Car park fine and debt recovery agents?

[Taipan]

my Daughter got a car park fine at the train station, which she claims shes paid. The car park people said no payment was made that day, but my daughter maintains she did pay it but it never left her bank until the next day? She's supposed to have gathered more info but has taken too long and got another letter where its gone up. She has eventually rung them, but they won't take payment now, saying they've passed it to a debt recovery agency (Bailiffs?) and she has to pay them. Does anyone know for sure if a debt like this be passed to a debt recovery agent without a court judgment being made?
Thanks

[Count Steer]

It sounds like they've sold the debt on. The 'debt recovery agency' basically buy eg £10k of debt for, say, £5k* on the basis that if they recover over 50% they're in profit. The parking outfit get 50% but have got rid of the hassle of collection. Your daughter can't pay the parking people as it's not their debt now.

It's pretty common practice and it stinks. I don't think they need any authority to do it but I still think that the 'debt recovery' shysters can't send bailiffs anywhere without some court judgement or other but will happily threaten people with them...Citizens Advice will know more.

*probably less.

[Cousin Jack]

As Count says above, sold on to someone else. They can do this, no court action necessary BUT the people trying to collect it are NOT bailiffs, they have no powers whatsoever, and you can tell them to piss off. You owe them money, but all they can do is ask you to pay it. They will jack the price up every time they do something (and they can) but a real bailiff can only act AFTER a CCJ. If she really has paid it, and has evidence, tell them she will see them in court.

They rarely do take people to court, but if they do, and she hasn't got solid evidence that she has paid, it could be a bit expensive.

[ChrisW]

If the Car Park that originally fined her has sold the debt on then presumably they'll be refunding the payment she sent them?

[Yorick]

I blame the parents. Bloody riff raff.

[Taipan]

As Count says above, sold on to someone else. They can do this, no court action necessary BUT the people trying to collect it are NOT bailiffs, they have no powers whatsoever, and you can tell them to piss off. You owe them money, but all they can do is ask you to pay it. They will jack the price up every time they do something (and they can) but a real bailiff can only act AFTER a CCJ. If she really has paid it, and has evidence, tell them she will see them in court.

They rarely do take people to court, but if they do, and she hasn't got solid evidence that she has paid, it could be a bit expensive.

I don't believe it was passed to anyone else, just a different name along the line in the same company. Anyway, I told her they cant seize goods etc, but she had spoken to the company who miraculously got it back from the debt collection agency and now shes paid it. She had paid the daily fee but they weren't accepting it? I said I'd stake it to go to court and we'd counter but she's paid the thieving bastards £100 now!

Digging deeper, I found this all got this far because her car is still registered at our address and she only picks letters up when shes passing. I have now found her V5 and changed it to her new address online. I'll now consider the £100 a stupid tax. But it does turn out the company has form for doing this. Well, until the next time NCP, until the next time...

[Mussels]

I had something similar last year, I did drop offs and pick ups at the train station but their sub-standard anpr would miss me leaving and coming back some days so decided I had been there for hours.
The first letter I had was saying it took them so long to find me that I had lost the right to appeal and I owed them £170, as expected the parking company made it impossible to contact them apart from payment. So I got onto the train company asking them to sack the deliberately incompetent scammers, only then did I get a response from the parking company saying I was right and all the fines will be cancelled. I still got a couple of collection letters after that but now nothing for a few months.

I wanted to complain to the appeals service but they wouldn't listen until I'd provide them with a stalemate letter from the parking company, which I didn't have as the parking company wouldn't talk to me apart from payment demands.
So much for making the system fairer, they are still a load of scam artists.

[Taipan]

They are indeed scam artists. I'm trying to get to the bottom of this payment cock up as I want her £100 back, but she wants me to leave it and is getting upset. But if she paid it, and her bank statement confirms it, i cant see how they can say they didn't get it in the allowed time! Same happened to her mate and kelevedon station have a users group that apparently moan about it but nothings gets done about it!

My Son had this years ago. He stopped next to some private land, not on it, but they issued him a fine. I did the totally ignore thing but did eventually get a summons from them. I replied to the summons saying this was the first and only communication from the company and requested evidence and never heard anymore. Which was a relief as I'd staked my Son in it and was getting a tad nervous when the summons thing arrived! Phew!

[Mussels]

It looks like there's a new scam in town, I've just seen this on the local news.
A private enforcement company employed by a council to combat fly tipping had fined a company £400 because a box with it's address on was found in a litter bin.
The council insists this is fly tipping despite the company having no idea who had put the rubbish neatly in a bin.

[Yorick]

It looks like there's a new scam in town, I've just seen this on the local news.
A private enforcement company employed by a council to combat fly tipping had fined a company £400 because a box with it's address on was found in a litter bin.
The council insists this is fly tipping despite the company having no idea who had put the rubbish neatly in a bin.

Next they'll be fining Heinz when they find an old bean tin

[Yorick]

Surely private companies cannot issue 'fines' ?

[Cousin Jack]

Surely private companies cannot issue 'fines' ?

No they cant, but they send an invoice that pretends to be some sort of official penalty notice.

[Mussels]

Surely private companies cannot issue 'fines' ?

They are employed by the council so are probably paid for each offender they identify, then the council send fines out.

Or as CJ suggested it wasn't a fine and the news got it wrong.

[demographic]

Part of the scam is when or if they threaten to take you to court its often at a fucking backwater at the arse end of the country and most people will pay up to avoid going to bloody Norwich or whatever.

[cheb]

And rely on people not knowing they can ask for the case to heard at their local court.

[Cousin Jack]

As Cheb said, you can always ask for it local to you. IIRC everything done via the Small Claims track is initially set up for somewhere weird that deals with everything by post. They actually expect people who want to contest a claim to ask for it to be moved. And it is the defendant who gets the choice if both parties want it dealt with in court and each want different places.

[ZRX61]

I would have spoke to the debt collectors once, only to tell them to fuck off, then invoiced them £500 for dealing with each letter they sent... & any contact by them after you sent the invoice would be seen as them agreeing to pay the £500.

Bit late now they have the £100

[David]

I have always dealt with parking notices by ignoring them. They do have some power to follow up now, but I would still ignore them.

[Count Steer]

Problem with ignoring them is if they put a serious dent in your credit rating. (Should you ever need credit, to rent a property or a loan).

[Mussels]

Problem with ignoring them is if they put a serious dent in your credit rating. (Should you ever need credit, to rent a property or a loan).

How does it affect credit rating, CCJ?