Got a private parking fine from parkingeye how to fight it?

Posted 19th Mar 2018
Hi

So got my first ticket fine after being careful driver for over 3 years now in fact it wasn't me, it was my OH who went to shop using my car and overstayed for around 21mins,

parking eye sent me a letter with pics of the car entering and leaving the shopping centres open air car park.

they obtained my address and name from DVLA and asked me to pay 60 quid in 14 days or pay 100 quid in 28 days.

I think it's very unfair to charge 60 quid for a 21mins overstay.

I have never been in the situation before please help.

thanks
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Dan_82's avatar
[Guide] Dealing with a Parking Eye fine

ParkingEye is the biggest private parking company in the UK, operating parking services for large retail chains like Aldi, Morrisons and Asda, as well as motorway service stations. It’s been known to dish out ‘Parking Charge Notices’ for overstaying their free limit or failing to pay the correct amount – up to £100 in some cases. It’s no surprise that this has caused its fair share of controversy online, with people questioning how best to deal with fines they’ve received.


This short guide will aim to explain how to deal with a ParkingEye fine. We’ll cover the legal basis of private fines, whether they’re enforceable and how you can appeal a Parking Eye fine you’ve received.


ParkingEye Fine – How Much Can I Be Charged?

ParkingEye typically issues a £60 ‘Parking Charge Notice’ if you’ve overstayed your free parking limit, with this rising to £100 if the fine isn’t paid in adequate time. The company is known to be stubborn when it comes to getting its notices paid – they’ve been known to send up to 9 letters to those who have violated its Terms of Services.


Appealing a Parking Eye fine

It’s possible to appeal a ParkingEye fine using their online appeals form or by writing to them directly at ParkingEye Limited, PO Box 117, Blyth, NE24 9EJ. You’ll need to outline the reasons for appealing the fine (i.e. that you didn’t exceed the free limit or paid the correct amount for parking) as well as enclose proof of this.


Getting In Contact with ParkingEye

ParkingEye only deal with appeals through either their online appeals form or via their post address. They do not deal with appeals over the phone.


Is a ParkingEye parking ticket enforceable?

The short answer to this question is yes, they are enforceable. ParkingEye is entitled to issue charge notices to motorists who have violated the rules of their property. This was even confirmed by the Supreme Court in 2015 during ‘ParkingEye vs. Beavis’.


It’s worth clarifying that ParkingEye isn’t issuing a ‘fine’ as such, as only government agencies or the police can issue fines. However, ParkingEye is able to issue a ‘charge notice’ for motorists breaching a contract on private property. When someone parks at a car park operated by PrivateEye, they have entered a contract with the company to abide by the rules of the car park. By violating these rules through overstaying or underpaying, PrivateEye can claim compensation for the damage caused by this contractual breach.


Can Parking Eye take you to court?

Yes, ParkingEye can and have taken people to court in the past for failing to pay their Parking Charge Notices. However, they have only tended to this for people with multiple outstanding notices, with some court cases involving motorists who have received hundreds of fines from ParkingEye. If you’ve only received a single notice, it’s highly unlikely that they will go to the effort of bringing you to court.


However, ParkingEye may lodge a county court judgement (CCJ) against you if you fail to pay the fine. This changes the seriousness of the fine somewhat, as it transforms the fine from a civil matter into a public matter. A CCJ means a court of law has now decided you owe ParkingEye money and failing to act on it could have consequences for your credit rating.
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  1. deleted242925's avatar
    First letter = amount plus a discount if your daft enough to pay

    Second letter = discount

    Third letter = discount in between original and second letter (will mention trying to show the court they were being kind to you)

    fourth letter = debt collection agency (owned by carpark) wanting full amount

    fifth letter = debt collection agency offering discount tells lies about how CCJ will screw your credit - this is a lie, you never OWED money to begin with which is the only thing credators care about

    sixth letter = as with parking company a mixed discount offer

    seventh letter = different debt collection agency (still owned by parking company)

    eight letter = same offer as second and threats of doorstep visits

    ninth letter = same as letter three and six


    THERE IS NO LETTER TEN because you weren't stupid enough to respond and they know your not biting, they have wasted X amount of money already on letters that could have landed on an empty doormat.


