Hi all and thanks in advance for any help and insight.
I've done a lot of reading of threads and forums across various websites but still can't be certain of my position.
I'll explain where I'm at and how I got here.
I received a parking charge notice from Smart Parking on the 10/01/2023 for a parking violation that took place on the 12/12/2022. I immediately appealed it on the basis of having my young son with me, unexpectedly needing to change his nappy before we left the soft play we were at, him having a tantrum that I had to deal with and then him wanting food whilst we were sat in the car which helped to calm him down. All of this added up to me being 14 minutes over the 2 hours of parking I paid for. I naively thought this would be sufficient for them to waive the £100 charge they had issued me, it wasn't. I then appealed via POPLA and was again rebuffed. They said that the cameras showed my car leaving 14 minutes late so therefore they couldn't cancel the charge.
I have since received a letter from debt recovery plus stating I need to now pay £170.
I've read various things: equality act due to having a young child, that the parking company aren't allowed to charge me more than £50 and also, which I feel might me my best chance, that if the ticket was issued 14 days after the event it is invalid.
Now the initial parking charge notice I received clearly states that it was issued on the 10/01/2023 and the parking incident occurred on the 12/12/2022 - wahoo! I thought. I've got them however, I've since read that the letter they send you needs to state the 'Protection of Freedoms act' - it doesn't. Also, through my appeals I admitted that I was driving the car.
Would these two final points render this appeals option pointless? That it doesn't state 'Protection of Freedoms act' and that I've already admitted I was the driver?
Any help or insight much appreciated. Also, if this option is still available to me to appeal (based on PCN being issued more than 14 days of event) is there a handy template I could use to send to them?
Thanks in advance,
Smalls.
I've done a lot of reading of threads and forums across various websites but still can't be certain of my position.
I'll explain where I'm at and how I got here.
I received a parking charge notice from Smart Parking on the 10/01/2023 for a parking violation that took place on the 12/12/2022. I immediately appealed it on the basis of having my young son with me, unexpectedly needing to change his nappy before we left the soft play we were at, him having a tantrum that I had to deal with and then him wanting food whilst we were sat in the car which helped to calm him down. All of this added up to me being 14 minutes over the 2 hours of parking I paid for. I naively thought this would be sufficient for them to waive the £100 charge they had issued me, it wasn't. I then appealed via POPLA and was again rebuffed. They said that the cameras showed my car leaving 14 minutes late so therefore they couldn't cancel the charge.
I have since received a letter from debt recovery plus stating I need to now pay £170.
I've read various things: equality act due to having a young child, that the parking company aren't allowed to charge me more than £50 and also, which I feel might me my best chance, that if the ticket was issued 14 days after the event it is invalid.
Now the initial parking charge notice I received clearly states that it was issued on the 10/01/2023 and the parking incident occurred on the 12/12/2022 - wahoo! I thought. I've got them however, I've since read that the letter they send you needs to state the 'Protection of Freedoms act' - it doesn't. Also, through my appeals I admitted that I was driving the car.
Would these two final points render this appeals option pointless? That it doesn't state 'Protection of Freedoms act' and that I've already admitted I was the driver?
Any help or insight much appreciated. Also, if this option is still available to me to appeal (based on PCN being issued more than 14 days of event) is there a handy template I could use to send to them?
Thanks in advance,
Smalls.
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