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Morning, I had another post but no replies.... so given I'm in court (via telephone) Friday 21st wanted to reach out for some advice.
VCS issued me with a ticket on private land. They have persued the case to this point, they offered me to settle 2 weeks ago for £145 and put in there that if I lose in court they would look to add an additional £220 solicitors fees.
My defense is below.
My questions are
1) given it's my first court appearance, what to expect?
2) what will be expected from me?
3) what's your view on the defense below?
Any help is much appreciated
My defense is:
In the Northampton County Court Business Centre
Claim No: XXXXXXX
Vehicle Control Services Limited
Claimant
And
XXXXXXX
Defendant
DEFENCE
1. The Defendant received the claim XXXXXXX from the Northampton County Court on 9th March 2020
2. Each and every allegation in the Claimants statement of case is denied unless specifically admitted in this Defence.
3. This claim is for breach of contract for breaching the terms and conditions set on private land.
4. It is denied that the Defendant had entered into an agreement with the Claimant for provision of parking under the terms and conditions of the signage.
5. The Claimants statement of case states that ‘the claim is for a breach of contract’. The Defendant believes the signage is of a “forbidding” nature and it does not constitute an offer to park and therefore no contract can be entered into. This means that there was never a contractual relationship. I refer you to the following case law: PCM-UK v Bull et all B4GF26K6 [2016], UKPC v Masterson B4GF26K6[2016], Horizon Parking v Mr J C5GF17X2 [2016] – In all three of these cases the signage was found to be forbidding and thus only a trespass had occurred and would be a matter for the landowner.
6. The Claimants statement of case states that ‘the terms and conditions upon entering private land were clearly displayed at the entrance’.
The Defendant would like to draw attention to IPC Code of Practice Schedule 1 – Signage
PART E Schedule 1 - Signage
Entrance Signs
This schedule prescribes the signage characteristics you must try to adhere to. It is accepted there will be instances where the nature of the controlled land does not make strict compliance feasible. In such cases you are required to keep to the spirit of the guidance.
Where a site does not invite parking of any kind, the ‘P’ sign may be omitted.
Where a car park has a defined entrance, you may wish to display entrance signs that do not contain the full terms and conditions of parking.
Entrance Signs should:
a) Make it clear that the motorist is entering onto private land
b) Refer the motorist to the signs within the car park which display the full terms and conditions.
c) Identify yourself (where you are a limited company. This should be by reference to your full company name, your company number and the jurisdiction within which your company is registered).
Contrast and illumination
The colours used on signage should be such that the contrast between the background and the text makes the wording on the sign clearly legible. Black text on a white background or white text on a black background will provide a suitable contrast. Other colour combinations can be adopted at your discretion but you should avoid combinations which might cause difficulties for the visually impaired.
If parking enforcement takes place outside of daylight hours you should ensure that signs are illuminated or there is sufficient other lighting. You will need to ensure all signs are readable during the hours of enforcement as they form the legal basis of any charge.
There are no signs on the approach or on the outward facing/public areas to the private land to make it clear you are leaving the public highway and entering private land.
There are signs within the private land but they are not all illuminated. There is a sign illuminated but it is not within sufficient distance to be feasibly acknowledged given where the alleged incident took place and the time of day/daylight.
It is the Defendant’s opinion that the lack of any entrance signage, position of signage and lack of sufficient illumination makes them totally inadequate for the purpose of bringing parking conditions to the attention of motorists.
7. Under Civil Procedure Rule 16.5 (4) Where the claim includes a money claim, a defendant shall be taken to require that any allegation relating to the amount of money claimed be proved unless he expressly admits the allegation. Therefore, it is expected that the Claimant be required to prove the allegation that the money is owed as claimed.
8.The Defendant respectfully requests the court orders the Claimants to provide the necessary documentation in order for The Defendant to fully plead his case else the Claim should stand struck out.
9. In the event that the relevant documents are received from the Claimant, the Defendant will then be in a position to amend his defence, and would ask that the Claimants bear the costs of the amendment.
10. It is denied that the Claimant is entitled to the relief as claimed or at all.
Statement of Truth
The Defendant believes that the facts stated in this Defence are true.