    IGNORE ALL THE THREATS OF COURT ACTION, IT'S A BLUFF! You hear about them in the paper but it's always muppets who have about 500 tickets so it's worth the court case.

    IF YOU BORROW MONEY AND DON'T PAY IT BACK THEN THAT GOES ON YOUR CREDIT RATING, RIGHTLY SO BUT THESE ARE JUST GUFF!

    Your welcome!
  2. .MUFC.'s avatar
    It's NOT a fine
  3. deleted1904229's avatar
    kos1c:

    They can take the claim further and into a high court ruling, what was a £60 billing could turn into a £1000+ billing if you ignore
    .

    Rubbish. Yes they CAN take a claim further, but not a high court ruling. It's handled at county court level, and usually IF a magistrate decides the defendant has to pay, it is usually less than what the parking company were after.
    Most cases never get that far, because the parking companies rely on people being too afraid and paying up. But for the people prepared to take it all the way to court, parking companies have a very poor record of actually turning up to courts. (edited)
  4. RarrKind's avatar
    Author
    deleted192345329/11/2019 00:39

    Comment deleted


    Again you are not reading, I started this thread last year and managed to win the case against PE, don't know why are being rude for no reason.
  5. SJHan's avatar
    A parking charge (its not a fine) should be a reasonable amount to justify the time over stayed.

    As you have pointed out. £60 for a 21 minute overstay is NOT reasonable.
    Contest the amount being requested.
  6. caverncity's avatar
    Also when appealing or going on forums about parking charges always use the words registered keeper, never admit who was driving or use me , my or I. The charge was sent to the keeper not the driver, so start with the registered keeper received a parking charge, or PCN in short and appeal using popla.
  7. paul123edwards's avatar
    As no one else has mentioned it then the best resource for this is Pepipoo (http://www.pepipoo.com/).

    It depends how much you value your time. The people on here will help but you have to be prepared to do the research and find the holes in the documents you have been sent.
  8. deleted126783's avatar
    deleted226565301/08/2019 10:00

    i have received many letters from parking eye as the registered keeper of …i have received many letters from parking eye as the registered keeper of a vehicle , however, i was not driving the car at the timei have ignored all the letters but now received the LETTER BEFORE COUNTY COURT CLAIM the driver overstayed at Welcome Break by approx an hourwhat should i do as i missed appealing to parking eye within first 28 days of notice and they claim you cant then go to POPLA to appeal


    Get the person who was driving to cough up the fine
  9. deleted80858's avatar
    RarrKind02/08/2019 10:24

    That's not very helpful is it?


    What? How isn't it helpful? Why shouldn't the fine be paid? The car over-stayed by 1 hour. Someone has to pay. If the registered keeper doesn't want to pay it then it only leaves one other person. (edited)
  10. Westwoodo's avatar
    buyer1234525/03/2020 13:48

    In my view the the guide is bang on but if anyone wants any specific …In my view the the guide is bang on but if anyone wants any specific advice they should take their own independent legal advice and not post specific questions in this forum. Don't forget this forum is public and evidence from it can be used against you in Court. No-one actually qualified to give legal advice would do so in a forum. It would result in an immediate waiver of privilege and that would be negligent in itself. In relation to all those wannabe lawyers advising people to bin letters etc your conduct is shocking. Parking Eye use a law firm (LPC Law Limited) to issue claims and do so very aggressively. One day, someone who gave bad advice in a forum like this is going to find themselves hit with a claim themselves by some poor sod who relied on it, binned the letters they received, and then lost everything as a result.


    Why have you bumped a 3 month old post?
  11. Sammy86's avatar
    Cough in an envelope and send it to them with thanks.
  12. .MUFC.'s avatar
    deleted248753529/04/2020 16:54

    So I have been informed recently I've got a ccj against me from parking eye …So I have been informed recently I've got a ccj against me from parking eye for over staying at a service station. I have never had any parking fines from this company before. Just wanted to let people know you can get a ccj from these people even if you're not a previous parking violator..


