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If you have a ticket from a private parking company you have committed no offence and have been ticketed by a private company whose tickets have no validity unless a case is brought at the expense of the issuer in a civil court.

Under no circumstances pay them anything for pictures or get involved in any so-called "appeals procedure" nor should you disclose who was driving at the time.

The "charge" is alleged under contract law. What you have is a bill (which you can contest) from a private parking company who allege you have breached their terms and conditions by parking and/or overstaying on one of the sites they manage. It has no status in law.

These matters are covered by contract law and so they need to prove a contract has first been created and then that you have breached it. They attempt to create the contract by the signage they erect which should be clear in content and also unmissable. You should not have been able to enter or leave the car park without seeing the signs. If you entered the car park and left immediately on seeing the signs the court might agree that this was because you didn't wish to enter the contract.

The terms of the contract need to be set out in detail on the signs along with the penalty for the breach. If you believe you did not breach the contract as outlined on the signs then you would have an excellent chance of winning in court if it ever got that far. Similarly if the parking company are attempting to fine the keeper of the vehicle but they were not the driver then the case would fall unless they could be shown to be definitely in the vehicle and thus a party to the contract. You have no responsibility to tell them who was driving (even if it was you).

With reference to the cost of breaching the contract then the law is clear that any penalty should be defined beforehand and should not be punitive. The courts would usually seek that this was broadly in line with the loss to the company and the reasonable cost of enforcement and may well require that they prove this.

The reality is that they will almost certainly not attempt to enforce against you through the courts. They realise that the court is the first place you will get a fair hearing and that is the last thing they want.

Instead they will use debt collectors who will endlessly threaten imminent litigation, references to credit agencies, personal visits, bailiffs and the sky falling on your head. However these companies are mainly "letter factories" and it is very unlikely any of this will actually turn up. There is no possibility of any credit reference agency taking any debt claimed by such companies seriously unless they can obtain a CCJ against you.

Try adapting and using our free response letter and under no circumstances relent.

If the barrage of correspondence and threats becomes too much you need our premium Ticketshield service when our solicitors will take over your case and handle them on your behalf...