Civil Enforcement/ZZPS/WRIGHT HASSALL chasing PCN

[Tts.]

Hi Guys,

First of all hope everyone had a great bank holiday weekend.

Now on to the reason of my post,

On the 21/12/16 I woke up to a lovely letter from CIVIL ENFORCEMENT LTD in regards to a parking offence supposedly committed on 31/03/16. The letter detailed my car reg and also a PCN the goes on to suggest that I owe £110.

Now the first line of the letter states 'despite of various communication your debt remains outstanding'
The first instance of me receiving any correspondence from CIVIL ENFORCEMENT LTD was the letter which was dated 21/12/16. I then tried to contact them via telephone to find out that they cannot be contacted via telephone and it's just a line for payments, I then took the next logical step and sent a letter. The letter I sent asked a few questions. How have you tried to contact me before? What dates did you try to contact me?
I also went on to say that I would be more than happy to pay the original parking fine if they could prove the parking offence and also send me a legal binding two party contract to which I had signed. I got no correspondence back.

Now at this point I was feeling like there was nothing I could do as the time had already passed to raise a dispute with POPLA (Which I have done once before) So I continued to wait for some feedback from CIVIL ENFORCEMENT LTD. I never received any more correspondence from CIVIL ENFORCEMENT LTD, the next letter I received was from ZZPS which is where things get interesting, the letter was dated 10/02/17, after looking through the letter the details did not match my details. The letter detailed a different Car Reg, time of offence and also a different PCN number. I then got the same letter with the incorrect details again 3 days later on 13/02/17. I made no attempt to contact ZZPS to discuss the discrepancy in the paper work as I though that this may be more beneficial down the line for me. I tehn received another letter from ZZPS 4 days later on 17/02/17 which had the correct details of my Car Reg and also same PCN on the original letter from CIVIL ENFORCEMENT LTD, the only difference with the letters is the time if the offence, on the original it states time of offence at 31/03/16 14:43 on the ZZPS the time and date are 31/03/16 00 : 00. Then ZZPS sent me the same letter on 03/03/17.

At this point I was getting a bit worried and didn't feel like there was anything I could do to dispute the matter so I called Citizens Advice Bureau who were useless to be honest. They advised to see if CIVIL ENFORCEMENT LTD were part of the BPA and if not just don't pay and ignore them. So I took it upon myself to see what I could do as I do not feel that I owe any money and the fact that I could not contest or dispute the parking offence left me feeling like I had to pay, until I came across this site and the help that is given out. I now feel better prepared.

I have not received a new letter from WRIGHT HASSALL, the letter is dated 07/0417 and has the correct Car Reg, and PCN, however the time of offence is still showing 31/03/16 00 : 00 clearly the time of the offence is completely different from the original letter sent from CIVIL ENFORCEMENT LTD.

The letter goes on to say,

'We have been instructed by ZZPS, who are acting on behalf of CIVIL ENFORCEMENT LTD in connection with the recovery of debt, which has been incurred following a failure to pay the Parking Charge Notice, and we require you make full payment in 14 days.

Failure to make payment in full or contact us may result in us recommending to our client that we pass this matter to our Litigation Department. This may mean that they will look to obtain a CCJ.

So guys what do you think my next play should be? I would appreciate any and all information. After looking through various posts on here I see that Mystery1 seems to provide a lot of help. Please would you be able to assist?

Thanks in advance.

[Tts.]

Re: Civil Enforcement/ZZPS/WRIGHT HASSALL chasing PCN

Anybody out there?

[mystery1]

Re: Civil Enforcement/ZZPS/WRIGHT HASSALL chasing PCN

Zzps are mere debt collectors and cannot sue.

CEL can, and do, sue.

Writing back requesting info was good. It's pretty much all you can do at this stage. I would point out the incorrect details. Mention the ICO or actually just report them. I would use email appeals@ce-service.co.uk (if they say wrong one just ask for another one or use office@ce-service.co.uk)

The signs, PCN etc are key to a good defence although it's rare CEL get to a trial despite issuing a fairly large number of claims.

M1

[Tts.]

Re: Civil Enforcement/ZZPS/WRIGHT HASSALL chasing PCN

Thanks for the reply.

I have just received another letter from Wright Vassal.

This letter is a formal letter of claim.

It advises if the debt is not paid within 14 days we anticipate being instructed to commence county court proceedings.

How should I proceed?

[mystery1]

Re: Civil Enforcement/ZZPS/WRIGHT HASSALL chasing PCN

Edit the letter in this quote to suit. The main purpose is to gather enough information to properly defend when a court claim follows. If they play funny buggers we can use that to make them look bad in court.

I would reply something like

Dear CSB Solicitors,

I write in response to your letter before claim dated 6th April 2017, the contents of which are noted.

As the pre action protocols expect us to exchange sufficient information to understand each others position please forward to myself the original parking charge notice and a picture of the signs at the location as well as the operators contract which allows them to operate at the site (or indeed confirmation they own the land in question).

As well as the information already requested please answer the following questions :-

What type of car park is it ?

What contravention gives a cause of action ?

Who contravened your rules ?

In what capacity are you pusuing me ?

Have you followed the rules laid down in the Protection of freedoms act 2012 schedule 4 ?

How is the £640 made up ?

Not only will this information help comply with the pre action protocols it will also help achieve the over riding objective.

