wheel clamping it is legal?

[jules2008]

hi legal beagles

i really cannot believe this but on top of everything else i woke up to a wheel clamp on my vehicle. Two guys dressed in jeans and leather jackets white van with no markings on it knocked on my door 8.30 am and before they had chance to speak i said is that legal and shut the door in their face.
I did not have time to speak to them or deal with it as i had to go to a training session for work and went out.

When i returned the wheel clamp had been removed now i am really confused as i had not contacted them or paid them any money.

the notice on the window said it was for a road traffic fine??? and they had notified the police of the clamp? is it normal pratice to remove clamps after say 2 hrs that is what my neightbour informed me it was removed after 2 hrs? also the notice had a mobile number for me to ring to remove the clamp.

i am very suspicious and freaked out.

if it was the council would they not have identified themselves or do they use agencies?


what advice can you give and i think they may turn up again at any point.

[stevokenevo]

Re: wheel clamping it is legal?

can you scan in any paper work, tickets, notices etc in relation to the incident

[Guest]

Re: wheel clamping it is legal?

There are these threads - Westminister council no longer clamping vehicles or lifting them - Legal Beagles and Parking and clamping etc - Legal Beagles which both deal with different aspects of vehicle clamping.

As Stevo has said, do you have any paperwork from them at all?

[righty]

Re: wheel clamping it is legal?

As they obvioulsy didn't want to 'lose' their one & only clamp there's every possibility they got the wrong person or worse they where conmen hoping to get you to pay a none existent 'fine'

Paperwork or not I strongly suggest you report the incident to your local police
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PS if they should by any chance appear again get them to write something down (pretend your deaf) & if they don't or can't you will at least be able to ID their community

[jules2008]

Re: wheel clamping it is legal?

hello

yes the company is called newlyn 59 Clarke Road Northampton.


unpaid parking fine £447.74

our removal unit attended your premises to remove vehicle.

they will be reattending your premises to seize and destrain (their spelling mistake not mine )vehicles and /or household possessions even in your absence.

to avoid this action please contact the removal unit on the number below

and a number.

surely if this was a legal company they would know it is illegal to enter someones house without a warrant and in the persons absence. Also have you ever known anyone to remove a clamp without paying a penny and all before lunch time.

i find the whole incident suspicious and have informed the police.

[Tools]

Re: wheel clamping it is legal?

i find the whole incident suspicious and have informed the police.

Well done Jules, this does sound to me to be a confidence trick to illegally obtain monies from people.

Saying that I have just checked out the company you have named and their details are as below

Newlyn Plc

Bailiffs
Phone:01604 620400
Fax:01604 250265
WWW:www.newlynplc.co.uk
Address:Newlyn Plc
59 Clarke Road
Abington
NORTHAMPTON
NN1 4PL

One of their `Services` they provide is indeed Road Traffic Debt Collection as taken from their website below.

Road Traffic Debt
(RTD ACT 1984 & RTD ACT 1991)
With more and more Authorities opting to collect Penalty Charge Notices by way of bailiff enforcement, we believe that establishing a partnership between the Council and a contractor is of paramount importance. That is why Newlyn offers a dedicated recovery service using only skilled, trained and licensed personnel for all of its decriminalised enforcement activities.
Newlyn Plc offers a range of services including debt profiling, on line access to DVLA records, realistic solutions for persistent evaders and multi-agency operations involving the Police, Customs & Excise and Licensing Officers.
The service delivery is comprehensive; from the point of receiving the warrant to debt profiling the case, with its cost and resource-saving implications, through to removal and storage of the vehicle, prior to disposal at public auction. We use in-house recovery vehicles as well as the services of professional, insured contractors. The use of contractors is strictly monitored and these personnel are always accompanied by certificated members of our enforcement team.
A full range of management statistical reports are available for the purpose of performance monitoring, as is on-line case interrogation via the Internet, access to which is password secure. Newlyn prides itself on performance in this arena and can demonstrate, with statistical evidence, our collection rates far exceed those of our competitors when working in the same Council.

Have you or anyone who has access to that vehicle committed any road traffic offences as far as you know?