    1. They're not fines
    2. They can't issue CCJ's only the courts can.
  13. SteMoss's avatar
    It is unfair however for me personally i’d just pay the £60 and learn from it. Parkingeye will end up trying to gain a CCJ against you. Obvs there is ways to fight it but its alot of time and effort writing letters back and forth, as much as it kills me to say id just pay these parasites. 😡😡 (edited)
  14. RicknVic's avatar
    I went to Baby's R Us and spent a couple of hours choosing a pram, car seat and isofix base, had it all installed and fitted by their staff and left spending over £1000.

    Two weeks later got a parking charge letter for spending 2 hours 15 minutes in their max 2 hour car park...

    Very angry visit to Baby's R Us later, they called the parking company and got the charge cancelled.

    I received a letter a week later telling me that the charge had been cancelled.

    I would certainly attempt to talk to the retailer first as they will get this kind of complaint often.
    The manager knew exactly what the problem was when i waved the letter under his nose!
  15. sixgoldstars's avatar
    Just to add to some of the sound advice above, ignore hasnt really been the best option for a while, but I'd say doubly so with Parkingeye. They are particularly litigious - over 1,000 court claims last year and on the way to beating it this year. Appeal directly (see MSE for advice), speak to the retailer/landowner, and be prepared to go to POPLA if the first two fail.
  16. deleted2225100's avatar
    Please help! I’ve been sent a parking charge by parking Eye. I appealed and was rejected.
    I went to Premier Inn T5 on 2 occasions. Each time I went to Reception to ask about parking. Each time they took my car registration and told me there was no charge. I’ve got a parking charge for the second visit, but not the first. I’ve contacted Premier a Inn to ask them to help and they’ve refused! They’ve said their staff are trained and would never have told me that! I’m being called a liar, effectively! What can I do? This is making me ill
  17. deleted2265653's avatar
    i have received many letters from parking eye as the registered keeper of a vehicle , however, i was not driving the car at the time
    i have ignored all the letters but now received the LETTER BEFORE COUNTY COURT CLAIM
    the driver overstayed at Welcome Break by approx an hour
    what should i do as i missed appealing to parking eye within first 28 days of notice and they claim you cant then go to POPLA to appeal
  18. deleted126783's avatar
    deleted8085802/08/2019 10:47

    What? How isn't it helpful? Why shouldn't the fine be paid? The car …What? How isn't it helpful? Why shouldn't the fine be paid? The car over-stayed by 1 hour. Someone has to pay. If the registered keeper doesn't want to pay it then it only leaves one other person.



    exactly. Some people just cant accept personal responsibility and expect someone else to pay for them
  19. RarrKind's avatar
    Author
    deleted12678302/08/2019 12:40

    exactly. Some people just cant accept personal responsibility and expect …exactly. Some people just cant accept personal responsibility and expect someone else to pay for them


    I am sure there was a reason for the driver to stay over the allowed time, the charges PE makes people pay are extremely unreasonable how does it justify for them to charge £130 quid for 1 hour stay? If PE would have said ok it's a £5 hell even £10 we can justfy that but £130 is crazy .. (edited)
  20. deleted1863989's avatar
    Chuck it in the bin

    Parking Eye are a bunch Pirates
  21. MadeDixonsCry's avatar
    deleted186398902/08/2019 13:51

    Chuck it in the binParking Eye are a bunch Pirates


    Bad bad bad advice. Always appeal.
  22. deleted126783's avatar
    deleted238008826/11/2019 20:02

    Hello Everyone, As a registered keeper, my partner received a county …Hello Everyone, As a registered keeper, my partner received a county court claim asking for over £220 for an alleged overstay at a retail park by Minister Baywatch. As my partner was on a sick leave after having a major surgery at the time the PCN in question was issued and he was obviously not the driver at the time. What can he do now? It is the very 1st time he has ever received a PCN for which he is not actually liable. He is just a student in a very bad financial hardship due to been ill for more than 3 years now.Can someone please advice what he can do to avoid those parking scammers? I don't know why this scumbags are allowed to rip off everyone by introducing unfair parking services everywhere in the UK!Is there anyone who has a real experience with receiving a county court claim and ignoring them? What happened next?Your help and advice is much appreciated.


