Parking Ticket

P

Popey

Senior member
I was in a rush today, used a pub car park and failed to notice it was pay and display (despite several signs, doh!).

Got back to find a parking ticket however they had made a mistake with the reg SX11 SAX (it should end with a Z).

My research as led me to believe that the ticket will not be valid even if backed up with pictures of the correct reg. The reason for this is the notice of offence (for want of a better term) was incorrect.

Thoughts please?

(Yes I know I'm at fault but £85 is a bit harsh)
 
Hope you get away with it Popey, £85! tell them to get fcuked!- that's not a legal term btw, at least I don't think so.
 
Courts have previously rules that minor admin errors (e.g. letter transpositions or typos on reg plates) do not in themselves make the ticket void.

However the private parking company may correct the ticket based on their photographs (if they have any) and re-submit it.

If it's a private car park then I'd ignore it until they start sending letters, and then offer to pay their 'losses' from your parking error, which should amount to a few quid. If that fails, offer them £20/30 to settle it. That way, if it ever gets to court, you can show that you were open to negotiation but they were not.
 
If it's a penalty notice issued by a civil enforcement officer a wrong VRM ( vehicle registration mark ) makes the ticket invalid and unenforceable - same thing happened to me recently - my number ends with FPZ and the enforcement officer wrote FPX - I wrote to the Council stating the VRM was not my vehicle ( didn't tell them the true number ). They sent me a letter stating the CEO recorded the wrong number and cancelled the ticket :D At the time they also recorded correctly the tax disc number and took a photograph but it doesn't make any difference if the VRM is incorrect.
 
is there a legal requirement to display a car registration plate on a private car park?
 
It is if there is public access. Highway rules apply then (think Tesco carpark).
 
my boss is being taken to court over a parking ticket he refuses to pay. i want to go and sit in the public gallery and laugh at him when he gets sent down for it :evil: :lol:
he's being a stubborn old git over it and he knows it!
 
If its a private car park rather than Council then just ignore it. I have ignored 4 tickets in the last few years and nothing has ever happened other than being sent letter after letter warning of impending doom if i dont pay. Eventually they give up.
 
Same here I got a private parking ticket and they must have sent 10+ letters with more and more red on them. After 6 months they gave up.
 
Rob s said:
If its a private car park rather than Council then just ignore it. I have ignored 4 tickets in the last few years and nothing has ever happened other than being sent letter after letter warning of impending doom if i dont pay. Eventually they give up.
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Perfect advice!

I have received two tickets in last 18 months for staying longer than 2 hours on motorway service station car parks without buying a pay and display ticket. Received parking ticket and letter through the post for £100 each time.

I ignored both as they were private tickets not issued by a council parking warden or police office. Cue lots of letters threatening court action etc....

On both tickets after receiving the 5th threatening letter from them they gave up.
 
Vbstein said:
I would just pay and aviod the hassle to follow.
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Unfortunately most people do, the law is there to protect the public so know it and use it. On private land the "fines" are in fact simply an invoice, it is not legally enforceable you do not have to pay, just like you would not have to pay an random invoice if I sent it to you. The parking company would have to take you to court for breach of contract, they most likely won't as they won't win, they would have to prove a contract existed between you and them and you accepted the terms. This means signs must be adequate and conform to regulations. Even if they do prove a breach of contract then as the charges are not core terms they must be fair (unfair consumer contract regulations as argued for Bank Charges) and it means a party can’t enter into a contract where there’s an imbalance of power. Plus under common law, the cost of a penalty must reflect the damages suffered by the company issuing it. So charging £100 for overstaying by 30 mins when parking cost only £1 per hour, you can argue that the parking company lost 50p in parking charges and maybe a few quid in admin so £100 is excessive. The link below does point to some supermarkets arguing that over staying stopped someone else parking and them using the store so they lost their custom, they still have to prove this though, for example they would need to show the rest of the car park was full, that someone actually left rather than park etc, that they didn't simply come back later that kind of thing.

Simple fact is if you get an invoice (often looks like a penalty fine notice) for parking on private land, simply ignore it or tell them you are refusing to pay. Do not say you are appealing as this can legitimise the contract. Best bet is to just ignore it, until you get a court notice. They will give up. They rely on the fact people will get scared and pay it without challenge. Also as no credit is involved it cannot effect your credit rating so don't worry about that either.

Lots of info here.

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/reclaim/private-parking-tickets
 
Rules have changed fairly recently though with the allowing to take the keeper of the car to court, not the driver.

Court cases are being lost at the moment, so the ignore all is not true any more.
 
Juiceloose said:
Rob s said:
If its a private car park rather than Council then just ignore it. I have ignored 4 tickets in the last few years and nothing has ever happened other than being sent letter after letter warning of impending doom if i dont pay. Eventually they give up.
Click to expand...

Perfect advice!

I have received two tickets in last 18 months for staying longer than 2 hours on motorway service station car parks without buying a pay and display ticket. Received parking ticket and letter through the post for £100 each time.

I ignored both as they were private tickets not issued by a council parking warden or police office. Cue lots of letters threatening court action etc....

On both tickets after receiving the 5th threatening letter from them they gave up.
Click to expand...


Correct but even more so in this case. As soon as they make a mistake on the reg it must be immediately thrown out, council or not. http://www.pepipoo.com/ will tell you more.
 
I got a police producer once in london they did not time or date it and the police station I said I would show my docs at was Thorpe wood in peterborough they wrote down fork wood lol so with no time and date I just ignored it that was 5 years ago :rofl:
 
good advice there , if its a parking charge notice and not a penalty charge notice it is probably a cowboy clamper firm that now issue these as they cant clamp you on private land any longer. just ignore them now , I have one wher I appealed with a legit reason, they always turn down appeals and keep writing, then hand it to their non existent Legal dept who hand it to their debt enforcement dept they have no leg to stand on and rely on people getting intimidated and paying up. I saw a legal guy on tv saying there has not been a single case of one of these firms taking anyone to court as they don't want a test case as then no one would pay. . don't pay , a friend sys send it back with "NO CONTRACT" written across it, personally I prefer those huge rubber stamps you used to be able to buy , about 6" long , BOLLOCKS ! wish I could find where to get one. or even better an empty envelope smeared inside with dog shite, see how they like them apples . :evil:
 
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