Parking charge notice - issued after 14 days

[Repeat]

I’ve today received a Parking Charge Notice for parking without payment for 12 minutes in an NCP operated car park. Evidence is from ANPR of my violation.

However the offence date date was on the 06/02/2019 and sent out on 22/02/2019 and received in the post today 25/02/2019. Am I correct in thinking that this should have been sent to me within 14 days, so the latest being the 20/02/2019. Do I have grounds to appeal this PCN

Thanks in advance

[charitynjw]

If this is service of the PCN by post

Section 9, Schedule 4, Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 (see link below)

(4)The notice must be given by—

(a)handing it to the keeper, or leaving it at a current address for service for the keeper, within the relevant period; or

(b)sending it by post to a current address for service for the keeper so that it is delivered to that address within the relevant period.

(5)The relevant period for the purposes of sub-paragraph (4) is the period of 14 days beginning with the day after that on which the specified period of parking ended.

(6)A notice sent by post is to be presumed, unless the contrary is proved, to have been delivered (and so “given” for the purposes of sub-paragraph (4)) on the second working day after the day on which it is posted; and for this purpose “working day” means any day other than a Saturday, Sunday or a public holiday in England and Wales.


Just to check, are you certain that this letter via post is the first notification? (ie no windscreen PCN issued.)
Any chance you could post up the letter (front & back), personal details redacted (inc vehicle reg), but leave all dates visible?
If it is a PCN served via post, looks like NCP are out of time.

[Repeat]

Thanks for you reply, here is front and back of the PCN and to confirm this is the first instance of notification. Nothing was ever attached to the window only received this letter today

[ostell]

Will this do you?


Dear Sirs,

I have just received your Notice to Keeper xxxxx for vehicle VRM xxxx

You have failed to comply with the requirements of Schedule 4 of The Protection Of Freedoms Act 2012 namely, but not limited to, failing to deliver the notice within the relevant period of 14 days as prescribed by section 9 (4) of the Act. You cannot, therefore, transfer liability for the alleged charge from the driver at the time to me, the keeper.

There is no legal requirement to name the driver at the time and I will not be doing so.

Any further communication with me on this matter, apart from confirmation of no further action and my details being removed from your records, will be considered vexatious and harassment. This includes communication from any Debt Collection companies you care to instruct.

Yours etc

If you use their online appeal then take a screen shot of every page. Make sure that it does not default to appealing as the driver. You are the keeper. Alt+PrtScrn takes an image of the active window

If by post then first class post and get a free certificate of posting from a post office.

[charitynjw]

Ok, game on.

You will notice that the PCN does not mention the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012.

So I presume they are proposing to use contract law rather than legislation (PoFA 2012).

But this presents them with a wee problem.

Under contract law, the alleged contract lies with the vehicle driver only, as it is the driver who enters into the contract by implicitly agreeing to the site signage.

Whereas with PoFA 2012, the liability can be transferred to the registered keeper.

So, if contract law is applicable they can only chase the driver.

& as they are contacting you as the registered keeper (via their DVLA request for details*), & you have absolutely no obligation twhatsoever o tell them who my have been driving, I reckon they are up that creek, paddleless!

Btw, see the sneaky 'if you were not the driver please tell us who was' on their speculative demand (PCN)

(*More on this later.....)

[Repeat]

Thank you so much, I will get on this today and update you with progress

[charitynjw]

Hold fire, there's more to consider.
I just wanted to get the point across re the difference between a common law contract claim (which I think this one is) & a PoFA 2012 claim.
Would you agree that the PCN does not mention PoFA?

[ostell]

It doesn't mention POFA per se but it using all the wording from POFA (and getting it wrong), including allowing appeals to POPLA.

They could be following the lead of Parking Eye who don't issue a POFA NTK when they know they have messed it up.

[charitynjw]

Thanks ostell
I guess you're right re them nicking the ParkingEye tactic

Could you also confirm that it is ok for them to use KADOE (DVLA agreement) to source registered keeper details, even if a common law contract claim is used? (Bear with me REPEAT......shop talk)

[ostell]

I believe that they can contact the DVLA for up to 6 months after the parking event. They are members of a trade group, which allows them that access using KADOE. Not that they can use POFA that late.

[charitynjw]

ostell

Cheers!

I was going to waffle on about the possibility of a Data Protection breach, but obviously that is not the case..
Saves me looking like a right plonker!

Repeat

Remember me saying '*More on this later' (Post #5)
Now you can forget it!

[ostell]

They are permitted to access the keeper details in order to inquire who the driver was at the time.

[charitynjw]

They are permitted to access the keeper details in order to inquire who the driver was at the time.

& of course you tell them...........NOT!

[Repeat]

I’ve just caught up with the additional posts, thanks for all your input. Am I correct in reading that I can appeal this on the original 14 day rule

[Repeat]

Just got confused by the 6 months thing re them being allowed to apply for the keeper information, and confirm that I am not obligated to tell them who the driver was at the time