Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Bluff Successfully Called

I recently posted a piece about barrister and author Tim Kevan's reply to a purported parking fine on private land. The charge has now been cancelled.
The parking company attempts to dress up its decision as a goodwill gesture, but the fact remains that they would not have been able to collect it in any event.

19 comments:

  1. north bucks magistrate28 March 2012 at 13:11

    I think Tim Kevan has got off lightly; the letter from Creative Parking Solutions was polite and informative, and at the end of the day he was - by his own admission - parking illegally. All the bluster in the world doesn't change that, whether one agrees with private parking controls or not.

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    Replies
    1. yes, but he was at church and that means you can park where you like, apparently.

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  2. He needn't have 'got off' at all. He wrote a long and detailed letter to the parking company who could simply have said get lost and pay up. That they didn't tells me he was right and they were wrong. What about the countless people who don't have his knwoledge and who do pay when perhaps they need not?

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  3. All he had to do was ignore the original letter, and the subsequent correspondence. These penalty charge notices have no standing essentially because any loss or damages would be suffered by the owner of the land, not the parking company.

    Why am I not surprised at a lawyer writing a long-winded letter where none was required?

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  4. So the question is, now he is aware that the site is managed by Creative Parking Solutions and the penalties, and in an act of extreme chutzpah he parks there again, would he be liable for any parking fines claimed? Or would the other defences he stated in the original letter be sufficient?

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    Replies
    1. Of course they would be sufficient. Knowledge of the existence of the 'penalties' doesn't change their status as unenforceable, or his requirement to pay. The are not 'fines' - only courts and Police can issue fines.

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  5. Journo - I agree

    anonimouse - the point is that the fines are NOT enforceable at all. You do not have to pay. I do not know why he even bothered to respond. I wouldn't have. And, neither would I have paid.

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  6. I agree with the thoughts of others, having had several 'fines' from these types of companies.

    I just wish that they would used Andrex for all their future correspondence; at least then I would have some use for it!

    If you ever get a 'fine' from these private companies, ignore it. Ignore it some more. Ignore all subsequent letters and threats. Ignore the letters stating that they will take you to Court.
    NEVER EVER reply.
    In fact, ignore!

    They soon go away. I just wish more people were aware of this :(

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    Replies
    1. Just out of interest, whose land have you been parking on? What sort of premises?

      Can I ignore letters from large supermarkets, or parking firms working for them, if I park for more than the permitted 3 hours in their car parks.

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    2. In a word, yes, as long as you are confident enough to ignore the ensuing written intimidation that will follow, but eventually go away.

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    3. Thanks for that Journo.

      But I can't say I agree with what Tim Kevan did. I've had a look at this pub on Google streetview and space seems very tight. I wonder if he deprived a customer of a their rightful parking space. I hope he had the decency to go in after his church visit and buy a drink.

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    4. Can I also ignore letters from councils if I don't pay and display in their car parks - the ones that don't have exit barriers of course)?

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    5. Council and Police-Pay up!! Immediately!! they have teeth. Supermarkets, hospitals etc (where I got the tickets), NEVER EVER pay.

      Just ignore. Please please please don;t be tempted to write and 'appeal'. The 'appeal' section is the bloke on the next desk to the fella asking you to pay your 'fine'.

      Google 'Private Parking Tickets'.

      And tell everyone!

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    6. @Brian Ginnity - No, I don't like what he did - parking in a pub car park because he was presumably too lazy to walk a few yards is not on. Supermarkets etc have large car parks and rarely, if ever, run out of space, so will never be affected by a few people parking but not using their store.

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  7. I note that "fines" by themselves are legally unenforceable. Does that remain the case when the charge is accompanied by a wheel clamp?

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  8. Yes, they're legally unenforceable, but the problem with a clamp and/or tow is that you don't get your car back until you've been extorted. I'm sure someone, somewhere will have success in forcing clampers to return their car with legal action, but that's assuming a large pot of funding and alternative transport.

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    Replies
    1. Clamping will become largely illegal when the forthcoming Protection of Freedoms Bill comes into force later this year (October?) the trade off is that the British Parking Association have (in effect) had one over on the UK Government with the introduction of 'registered keeper liability'.

      However, as the parking companies try and avoid court whenever possible (preferring to threaten and intimidate with a series of generic letters) all that will happen is that the unlawful threats that they currently level at the registered keeper/owner instead of the driver will become slightly less unlawful.

      I'm sure that they will compensate for this though by increasing the levels of intimidation.

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    2. What's worse is that a fair amount of current wheelclamping activity is already illegal (amounting to to blackmail, theft, or fraud depending on the circumstances), but as a matter of policy the police will not intervene, even in some cases when victims' cars have been sold.

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