    Who was the driver at the time?
  23. Sc4mp0's avatar
    If you ignore a County Court claim you will eventually get a ccj, this is the part you don't ignore and hope it goes away.
  24. deleted104362's avatar
    Just for info - someone in Dundee ignored parking charges, went to court, and lost. Total bill £24.5k

    See thecourier.co.uk/fp/…ee/
  25. Sc4mp0's avatar
    RarrKind27/11/2019 16:17

    I made them pay £25 fee for the county, man I loved it, these robbers had …I made them pay £25 fee for the county, man I loved it, these robbers had to pay for ones and they got NADA at the end.


    I had to compromise, according to the judge they could reissue the fine with all the mistakes amended if they wanted tovbut I said if they did that I would charge them for loss of wages etc etc due to dragging me to court for no reason this first time, so we compromised that they wouldn't pursue it and I wouldn't charge them.

    Was a great feeling for sure.
  26. buyer12345's avatar
    In my view the the guide is bang on but if anyone wants any specific advice they should take their own independent legal advice and not post specific questions in this forum. Don't forget this forum is public and evidence from it can be used against you in Court. No-one actually qualified to give legal advice would do so in a forum. It would result in an immediate waiver of privilege and that would be negligent in itself.

    In relation to all those wannabe lawyers advising people to bin letters etc your conduct is shocking. Parking Eye use a law firm (LPC Law Limited) to issue claims and do so very aggressively. One day, someone who gave bad advice in a forum like this is going to find themselves hit with a claim themselves by some poor sod who relied on it, binned the letters they received, and then lost everything as a result.
  27. Oneday77's avatar
    Westwoodo25/03/2020 13:50

    Why have you bumped a 3 month old post?


    Parking Eye are feeling the strain and wanted to make people nervous?
    We can all expect new letters in the post very soon.
  28. buyer12345's avatar
    RarrKind25/03/2020 18:15

    Hold on Karen it's not a murder case and how on the world they would use …Hold on Karen it's not a murder case and how on the world they would use these posts as evidence in court?I am sorry I agree with you about not binning the letters but I think you are being too dramatic.chill


    May I ask what knowledge you have of the industry to back up what you’re saying or are you another person giving advice without the relevant expertise, thereby opening yourself up to claims and leading the poor people on here down the garden track.

    I am in the industry. I can assure you that many law firms set up google alerts against client names, defendant names, and related key words which means they receive an email when a relevant forum post is published - and yes they won’t hesitate to use those posts in court.
  29. MadeDixonsCry's avatar
    Westwoodo25/03/2020 15:34

    What are you on about?buyer12345 posted in a thread that ended 3 months …What are you on about?buyer12345 posted in a thread that ended 3 months ago adding next to nothing?


    Read between the lines, bro.
  30. RarrKind's avatar
    Author
    deleted248753529/04/2020 16:54

    So I have been informed recently I've got a ccj against me from parking eye …So I have been informed recently I've got a ccj against me from parking eye for over staying at a service station. I have never had any parking fines from this company before. Just wanted to let people know you can get a ccj from these people even if you're not a previous parking violator..


    You got CCJ from court? Did you defend it or just ignored it?
  31. buyer12345's avatar
    deleted248925501/05/2020 23:29

    Just found out after recent credit check I have a CCJ from this horrible co …Just found out after recent credit check I have a CCJ from this horrible company.Over a year ago, I had booked a hotel, parking included. On arrival the hotel was under refurb and unfortuately our room was a mess so we cancelled and left car park.Received a PCN 3 wks later, thinking it was a joke. Rang hotel, who said car park was nothing to do with them (even though I had to register the car when we arrived). Tried to contact PE directly only to find they don't do speaking (how archaic). Challenged the fine using their form, but told I still had to pay.After seeing the online forums, saying they were dodgy and advising to ignore, I ignored, especially as I had no reason to pay.My options at this point are 1) Pay the CCJ (now stands at £179). Then hope they remove the CCJ sometime in near future (no way of contacting them first)2) Apply to Nottingham council to review the CCJ (must pay £250 before they even accept your application).3) Do nothing but wait up to 6 yrs for CCJ to be removed.How is this right, how can a parking company have the power to destroy people's financial lives, especially when your not in the wrong.Sorry for my rant and appreciate worse things to worry about right now, but wanted to let others know that yes they are 'scum' but they could also do this amd ruin things for you big time. My advise, always seek legal guidance where possible.Any advice or help on how to remove my CCJ would be most welcomed.


