Car parking fine advice

Long-shanks

Long-shanks

Well-known member
Screenshot_20200322-121624_Gallery.jpg20200322_121407.jpgApprox 18 months or so my mum received a car parking fine, i advised her to ignore it as they couldnt enforce it (think I got the info my Martin lewis site) but yesterday theyve said pay £170 or the bailiffs are coming... does she pay it or ignore it again? Any advice as always, gratefully received
 
I had something very similar from parking in Morrisons - lot of the car parks are owned by private companies. I honestly have never paid it and wont. Have not had a letter since. Cost of enforcing costs more than the £170.
 
It doesn't say the bailiffs are coming.

It says you cant dispute the charge unless they take you to court, then goes on to say should you not pay they will reccomend legal action.

I would write a letter back saying you dispute their claim and charges and look forward to clearing this up when they take you to court.

I would also look up how long they have to enforce this on you as if you haven't heard anything from the initial letter 18 months ago it may be time barred.
 
Did she violate the parking rules? Are the parking rules clearly visible? Or are you claiming the parking rules are unenforceable? I'm certainly no expert but would suspect that these are important factors.

I got a ticket at Mecca bingo about 6 months ago for being in their car park longer than 15 minutes without being a customer. I was in my cab, waiting for a pre booking to come out, who ultimately didn't show up. On top of that there were no signs to warn people of the rules ( there used to be but were removed about a year ago).
I pointed both facts out to the manager who had the ticket cancelled on the spot.
 
She parked as the bingo was closed - she wasnt aware that she would be fined.

Thanks everyone for the feedback - still no real conclusion if my mum should pay the £170 fine though
 
Long-shanks said:
She parked as the bingo was closed - she wasnt aware that she would be fined.

Thanks everyone for the feedback - still no real conclusion if my mum should pay the £170 fine though
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I rang Blackpool's trading standards about ticket I got at the airport for parking in the wrong place.

In my case, they told me that the company would have to show they had lost revenue.

In my case they didn't know my name or address so I ignored it.
 
This is nothing but an invoice.I had this go on for months when I lived down south.Do not under any circumstances reply put it in the bin.They will pass it on to another debt recovery company and you will get more letters.The lengths they go to are pathetic.However they will,stop eventually nothing but extortion.Only a court order can enforce it and send the bailiffs.
 
Csideur said:
This is nothing but an invoice.I had this go on for months when I lived down south.Do not under any circumstances reply put it in the bin.They will pass it on to another debt recovery company and you will get more letters.The lengths they go to are pathetic.However they will,stop eventually nothing but extortion.Only a court order can enforce it and send the bailiffs.
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Unless it's a council issued ticket, then you have to cough up pronto!
 
We got two of these private fines. Three and half years ago. Never paid kept ignoring them we got court papers so we filled them out and defended our case sent the papers back and never heard I thing. We just said we parked the car had to get out the car to walk over to read the signs and by the time we got back to the car to move it somebody had took a photo of the car and the number. Never paid never heard anything else like I said when we sent the papers back
 
As has been said, if it’s a private car park then it’s not “a fine”. Basically when you entered the car park you entered into a contract. So they have to sue you through the county court.

You will get a lot of scary letters. Escalating each time. Settle now and it’s £80; settle in two weeks and it’s £100. Then escalating to mentions of bailiffs etc.

But to get their money they have to issue proceedings in the county court. That will cost them more money so they are reluctant to do it.

If they do then you have to file a defence. Whether you have one depends on the circumstances. So I’m afraid I can’t help you with that.

The reality is they will badger and scare you. If you want a quiet life then pay up. If you are in transit and don’t really care, then you might bin it. I wouldn’t normally recommend it.

As far as I can work out their business model is a numbers game. People will pay more than their fixed costs. Occasionally they might want to make an example and push the publicity to encourage the others.

I’ve argued them. I’ve also paid up when I can’t be arsed.
Your choice really.
 
If it is a registered company then they are within their rights to chase the debt until it is settled. I’m assuming you have researched this company to see if they are bonafide?
 
I had this go on for about 6 months ,i ignored every single letter about a dozen or so.
18 mnths in think they've got fed up.
No doubt they will try again at some point. Time will tell
 
Do your research on both the parking company and the bailiffs to gauge how far they are likely to take it. There is lots of info out there but it will take loads of time going through it all.

I’ve had three which I ignored, didn’t accept liability or tell them who had been driving and they all gave up after lots of threatening letters and offers of discounts if paid immediately over 12-18 months.
 
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