Have you had any previous contact from them or any authority before?

If possible as mentioned in previous posts, could you actually scan in any paperwork you have received(taking out personal and vehicle details)

[jules2008]

Re: wheel clamping it is legal?

do you think they are a bona fida company then if so why are they threatening me with they will destain vehicles and or/household possessions even in my absence their exact words?


The other answers to your questions are no and i have not received any correspondence from them? i do have lodgers from time to time foreign students etc they could have been driving the vehicle ?
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i am seriously worried that they may either clamp me again and or break in to my property in my absence?

[Tools]

Re: wheel clamping it is legal?

I would wait and see if you have any further contact from them. They cannot force entry into your house legally, they have to at least provide you with a time/date when they will next be in attendance to enter your property.

You mention that lodgers may have used the vehicle, was this with your knowledge or consent?

[jules2008]

Re: wheel clamping it is legal?

the lodger used my car with my permission but they are no longer here so unless they have some photographic proof that i was driving the vehicle how can they do this?

plus would you not think that the letter is threatening and illegal saying they will in effect break into my home if i am not there? also if i did get a parking fine i would not pay it as that is illegal i dont know if you are aware that the issueing of parking tickets is in fact illegal and there is a guy will get his name and tell you of website who has never paid a parking ticket in his life because he knows the law. it is something to do with the bill of rights the council are breaking the law but i dont have enough money to afford a solicitor to get advice?

Another system that does not work well it relies on mugs paying the fines and keeping the system going. but now i have seen what they do if you dont pay up. And i think it is totally illegal

will get the website if you dont know bout the bill of rights?

[Guest]

Re: wheel clamping it is legal?

Be careful! Since this is apparently an unpaid parking ticket the bailiffs will be calling as a result of a fine having been issued in the Magistrates Court. Fines are a priority debt because the Magistrates Court has the power to send you to prison for non-payment.

Furthermore, from July 2005 bailiffs also have the power to break into your home to take your goods even if they have not been into your home before.

The new rules say this power should only be used if it is reasonable to do so. It is not likely that bailiffs will use force to break in but it is possible under the rules. They are more likely to gain entry by peaceful means such as by getting through an open door or window or by you letting them in. Because of these new powers, it is no longer safe to try to avoid bailiffs coming into your home by refusing to let them in for any debts relating to Magistrates Court fines.

In this instance, they have indicated that they will take your car, which they may do, unless you can prove that your car is needed for use in employment or business, but it will be up to you to prove this is the case.

[Tools]

Re: wheel clamping it is legal?

I would contact them and ask them for details of the alleged offence, if it is a valid offence/debt then you also need to establish exactly who committed it.

Was your lodger insured to drive the car and do you have any contact details for them?

[Guest]

Re: wheel clamping it is legal?

the lodger used my car with my permission but they are no longer here so unless they have some photographic proof that i was driving the vehicle how can they do this?

plus would you not think that the letter is threatening and illegal saying they will in effect break into my home if i am not there? also if i did get a parking fine i would not pay it as that is illegal i dont know if you are aware that the issueing of parking tickets is in fact illegal and there is a guy will get his name and tell you of website who has never paid a parking ticket in his life because he knows the law. it is something to do with the bill of rights the council are breaking the law but i dont have enough money to afford a solicitor to get advice?

Another system that does not work well it relies on mugs paying the fines and keeping the system going. but now i have seen what they do if you dont pay up. And i think it is totally illegal

will get the website if you dont know bout the bill of rights?

They do not need photographic proof. This is a parking fine, not a speeding fine. In this instance, it is the car that commits the offence and therefore the registered keeper is liable to pay the fine.

A fine of £447.74, even with bailiff fees included, is substantial. If your lodgers used the car, is it possible that they also concealed parking tickets from you? This sum will not have been conjured out of thin air and in order to have reached the stage where bailiffs have been instructed, must have happened some time ago and you will have received several pieces of correspondence relating to this.

Not all parking tickets are illegal and this subject is complex. The Bill of Rights "defence" was defeated some time ago.