Signed _____XXXXXXX
Dated _______XXXXXXX_________
VCS issued me with a ticket on private land. They have persued the case to this point, they offered me to settle 2 weeks ago for £145 and put in there that if I lose in court they would look to add an additional £220 solicitors fees.
My defense is below.
My questions are
1) given it's my first court appearance, what to expect?
2) what will be expected from me?
3) what's your view on the defense below?
Any help is much appreciated
My defense is:
In the Northampton County Court Business Centre
Claim No: XXXXXXX
Vehicle Control Services Limited
Claimant
And
XXXXXXX
Defendant
DEFENCE
1. The Defendant received the claim XXXXXXX from the Northampton County Court on 9th March 2020
2. Each and every allegation in the Claimants statement of case is denied unless specifically admitted in this Defence.
3. This claim is for breach of contract for breaching the terms and conditions set on private land.
4. It is denied that the Defendant had entered into an agreement with the Claimant for provision of parking under the terms and conditions of the signage.
5. The Claimants statement of case states that ‘the claim is for a breach of contract’. The Defendant believes the signage is of a “forbidding” nature and it does not constitute an offer to park and therefore no contract can be entered into. This means that there was never a contractual relationship. I refer you to the following case law: PCM-UK v Bull et all B4GF26K6 [2016], UKPC v Masterson B4GF26K6[2016], Horizon Parking v Mr J C5GF17X2 [2016] – In all three of these cases the signage was found to be forbidding and thus only a trespass had occurred and would be a matter for the landowner.
6. The Claimants statement of case states that ‘the terms and conditions upon entering private land were clearly displayed at the entrance’.
The Defendant would like to draw attention to IPC Code of Practice Schedule 1 – Signage
PART E Schedule 1 - Signage
Entrance Signs
This schedule prescribes the signage characteristics you must try to adhere to. It is accepted there will be instances where the nature of the controlled land does not make strict compliance feasible. In such cases you are required to keep to the spirit of the guidance.
Where a site does not invite parking of any kind, the ‘P’ sign may be omitted.
Where a car park has a defined entrance, you may wish to display entrance signs that do not contain the full terms and conditions of parking.
Entrance Signs should:
a) Make it clear that the motorist is entering onto private land
b) Refer the motorist to the signs within the car park which display the full terms and conditions.
c) Identify yourself (where you are a limited company. This should be by reference to your full company name, your company number and the jurisdiction within which your company is registered).
Contrast and illumination
The colours used on signage should be such that the contrast between the background and the text makes the wording on the sign clearly legible. Black text on a white background or white text on a black background will provide a suitable contrast. Other colour combinations can be adopted at your discretion but you should avoid combinations which might cause difficulties for the visually impaired.
If parking enforcement takes place outside of daylight hours you should ensure that signs are illuminated or there is sufficient other lighting. You will need to ensure all signs are readable during the hours of enforcement as they form the legal basis of any charge.
There are no signs on the approach or on the outward facing/public areas to the private land to make it clear you are leaving the public highway and entering private land.
There are signs within the private land but they are not all illuminated. There is a sign illuminated but it is not within sufficient distance to be feasibly acknowledged given where the alleged incident took place and the time of day/daylight.
It is the Defendant’s opinion that the lack of any entrance signage, position of signage and lack of sufficient illumination makes them totally inadequate for the purpose of bringing parking conditions to the attention of motorists.
7. Under Civil Procedure Rule 16.5 (4) Where the claim includes a money claim, a defendant shall be taken to require that any allegation relating to the amount of money claimed be proved unless he expressly admits the allegation. Therefore, it is expected that the Claimant be required to prove the allegation that the money is owed as claimed.
8.The Defendant respectfully requests the court orders the Claimants to provide the necessary documentation in order for The Defendant to fully plead his case else the Claim should stand struck out.
9. In the event that the relevant documents are received from the Claimant, the Defendant will then be in a position to amend his defence, and would ask that the Claimants bear the costs of the amendment.
10. It is denied that the Claimant is entitled to the relief as claimed or at all.
Statement of Truth
The Defendant believes that the facts stated in this Defence are true.
Signed _____XXXXXXX
Dated _______XXXXXXX_________
