FAQs

FAQs

Welcome to ZZPS Limited's page of Frequently Asked Questions

Parking Charge FAQs

A Parking Charge is issued to a vehicle parked in breach of the Terms and Conditions of parking on private land. This is not to be confused with a Penalty Charge Notice – it is, in this context, a Parking Charge. It can be affixed to a vehicle or can be sent through the post. The notice issued to the driver of the vehicle explains the time frames for payment, how payment can be made and also how to appeal the parking charge. Both payments and appeals can be made by post or online.

Parking on private land is either permitted or restricted by a landowner. The landowner can protect the land through contract and/or trespass law. In most cases, contract law will prevail. In relation to parking, Terms & Conditions (T&Cs) of parking are displayed by way of signage, and a contract is formed if the driver accepts the terms as displayed. A Parking Charge is issued if the T&Cs are breached.

If you have received a Penalty Notice, it is because the private land in question is being managed under Railway Byelaws; the Protection of Freedoms Act does not apply in this instance, and the Owner of the vehicle is liable for the penalty.

NTO stands for Notice to Owner, NTK stands for Notice to Keeper, and is a notice that is sent to the registered keeper after a Parking Charge has been issued and if it has not already been paid. It is written confirmation to a Registered Keeper that the Parking Charge is still outstanding and will also provide details of the choices available in order to deal with the Parking Charge.

If an NTK is ignored, processes are instigated to collect the money due on the outstanding Parking Charge. It is possible that the value of the Parking Charge will be increased as a result. Contrary to the advice given on various forums, ignoring a Parking Charge issued on private land is not the best course of action. If you feel you have been issued with a Parking Charge incorrectly, the best thing to do is to contact us.  Do not just ignore your Parking Charge, get in touch with us.

The driver of the vehicle is responsible for payment. In certain circumstances, liability can pass to the Registered Keeper. If the Registered Keeper indicates that another person is responsible, further enquiries will be made.

Yes. A Judgment handed down by the Supreme Court (Parking Eye v Beavis) on 04 November 2015 confirms parking regimes which impose charges where motorists overstay or breach the terms of their contractual licence to park are enforceable charges. A copy of the Judgment is available here.

You should not ignore the notice, if you do the amount due may increase. Instructions on what to do will be shown on the Parking Charge. You should contact us and explain your reasons for any dispute. If you appeal within the time limit stipulated, you will have a further opportunity to pay at the reduced rate.

For Parking Charges issued after 1 October 2012 an independent appeals service has been established and is available if you have been provided with a unique IAS number.

POPLA stands for Parking on Private Land Appeals and is an independent appeals service funded by operators that are members of the British Parking Association.

The IAS is an acronym for the ‘Independent Appeals Service’ and is provided by the International Parking Community , ‘IPC’.

If you lose your appeal, you should pay the Parking Charge. If you refuse, the amount of the Parking Charge may increase and legal action may be taken to recover the amount of money due.

Your attention is drawn to the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 and in particular Section 56 and Schedule 4. If you have received a Penalty Notice, please refer to the Railway Byelaws.

We advise you to pay. If you do not, then the matter may be passed to our solicitors, and the balance may increase as a result. If you have a legitimate reason for non-payment, get in touch with us.

For more parking related information visit http://www.knowyourparkingrights.org/.
 
If you can’t find the answer you’re looking for, please feel free to contact us.

Utility Debt FAQs

We’re a debt collection agency working on behalf of SSE.

We are members of the Credit Services Association (CSA) so you can be confident that we will always act in a professional and compliant manner. Our staff are specialists and will work with you to find the most appropriate solution for your needs.

We’ll be flexible to your circumstances and adapt our approach to suit your current situation.

Please contact us as soon as possible to prevent any unnecessary action and for us to assist you in resolving the matter. Please provide any supporting information you may have to enable us to consider your dispute.

Please call us on 01932 242343 to tell us and we will act sensitively and sympathetically to your situation. Alternatively, and only with your permission, we may be able to deal with a third party acting on your behalf. Please view our Independent Debt Advice section.

If your debt is being handled by a debt management company or debt counsellor, then please pass them a copy of our letter and we will be happy to work directly with them.

