Hi,
I am hoping for advice - I can see some posts about Magistrate's court over fares, but none for parking related fines.
I've received a summons to the Magistrate's court over 2 occasions on which my car was parked in a railway station carpark without a ticket on display. The TOC itself is taking me to court and there is no mention of any debt collectors or similar, although on searching through paperwork I have received 3 reminders about these occasions from 3 different companies (ZZP, Indigo) which I unfortunately did not respond to. The occasions referred to in the summons are still within the 6 month deadline and the court date is in 3 weeks (!).
I am not sure what to do when you receive an actual summons and I have a few questions please?
- The summons is for a court that is very far away from where I live. Do I get a say in where this takes place?
- The summons is for a date which I cannot make because I have a work engagement. Do I get a say in when this takes place?
- Apart from reminders of the 'fines' which were instantly raised to £100 each, I have not received any notice of an intention to prosecute or an opportunity to defend myself to the TOC (although I realise I should have asked the debt collectors questions). Have I missed a letter or is this step not necessary for a Magistrate's court? Having read this forum it appears the TOC does not have to let me know they will prosecute?
- Does anyone have any advice on what to do next? I have been told that my case is quite weak and that a magistrate would take a dim view on it. My car is parked at this station 3-4 times a week and parking is always paid for via a mobile app. On these two occasions, the mobile app (system) failed and so parking was not paid for. I have evidence that parking is paid for 3-4 times a week but no screen shots of the frozen app unfortunately.
- Is it too late to try to settle out of court? How would I go about it? The summons did not come with any information on what to do, but it did include the TOC's name with no contact name, so I thought I could maybe write to them?
Thank you for any advice in advance.
MJD-UK
I am hoping for advice - I can see some posts about Magistrate's court over fares, but none for parking related fines.
I've received a summons to the Magistrate's court over 2 occasions on which my car was parked in a railway station carpark without a ticket on display. The TOC itself is taking me to court and there is no mention of any debt collectors or similar, although on searching through paperwork I have received 3 reminders about these occasions from 3 different companies (ZZP, Indigo) which I unfortunately did not respond to. The occasions referred to in the summons are still within the 6 month deadline and the court date is in 3 weeks (!).
I am not sure what to do when you receive an actual summons and I have a few questions please?
- The summons is for a court that is very far away from where I live. Do I get a say in where this takes place?
- The summons is for a date which I cannot make because I have a work engagement. Do I get a say in when this takes place?
- Apart from reminders of the 'fines' which were instantly raised to £100 each, I have not received any notice of an intention to prosecute or an opportunity to defend myself to the TOC (although I realise I should have asked the debt collectors questions). Have I missed a letter or is this step not necessary for a Magistrate's court? Having read this forum it appears the TOC does not have to let me know they will prosecute?
- Does anyone have any advice on what to do next? I have been told that my case is quite weak and that a magistrate would take a dim view on it. My car is parked at this station 3-4 times a week and parking is always paid for via a mobile app. On these two occasions, the mobile app (system) failed and so parking was not paid for. I have evidence that parking is paid for 3-4 times a week but no screen shots of the frozen app unfortunately.
- Is it too late to try to settle out of court? How would I go about it? The summons did not come with any information on what to do, but it did include the TOC's name with no contact name, so I thought I could maybe write to them?
Thank you for any advice in advance.
MJD-UK