Having done some research on your claims i request that if you ignore my requests for information that your claim complies with

CPR 16

Contents of the claim form
16.2
(1) The claim form must –
(a) contain a concise statement of the nature of the claim

Contents of the particulars of claim
16.4
(1) Particulars of claim must include –
(a) a concise statement of the facts on which the claimant relies;

Practice direction 16

Other matters to be included in particulars of claim




7.5 Where a claim is based upon an agreement by conduct, the particulars of claim must specify the conduct relied on and state by whom, when and where the acts constituting the conduct were done.





I await your response.

Yours sincerely



Send via email if possible.

M1

M1

[Tts.]

Re: Civil Enforcement/ZZPS/WRIGHT HASSALL chasing PCN

Thanks for the reply Mystery. I have now had a response as per below,
With reference to your recent correspondence, the contents of which have been duly noted.



Firstly we apologise for requesting your Date of Birth, we can confirm a standard DPA email was sent and we do not require this information from you. The information you have provided is sufficient for us to confirm DPA and correspond with you via this email address.



Please note this matter has now progressed to recovery stage and you have surpassed the time to appeal this Parking Charge Notice (PCN) any further. An appeal should have been sent to the car park operator in writing or email by the registered keeper or a third party with keeper’s signed authority within 28 days from the date of the initial PCN. Our clients have confirmed their correspondence has been issued in line with Paragraphs 8 and 9 of Schedule 4 of the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012.



Unfortunately, we cannot assist you with any further information or copies of previous correspondence at this stage of the process, as any further information or evidence – as outlined in your email – will only be provided before the court, should this matter proceed to that stage.



ZZPS’s clients operate on sites that are situated on private land, or are council owned and the management of the site has been outsourced to a Car Park Operator (CPO). They have written authority to operate and issue PCN’s on all of its sites from the landowner.



Wright Hassall are instructed by ZZPS Limited who are instructed by the CPO. We have authority to act in this regard and to take legal action. For the avoidance of doubt the claimant in this matter would be the CPO. We feel we have provided sufficient information to enable this matter to be identified accordingly and confirmation of the legal standing to bring the case. Any documentation required as a result of court proceedings will duly be provided in line with the court process.



When entering a car park and parking your vehicle you entered into a contract with the CPO. The signage clearly states that by parking on private land you are entering into a contract with the CPO. The signage is frequently displayed throughout the site and allows you a fair and reasonable opportunity to read the terms and conditions.



Each CPO ensures signage is ample, clear visible and in line with the BPA (British Parking Association) Code of Practice to ensure the motorist is bound by them when they enter and remain at a client site, so that all users of the site are obliged to follow these rules. A PCN may be issued where the terms and conditions have been breached. Once the terms and conditions of the site have been breached the CPO is at liberty to issue a PCN.



All parties involved in the recovery of your unpaid PCN – Civil Enforcement Ltd, ZZPS and ourselves - firmly believe that our charges are fair and reasonable, and are in line with the British Parking Association guidelines, and have been tested at the Court of Appeal. Furthermore ZZPS are a member of the British Parking Association and follow the BPA Approved Operator Scheme Code of Practice.



The Unfair Consumer Contract Regulations state that a contract term would be deemed as unfair if it tries to make you pay more than is needed to cover the trader’s losses if you break or cancel the contract.



It must be noted that there are many liquidated damages which show the charge is commercially justifiable. DVLA and associated fees for obtaining keeper details; clerical costs arising therefrom, including stationary and postage; legal and professional advice; wages and salaries of staff involved, together with national insurance and similar related sums; and the fee lost by another vehicle not being able to park in the occupied space (where there is a fee), do if established, fall within a genuine pre-estimate of loss. This list is not exhaustive but strongly indicative of the kind of terms that can amount to such a genuine pre-estimate.



We can, therefore, confirm this PCN stands and in order to close the matter in settlement of your liability, the outstanding balance of £206.00 needs to be paid in full. We will place a 14-day hold on this matter to allow you time to make payment in full. Should payment in full not be received, the hold will be removed and this account may proceed to litigation stage with a view to issuing a claim and obtaining judgment.



Please see below our payment methods and contact details for your convenience:-



Debit Card/ Direct Debit: Call 01926 758101

Online: www.paymentsplace.com/wrighthassall

Please quote your reference if paying online or on the reverse by cheque or postal order



Telephone: 01926 758101

Fax: 01926 885588

Email: support@wrighthassall.co.uk

Address: Wright Hassall LLP, Olympus Avenue, Leamington Spa, Warwickshire, CV34 6BF



We look forward to receiving payment from you in regards to this matter.



Yours sincerely

How should I proceed again.

Thanks in advance.

[Tts.]

Re: Civil Enforcement/ZZPS/WRIGHT HASSALL chasing PCN

I've just had a little chat with ICO as well to see what they suggest. ICO have advised to raise a SAR from CEL to prove the various communications that CEL advised in the initial letter from CEL.

The problem I have is Wright Hassall state I have 14 days to pay up now and the emails I have sent to CEL state that they will respond within 28 days thus taking me past the 14 days given by Wright Hassall.

Again thanks in advance.

[mystery1]

Re: Civil Enforcement/ZZPS/WRIGHT HASSALL chasing PCN

Zzzps, for whom WH are acting on behalf of, have no legal standing to sue anyone. They (Zzzps) are mere debt collectors with all the power of a junior disprin. Any deadlines are entirely baseless and meaningless and are only a art of the "put pressure on this sucker to see if they'll pay" game.

M1

[Tts.]

Re: Civil Enforcement/ZZPS/WRIGHT HASSALL chasing PCN

Thanks for your help I really appreciate it.

I'll keep this thread updated.