    No-one qualified to give the advice you are seeking would do so in a public forum.

    Speak to citizens advice bureau or head to a a lawyer - most will give you 30 mins of their time for free.

    Good luck
  32. deleted1390786's avatar
    buyer1234503/05/2020 20:32

    No-one qualified to give the advice you are seeking would do so in a …No-one qualified to give the advice you are seeking would do so in a public forum.Speak to citizens advice bureau or head to a a lawyer - most will give you 30 mins of their time for free.Good luck


    why not? theres loads of solicitors/barristers and advice workers post on forums all over the world.
  33. buyer12345's avatar
    deleted139078603/05/2020 21:05

    why not? theres loads of solicitors/barristers and advice workers post on …why not? theres loads of solicitors/barristers and advice workers post on forums all over the world.


    Solicitors or barristers would not post advice on forums.

    1) it would result in an immediate waiver of legal advice privilege and their advice would become disclosable in court proceedings. This would be negligent in itself.

    2) it’s against the sra/bsb codes of conduct to advise a client without having a retainer in place

    3) their pi insurance would not cover such advice and therefore they’d be bonkers to give it.

    They may post some general articles / guides but they would never post specific advice to people.

    If you’re in a difficult legal situation please please seek advice through the proper channels. There’s plenty of good free advice out there. But it’s rarely found on public forums.
  34. maranthony's avatar
    Best way to fight this is to contact the shop you were shopping at when the fine was issued. They have contact within parkingeye and they will have it cancelled. Happened multiple times with me and got them all cancelled. No shop wants to stop their customers coming in.
  35. deleted147420's avatar
    They are bungholes, I work for ASDA and went to work in another store for a night. I received a parking ticket from them despite parking behind the the store out of their jurisdiction. All they cared about was the time i entered the car park and the time I left. Indepependant apopeal even sided with them. Numerous appeals failed and in the end my ASDA manager gave me petty cash to pay the fine which had accumulated over time. (edited)
  36. .MUFC.'s avatar
    If you're prepared to gamble you could ignore it, however they take a very small percentage to court. I've had several and ignored them all. They generally only take a few to court to make an example of and use as intimidation tactics to get you to pay. They're not fines btw, they're speculative invoices. I could write you a speculative invoice for this message but it wouldn't have any legality. You could appeal but if they refuse which they usually do then they will know they've got you and would be more likely to pester you in the future. You could go to the shop and ask the manager to cancel it as good will. That's usually the most successful way.
  37. deleted1904229's avatar
    Don't admit anything. These parking companies can only chase the driver, not the registered keeper. You are not legally obliged to name the driver. It is then up to them to prove that YOU were the driver, which obviously they cannot do.
    Also, it is worth getting in touch with the shop that the car park serves. Usually a letter from them is enough to get it binned.
    Just bear in mind that if you decide to fight it, it could be a lengthy process.
    I was in exactly the same situation, my other half was the driver at the time. It happened in 2016, and has within the last few weeks been dropped, just a couple of weeks before it was due to go to court.
    I'm no expert, and can only go on personal experience, but if you need any more advice just ask.
    Another bit of advice would be to search other forums, there is plenty of advice, template letters, and pretty much everything else you need.
  38. Will3691's avatar
    I got a fine from parking eye about a year ago. I appealed to them stating that I was legitimately using the shops on site and attached copies of my receipts. I also stated that I was a regular visitor to the shops on site and that for the number of shops the time period allowed wasn't long enough. I politely asked them to drop the charge and they did. From what I remember the 14 day time period was stopped whilst my appeal was considered.
  39. caverncity's avatar
    Firstly it is not a fine, it's a charge for over staying your welcome. If you have receipts for any of the shops that the carpark services then use the appeal and you will more than likely get it cancelled. If no receipt then prepare for a lot of googling, reading and writing over a long period that is very mundane and even then you may not get it cancelled. There is also a probability with parking eye you will get taken to court and even then if you lose and fully pay including any costs you won't get a ccj, you only get that if you don't pay. Parking eye have won and lost. I fought four parking tickets and won three the last one I started to fight it but in the end because of the time it was taking I told my daughter to pay up as this was her third, she wasn't learning. None of the tickets where mine by the way hence why I got fed up.
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