issued to you; however we have not cited POFA 2012 nor stated that you are liable for the Charge as the vehicle keeper.
It is important we highlight that we will continue to pursue this matter on the reasonable assumption that you were the driver of the vehicle on the date in question until information/evidence to the contrary is provided.
A review of our CCTV evidence has confirmed that on the date in question, your vehicle stopped for an unreasonable amount of time on the access road where restrictions apply.
We note your comment concerning the use of byelaws at the Airport; as already stated the signs at the entrance to the airport clearly identify the roads as private property and byelaws are not currently in use.
As members of the International Parking Community's (IPC) Accredited Operator Scheme, it is necessary for us to evidence to the IPC that we have relevant authority to undertake parking management at the site concerned and that our signs at that location are compliant in setting out the relevant terms and conditions of use. We will only answer pertinent points at this stage.

There are over 80 high profile signs advising drivers not to stop and warning that if a driver does stop, a charge of £100 is payable. The signs exceed recognised industry standards, with some as large as 2m by 1.1m (6ft 6in by 3ft 7in) which clearly state "No Stopping" alongside the nationally recognised Highway Code symbol for a Clearway (No Stopping). Furthermore, the signage on the approach road is reflective and positioned to face oncoming vehicles and the text size used is relative to the average approach speed of a vehicle in relation to the speed limit in force at that location.
We have fully reviewed this case and we are satisfied that the Charge Notice was correctly issued. We are unable to accept the mitigating circumstances raised in your representations, your appeal is therefore rejected and the Charge will stand; photographic evidence which supports this can be viewed at www.myparkingcharge.co.uk.
What you should do next - Either:
1. Pay the Charge Notice (CN): In order to settle the Charge, the payment of £60 to reach us by 23/10/2024 or £100 to reach us by 06/11/2024 must be made. Failure to pay this charge within the stated times, may result in Debt Recovery Action being taken and further costs up to an additional £70 being incurred. Payments can be made
online at www.myparkingcharge.co.uk by following the links for "Pay Now", or over the phone by calling
0845 226 9138 by using a valid Credit or Debit Card.
OR:
2. Appeal to the Independent Appeals Services (IAS): If you believe this decision is incorrect, you are entitled to appeal to the IAS. In order to appeal, the IAS will need the following information (which is also contained in the subject header of this correspondence).
Notice Serial No: x Vehicle Registration Mark: x
Appeals must be submitted to the IAS within 28 days of the date of this correspondence. Please visit www.theias.org
for full details on how to submit an appeal online.
It is important you note that if you do make an appeal to the IAS, the reduced charge offered above will no longer
apply. You should also be aware that if a payment is made prior to an appeal being made to, or adjudicated by, the
IAS AND this is accepted as Full and Final settlement against the CN, the appeal will automatically be dismissed and
the matter will be deemed closed. Should you appeal to the IAS and it is unsuccessful, the full amount outstanding
(£100.00) will become payable within 14 days of the date the IAS decision is notified to you. Failure to pay this sum
in the 14 day period will result in debt recovery costs of up to £70.00 being added to the outstanding balance.
It is important we also highlight that no further appeals will be accepted at this office; any such appeal must be
made to the IAS.
Please also note that further costs may be incurred should it be necessary for us to subsequently recover any
outstanding charge using further debt recovery and/or court action.

Yours sincerely

Appeals Administration Team
CENTRAL PROCESSING OFFICE

The (very  ) few times I have seen successful IAS appeals, they have been on slam-dunk PoFA points like this, so might be worth a punt if the OP fancies it.

VCS are a litigous bunch so a claim is fairly likely I'd say.

Another point, if you move house before the 6 years for them to make a claim have expired, be sure to write to VCS and inform them of your new address for service.

Thank you, very useful advice.