Ashley Pavett was enjoying a coffee at a Costa last April when he overstayed the 90-minute limit and was slapped with a £60 parking fine – but it was worse than he thought
A man who overstayed his parking time by just 10 minutes at a retail park in Wales has revealed how the minor infraction led to him struggling to rent a house, despite paying the fine within 14 days.
Ashley Pavett had anticipated receiving the parking fine through the post in April last year when he exceeded the 90-minute limit outside Costa Coffee in Green Meadow, Pontyclun.
As expected, on April 16 2024, five days after the minor parking offence, the £60 fine arrived in the post and Ashley promptly paid it on April 30, believing the issue was settled. “I was a bit frustrated but I paid it and moved on,” he said.
However, in October, Ashley’s former landlord contacted him about an urgent letter that had arrived for him. To his surprise, it was a new fine from Parking Eye, the company that manages the car park at Green Meadow.
The letter, which contained errors and referred to Pontyclun as Pontyclundy, informed Ashley that the parking firm had been granted a county court judgement (CCJ) against him.
A County Court Judgement (CCJ) is issued when an individual fails to respond to a court action taken against them for alleged unpaid debts. In Ashley’s case, the court erroneously decided he owed money, which can negatively impact his credit score and make it challenging to secure loans or credit, reports Wales Online.
Ashley revealed that this situation caused him “all kinds of issues”. “The default CCJ was for £192,” Ashley clarified.
“To start with I had no idea what it was for. I decided that I’d just pay the £192 and then try and sort it out after that and if it was a mistake I’d get a refund. So I paid it and then started contacting them to try and get to the bottom of it.”
Ashley discovered that Parking Eye believed he hadn’t paid for a parking offence in April, leading to additional fines sent to his old address. When Ashley didn’t respond, it sought a CCJ against him.
However, WalesOnline has seen correspondence from Parking Eye confirming that Ashley did indeed make the payment in April.
Ashley lamented the impact of a CCJ on his life, saying: “I was £252 out of pocket, which is one thing, but the worst of it was what I’ve suffered with as a result of the CCJ,” and detailed the consequences: “I haven’t been able to rent a property because of it. If I wasn’t honest with my employer about the CCJ and how it came about, I could have ended up losing my job. My score on Experian has plummeted by around 500 points. All because of this CCJ which is for a parking fine in April which I paid for properly. I’ve literally done nothing wrong.”
After seeking help from the British Parking Association, Ashley received a letter from Parking Eye on January 20, acknowledging the discovery of his original payment made on April 30 last year. The company agreed to set aside his CCJ and refund him £192, plus the initial parking fine as a goodwill gesture.
Having received the £192, Ashley expressed his ongoing distress: “This has affected me so much, it’s really caused chaos in my life. I do feel like I am owed some sort of remuneration [beyond what he’s received this week]. Ultimately I paid that charge. It was their administrative error which caused all this. To be honest the damage they’ve caused me is well beyond £252.”
According to a Parking Eye spokesperson, the company has been unable to locate any evidence of Ashley’s payment. The spokesperson explained: “We provide car park management services at the Costa Coffee in Green Meadow.
“The car park features prominent and highly visible signs throughout, providing information on how to use the car park responsibly. This includes guidance on how all Costa and Green Meadow customers have a 90-minute maximum stay and there is a no return for two hours.
“The motorist received a parking charge for parking for one hour and 40 minutes. We have no record of the motorist making a successful payment of the parking charge on April 30. As the UK’s leading car park management provider, we process a significant volume of payments every year and have robust systems in place for tracking and traceability. It is also worth noting that all correspondence went to the vehicle’s registered address.”