marston overcharging

[sam364891]

I was given a ticket from a police officer for parking on a pavement that people regularly parked on. the fine was for £30 which went up to £45 pounds. Anyway i didnt pay it at the time which i should have but had other things on my mind. Sometime later out of the blue a Baliff from Marstons came to my house and demanded £320 when i was not there. I was obviously shocked at how the price could have escalated so easily and so called the baliff and he demanded i pay within the next few weeks. I began looking up the legal fees that a baliif can charge online and i found the document "the enforcement of road traffic debts for certified baliff regulations 1993" which states they can charge £11.20 for a letter and £28 for attending to levy distress where no levy is made. I quoted these charges to the baliff who said that theses charges arent applicable because i was given a ticket from the policeman, is this true? I asked for the breakdown of charges and they said that the £320 pounds is made up from £45 for the fine £75 for sending a letter of which i did not recieve and £200 for attending my premises are these charges legal? Any help with this would be great as i really cannot afford £320 at the moment and dont want to pay this amount if its illegal.
Thanks in advance

[Amy]

Re: marston overcharging

Sometime later out of the blue a Baliff from Marstons came to my house and demanded £320 when i was not there. I was obviously shocked at how the price could have escalated so easily and so called the baliff and he demanded i pay within the next few weeks. I began looking up the legal fees that a baliif can charge online and i found the document "the enforcement of road traffic debts for certified baliff regulations 1993" which states they can charge £11.20 for a letter and £28 for attending to levy distress where no levy is made. I quoted these charges to the baliff who said that theses charges arent applicable because i was given a ticket from the policeman, is this true?

Yes, this is true. You were given a fine by a policeman, therefore, it is a Fixed Penalty Notice as opposed to a Penalty Charge Notice and is a criminal matter as opposed to a civil matter. Therefore, The Enforcement of Road Traffic Debts (Certificated Bailiffs) Regulations 1993 does not apply here.

I asked for the breakdown of charges and they said that the £320 pounds is made up from £45 for the fine £75 for sending a letter of which i did not recieve and £200 for attending my premises are these charges legal? Any help with this would be great as i really cannot afford £320 at the moment and dont want to pay this amount if its illegal.

I'm afraid these fees sound about right to me. You could challenge them on the fact that you did not receive the letter. However I'm not sure how successful this will be.

You should contact them and make an arrangement to pay and it is possible for them to spread the payments over 6 months. They will, of course, say no the first time of asking, so you will have to be insistent.

[sam364891]

Re: marston overcharging

ok thanks for your help