Please go to our Independent Debt Help for links to free debt advice services.

Yes, we’re happy to liaise with anyone you choose to act on your behalf – we’ll just need your permission to share your information with them first, and details of what information you’re happy for us to share with them. We work with debt management companies, charities, money advice services and also partners, family and friends who are helping our customers with their finances.

If you receive a letter from us, please do get in contact with us using any of the contact options found on your letter or by calling 01932 242343 to speak to us over the phone; one of our customer service advisors will be on hand to assist you.

Yes, all telephone calls are recorded for training and monitoring purposes, however, call recordings are paused to ensure we do not store your card details.

Yes, we can; you can contact one of our Customer Service Agents who will be happy to help you complete an Income and Expenditure form over the phone on 01932 242343.

ZZPS is registered with the Information Commissioners Office for the purpose of data protection. It is important that our Customer Agents confirm that they are talking to the correct person, the account holder, before discussing the matter.

Please contact SSE Homemoves  on 0345 0729395 where a member of the team will be able to assist you.

The amount outstanding for the gas/electric you have used is against your name, not the property. If you move address, the debt will remain outstanding against your name until the balance is resolved.

Please contact SSE Homemoves on 03450 729395 where a member of the Homemoves team will be happy to help.

Details of how ZZPS processes customer personal details are stated in our Privacy Policy.

No, we will never be responsible for stopping the flow of Gas or Electric to your property, however, SSE may choose to take legal action.

We do not refer to Credit Reference Agencies, however, if the matter proceeds to litigation and a CCJ is issued then your credit will be affected.

SSE does, however, share data with Credit Reference Agencies.

This information is used to compile your credit file and may be accessed by other organisations to make decisions about you when applying for credit.

No, any payments made to ZZPS will be allocated to the debt in question only.

Any ongoing usage will need to be resolved with SSE directly.

There is no need to do anything, SSE will contact us directly to let us know the balance is no longer outstanding.

Enforcement Agents FAQs

A Certificated Enforcement Agent “CEA” (previously known as a “Bailiff”) is someone who has been certificated by the County Court which provides them the legal ability to collect certain debts.

These debts may be collected by a CEA whereby the amount is requested in writing, in person, and/or goods may be removed and sold by a CEA to pay off the debt.

The types of debt a CEA can collect include;

  • Council Tax and Business Rates
  • Parking penalties (issued by a local authority)
  • County Court Judgements (CCJs)
  • High Court Judgements
  • Magistrates’ Court Fines and Compensation Orders
  • Child Support
  • Maintenance
  • Income Tax, National Insurance and VAT
  • Commercial/Business Rent

A CEA will look for items that can be sold to pay off your debt, these can include items such as motor vehicles, jewellery, furniture, and/or electrical goods, however, there are certain items that must not be taken.

Items that must not be taken would include household items, such as, a cooker/microwave, fridge, washing machine, landline or mobile phone, beds and bedding for everyone in your house, appliances used to heat and light your house, medical or care equipment, and a dining table and chairs for everyone in your house.

There are also items that are protected which cannot be taken. These include items owned wholly by someone else, pets and assistance dogs, items bought on a hire purchase agreement where the final payment has not been made, tools, books, or other equipment that is essential to your job or study (up to a maximum of £1,350), permanent fixtures in your property, e.g., built in wardrobe, kitchen unit. Or goods you are currently using, e.g., a motor vehicle or machinery (a CEA may return for these items on another day).

You will first have a written notification (normally a letter sent by post) if a CEA is to visit your property, this is called a Notice of Enforcement and is sent with a minimum of 7 days’ notice.

It would be advisable to arrange to pay the debt in full or in instalments prior to the scheduled visit as these visits may cause some unintentional distress to you and/or anyone else in your household.

If a CEA does visit your property, they must inform you of the reason they are there and would ask you to pay the amount owed.

Unless they have been given your permission, they are not allowed to enter your property. If you do allow them permission, they will enter and make a list of the items that can be removed and sold if you do not make payment. These items aren’t normally removed straight away as you will be given the chance to arrange/make a payment towards the debt. If payment is not arranged/made then a CEA can return and remove the items from your property and would be allowed to use force to enter.