Lease company paid PCN before telling me
Discussion
I've received in the post an invoice from the lease company. What I've been sent, specifically is:
A photocopy of the PCN (front page only, not the back)
Invoice
- page one shows the total
- page two shows the breakdown
The total invoice is for £107 made up of £65 PCN, £35 admin charge and £7 VAT
Surely the first step for the lease company is to identify the driver of the vehicle / registered keeper to redirect the PCN, not pay the fine and then add an admin charge? What - if any - are the legalities of that?
Because the fine has been paid I've lost my right to appeal, which I definitely would have done.
What are the legalities of the "admin charge"? Can this be challenged in the same way that excessive Parking Charge Notices are reigned in as not proportionate to loss?
Surely any admin cost would be significantly less if they simply returned the PCN identifying the driver, than paying the fine and invoicing me?
A photocopy of the PCN (front page only, not the back)
Invoice
- page one shows the total
- page two shows the breakdown
The total invoice is for £107 made up of £65 PCN, £35 admin charge and £7 VAT
Surely the first step for the lease company is to identify the driver of the vehicle / registered keeper to redirect the PCN, not pay the fine and then add an admin charge? What - if any - are the legalities of that?
Because the fine has been paid I've lost my right to appeal, which I definitely would have done.
What are the legalities of the "admin charge"? Can this be challenged in the same way that excessive Parking Charge Notices are reigned in as not proportionate to loss?
Surely any admin cost would be significantly less if they simply returned the PCN identifying the driver, than paying the fine and invoicing me?
AGK said:
What do your lease terms and conditions say?
That's a very good question. I don't have the contract with me at the moment (it wasn't emailed), but I will check tonight. FWIW the contract / order from the lease company / broker says excess mileage is 12.8p per mile.
What is actually in the actual leasor is different to that and is what I was actually what I was charged. Yet another reason not to believe a word leasing4U tell you.
Whether this is in the T&Cs or not surely someone must have challenged it by now.
How can I be found guilty of an offence without my consent or knowledge?
This time it was a bus lane infringement, so *only* a fine, but what if points are involved?
What if the car's number plates are cloned whether it's this offence or something much more serious?
How can I be found guilty of an offence without my consent or knowledge?
This time it was a bus lane infringement, so *only* a fine, but what if points are involved?
What if the car's number plates are cloned whether it's this offence or something much more serious?
TooMany2cvs said:
No difference to a hire car, surely?
Anyway, did you do it?
Not sure how it would work with a hire car, if contacted surely they would redirect a PCN to the person who had the hire car on the day? In this case, they'd have a much smaller database as this is a 2 year lease to one person, not a hire to up to 365 people in a year.Anyway, did you do it?
I don't know if I did it because I don't have the information to check all the facts. In general I don't drive in bus lanes unless I know it's out of hours.
My questions are specifically about the £35 + VAT admin charge versus actual costs incurred, and
Whether a third party can remove my right to appeal / should not identify the driver.
Colleague had this with a company car.
Lease co paid for it automatically then she received a letter from HR saying her pay would be docked fine amount + handling fee.
She asked for a copy of the Invoice and contested it successfully, this was then refunded to the company before he pay was docked. I expect you'll have a similar process to follow, ask for the invoice and then contest if required.
Lease co paid for it automatically then she received a letter from HR saying her pay would be docked fine amount + handling fee.
She asked for a copy of the Invoice and contested it successfully, this was then refunded to the company before he pay was docked. I expect you'll have a similar process to follow, ask for the invoice and then contest if required.
Only thing to do is read the contract. IIRC when I leased the contract stated that in the event of a speeding or parking ticket that the full cost of the ticket would be passed on to me plus an administration charge. You could always phone your lease company and tell them you dispute the ticket, see what they say.
Hire car companies charge you for supplying drivers details, whether you are consequently found guilty or not.
Parking Eye made an error and requested a friend's details, so £30 was debited from her credit card.
When she pointed out she had not visited the location named, she was told to take it up with Parking Eye... including their fee for furnishing PE with the details!
Appeal was successful, but PE refused to refund the £30!
Parking Eye made an error and requested a friend's details, so £30 was debited from her credit card.
When she pointed out she had not visited the location named, she was told to take it up with Parking Eye... including their fee for furnishing PE with the details!
Appeal was successful, but PE refused to refund the £30!
If the leasing company is a member of the BVRLA, they should have passed on the driver/hirer details in line with the their own Memorandum of Understanding with the BPA.
The problem you may find is that as the ticket has been paid, the PPC will not be interested in resolving it, it can't go to POPLA/Ombudsman for appeal as it has been paid, and you are left out of pocket.
It is worth checking if your lease specifically mentions Parking "charges" rather than parking "fines/offences" - the latter is more commonly referred to in leases, but what you/your leasing company have received is pretty much an unsolicited invoice.
The problem you may find is that as the ticket has been paid, the PPC will not be interested in resolving it, it can't go to POPLA/Ombudsman for appeal as it has been paid, and you are left out of pocket.
It is worth checking if your lease specifically mentions Parking "charges" rather than parking "fines/offences" - the latter is more commonly referred to in leases, but what you/your leasing company have received is pretty much an unsolicited invoice.
This perfectly normal for leasing companies with parking fines. The issue they have is that most parking fines double if not paid within 14 days or whatever, so if they don't pay it the driver refuses to pay the enhanced cost because he says it's not his fault he didn't get the info in time.
Given most leased cars or company cars. Lease form tell company HQ, they tell regional office, they tell allocated driver, he tells his workmate who was driving the vehicle at the time, by which time the 14 days are long past.
So the lease firm are stuck between annoying drivers by paying fines they feel are unjust, or annoying drivers but not paying upfront and thus incurring a higher fine.
It's usually in the Ts & Cs.
Given most leased cars or company cars. Lease form tell company HQ, they tell regional office, they tell allocated driver, he tells his workmate who was driving the vehicle at the time, by which time the 14 days are long past.
So the lease firm are stuck between annoying drivers by paying fines they feel are unjust, or annoying drivers but not paying upfront and thus incurring a higher fine.
It's usually in the Ts & Cs.
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