PCN Now court papers .

[Cuchilo]

Hello , i wonder if anyone can help ?
Last October i received a PCN on my windscreen in a free car park ( retail park ) it looked a bit of a scam so the driver went back into the supermarket and they replied it had nothing to do with them which confirmed to me that it was just a scam .
Letters started to arrive and i ignored them thinking they will give up soon . Well now i have a letter from the county court business center asking if i want to pay the amount of £160 plus court costs or defend the claim .
Personally i do not think i have a contract just because someone has put a sign up and as the car park was free no revenue was lost to anybody . But personally doesnt really matter , where do i stand legally ?
Thankyou for any help you can give .
Jason .

[ostell]

You have a contract by reading the signs Decided in the court of appeal.

So the first thing you should do is acknowledge the claim on line using the details and password on the form. Do not put anything in the defence. This gives you 33 days from the date of issue to get your defence to the court.

Have you still got the documents that you received? I hope you haven't thrown them away. If you haven't got any then contact the solicitor and demand that they provide you with all the documents they intend to use in their case.within 10 days. Send first class and get certificate of posting from the post office.

So what are they claiming the driver did to breach their contract? Has the driver been identified?

[Cuchilo]

Thanks for the reply .
Yes i have kept all the documents they have sent and sent the acknowledge form back to the court by first class post .( should i do it online also ?)
The breach of contract was not parking wholly within a designated parking bay .
No the driver hasn't been identified by them but the van is registered to me .

[ostell]

They got your name as the registered keeper by contacting the DVLA Edit you first post so that the identity of the driver cannot be inferred. Use "The Driver ......."etc.

I hope you didn't put anything in the defence when you sent the form back !

Post up the first PCN you received, redacting personal and identifying details but leaving dates. Pictures of signs would help.

If you contacted the customer disservice desk in the store that is their standard response, you need a manager or contact head office.

Have you got photos of the alleged breach ?

As the Keeper you are only liable for the amount on the original Notice to Keeper (£100 ?)

[Cuchilo]

Thanks .
I just ticked the defence box on the form and sent that back . I still have the claim , admission and defence & counterclaim forms .

[Cuchilo]

[Cuchilo]

Your questions have reminded the driver that they could have been identified as they exchanged words with the person who had issued the PCN in the car park .

[ostell]

You haven't readcted the PCN number.

Unfortunately they would have appeared to have complied, in the main, with the requirements of POFA to hold the keeper liable. However, have you got the photos of the breach? If not then write to them and ask.for same. First class post and Certificate of Posting form a post office.

[Cuchilo]

Yes they have photos of the breach .
I find it unbelievable that they can put a sign up and say they have a contract with people and then fine them when there has been no loss of income as its a free car park .

[Cuchilo]

Are you waiting to see the pictures they have or am i buggered ?

[ostell]

Waiting to see the pictures

[Cuchilo]

The pictures are on their web site . Should i copy them from there or contact the company ?

[ostell]

Copy them from the website if you can

[Cuchilo]

[Cuchilo]

So they have proof of the van parked over the lines in a very remote part of the car park . The fine seems to be £100 plus 8% interest and court costs so £185 . I knew i would be facing this cost when i decided to ignore this know con .
If they are asking for £100 as you say is the fine to the owner then how can there be a contract ? The contract is a sign ( a very odd way to conduct a contract ) How can they assume the owner was the driver and therefore know about the hidden contract only they know about ?