1689 BILL WON'T SAVE ILLEGAL 'PARKERS', JUDGE RULES

A senior High Court judge today demolished the belief that the 1689 Bill of Rights outlaws parking charges because they have not been imposed by a court of law.

In a ruling which will dismay a lot of motorists and bring relief to local authorities, Mr Justice Collins said the belief was "baseless" and "a nonsense".

The judge said: "The only surprise I have is that this argument has been produced on a number of occasions and seems to have worried local authorities and possibly even parking adjudicators.

"All I can say is that they should cease to worry. It is, as I say, a completely baseless argument."

The judge was refusing an application by retired business consultant Robin de Crittenden, of Willenhall, near Wolverhampton, for permission to seek a judicial review based on the Bill of Rights argument.

Many supporters were hoping his legal challenge would lead to every parking fine in the country being declared invalid or "unsafe".

Mr de Crittenden was issued with a £60 penalty charge by Worcester City Council in June 2003 for allegedly exceeding his permitted time in a parking bay.

He described the system for parking regulation as a "vast money-making machine that is a disgrace to local authorities".

He took his case to the National Parking Adjudication Service (NPAS) and won his appeal last November because there were flaws in the documentation provided by the local council. (actually because they failed to attend the hearing - Cetelco)

Not content with winning his case on a legal technicality, Mr de Crittenden decided to come to the High Court in a bid to KO the whole current parking regulatory system.

This case was heard in July of 2006.

[tomterm8]

Re: wheel clamping it is legal?

hello

yes the company is called newlyn 59 Clarke Road Northampton.


unpaid parking fine £447.74

our removal unit attended your premises to remove vehicle.

they will be reattending your premises to seize and destrain (their spelling mistake not mine )vehicles and /or household possessions even in your absence.

to avoid this action please contact the removal unit on the number below

and a number.

surely if this was a legal company they would know it is illegal to enter someones house without a warrant and in the persons absence. Also have you ever known anyone to remove a clamp without paying a penny and all before lunch time.

i find the whole incident suspicious and have informed the police.

It is very hard to answer any of your questions, since we don't at this point know anything whatsoever about the case.

I would suggest that at a first step you contact them to find out under what basis they are claiming you owe them money. Then we might be able to help. I would also move your car into hiding (which you can do until you know that the fine is legally due). Make sure it is quite a long way away from your house.

[jules2008]

Re: wheel clamping it is legal?

ok firstly i dont have contact details for lodger she now has gone back home after doing an english course near where i live. she definately lives abroad. i think she lives on the france spain border but this is irrelevant as it is the owner of vehicle like you say.

the baliffs have obtained a warrant apparently which the police have becuase after i spoke to them about it originally because i did not know if it was legite or not as they removed the clamp, and they informed me they have a warrant.

apparently they were going to seize the vehicle but decided it would not cover the debt so left it. they may still seize the vehicle and goods to the amount owed.

the fact is i cannot afford to pay this debt i am already in severe debt. also this is the first i have heard of it and there is no proof that they have actually sent me any documentation or my lodger was hiding it i dont know.

i asked the police about what their policies are regarding bailiffs and they are unsure does not suprise me looking at this link.

BBC NEWS | UK | Bailiffs 'unlawfully enter homes'

but i think they did mention they cannot break or enter your house.

which contradicts what the baliffs are saying to me ie they can do so even in my absence.

i am going to ring a few advice lines tomorrow to see what the updated advice is regarding this matter.

I do need my vehicle for work so the fact they were going to seize my vehicle seems harsh anyway i am in bits now am going to get valium from docs tomorrow and lock myself in my room.
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also they are claiming the fine is for an upaid parking fine which i dont know if it includes their fees or not probably or could be worse.

[tomterm8]

Re: wheel clamping it is legal?

OK, ask for a copy of the warrant from the baliffs. This will give us information to start to find out the basis for their claims. Do this in writing, by email or fax.

If it is a civil enforcement, it is possible to file a statutory declaration (out of time) which would give you the ability to appeal, and significantly reduce the cost of the parking ticket. EDIT: looking things up, it is also possible to file a statutory declatation for FPN too.