I recently received a telephone call for advice from an anxious relative. You will have to excuse the lack of detail as I was asleep at the time but the general story was this.
He had a letter from a company I believe called Security International somewhere on the South coast stating that his car ( the make and reg. no. were on the letter ) had been illegally parked on December 29th 2000 somewhere else down South and as a result had been clamped. The clamp had been removed without authorisation and as a consequence he as to pay a £30 fine. If he did not comply proceedings would be commenced. Replys were to be sent to a PO box number.
We live in the North. He had been nowhere near the South of England at that time. I advised him to place the letter in file 13 ( the bin ) but on second thoughts to visit his local Police Station to either validate the company or pass on intelligence to the relevent Constabulary, if this was indeed a scam.
What did cross my mind was that the company may be bona fide, disagreeable as we may find the practice of extortion ( I mean clamping ). In which case there is a cloned car running round in the South. More sinister if this infact a scam where did they get the registered keeper details from? Surely not DVLA!!
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This really does sound like a scam by one of those dodgy private clamping companies. Ask for further details - where was the car allegedly park, what time, what was the date, name of place, who witness the clamp being removed etc. In other words, put the ball in their court and get them to justify the demand for the £30.
I can't believe that they would want £30 for a removed / missing clamp. Those things cost more than that. Sounds suspicious. Besides, removing a clamp without authorisation can amount to criminal damage / trespass to property.
The company would be completely stupid to issue court proceedings over £30. The management time and legal cost to them wouldn't justify the monies recovered.
Sit tight and see what happens.
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David thanks for your info from Companies House. I am now in possesion of the full facts. The alledged incident occured in Esher. The payment request is for £50 not £30. The company is Security International Group, PO box 497,Southampton and is part of Security International Parking Ltd , Pinner, Middx. which ties in with your info. So the company appears bonafide. My relative did ring a telephone number provided (mobile), explained the situation. They said they would send a photograph of the incident. The plot thickens. Appears there may be a cloned car down there.
Interesting though. Wonder how they got the clamp off??? As I see it if it was undamaged its not Criminal Damage and if they did not take it then its not Theft. Dont know about Civil Trespass though.
Still not keen on the idea of DVLA so readily providing keeper details though.
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Here's their Companies House info:-
Name & Registered Office :
SECURITY INTERNATIONAL LIMITED
7-9 SWALLOW STREET
LONDON
W1R 8DT
Status : Active
Company No. : 01675140
Date of Incorporation : 02/11/1982
Country of Origin : United Kingdom
Company Type: Private Limited Company
Nature Of Business (SIC(92)):
7484 - other business activities
Accounting Reference Date : 31/03
Last Accounts Made Up To : 31/03/2000 (SMALL)
Next Accounts Due : 31/01/2002
Last Return Made Up To : 31/03/2000
Next Return Due : 28/04/2001
Last Members List : 31/03/2000
Fiche Weeded On : 02/03/1998
Name & Registered Office :
SECURITY INTERNATIONAL PARKING MANAGEMENT LTD
PARKVILLE HOUSE
RED LION PARADE
BRIDGE STREET PINNER
MIDDLESEX HA5 3JD
Status : Active
Company No. : 03141993
Date of Incorporation : 28/12/1995
Country of Origin : United Kingdom
Company Type: Private Limited Company
Nature Of Business (SIC(92)):
7484 - other business activities
Accounting Reference Date : 31/03
Last Accounts Made Up To : 31/03/2000 (SMALL)
Next Accounts Due : 31/01/2002
Last Return Made Up To : 28/12/2000
Next Return Due : 25/01/2002
Last Members List : 28/12/2000
Previous Names
Date of Change : Previous Name :
24/03/1998 INTERNATIONAL SECURITY LIMITED
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Registered keeper details are readily available. Every insurance company and broker has instant access to all vehicle and keeper information, so I imagine dodgy firms and individuals do too. If I were an enterprising burglar instead of just an honest citzen I'd look out for expensive cars obviously carrying the family on holiday, and then go and clear their house at leisure.
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Just what is the law (e.g. Data Protection Act) on disclosure of registered keeper details?
Insurance companies have access to them, but may they lawfully disclose them to others, e.g. a policyholder?
A wide range of criminal uses comes to mind, including stalking if sight of someone driving a car could (via the registration number) lead to knowledge of their home address.
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I know that International Security Limited is a genuine company because I had dealings with them myself, and eventually recovered a £100 clamping fee from the landowners who employed International Security. But I think that what has happened in this case is either that the wrong registration was written down, or that Andrew's relative's registration has been cloned. Cloning is on the increase because for some people the benefits of not getting speed camera tickets outweigh the risk of severe penalties if they are stopped by the police and found to be running on false plates.
HJ
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It's not just keeper information, it's personal information about every single licence holder. When I rang my insurance broker to add a friend's name to the policy for a fortnight, all they wanted was name and D.O.B. She has lived abroad for 10 years and has never had a UK insurance policy, yet within seconds the broker knew her licence details, convictions record, and UK contact address.
I assume that this kind of information is therefore available to all and sundry, via friends of friends, hackers, etc.
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What price the Data Protection Act?
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You certainly learn things on this website!
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let us know how you progress
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Andrew, I would sit tight and wait and see what they send you. However, I would try and limit all contact with them to correspondence because this will act as a documentary record of your discussions with the Cmpany. If you contact them by mobile, there's always room for dispute about what was discussed, what was agreed etc.
I would write to them to confirm all telephone discussions eg. "Further, to our telephone conversation on [date] I confirm that you informed me that you will be sending a photograph to me etc etc. Please also notify me of the time, date, place (by reference to street name, area and postcode) at which the alleged parking offence was committed etc"
I wouldn't commit yourself to anything at this stage and I would try and keep your correspondence professional and non-personal (assume that the court is going to see all correspondence - it won't create a good impression of you if you start ranting in letters saying that they are clamping cowboys!)
Once, you've got as much info as you can (photo, time, date etc) see if you can get some rebuttal evidence from your relative. Where were they at the time? Any other witnesses to verify your relative's whereabouts at the time? Then write a objective / professional letter denying the offence and give (brief) factual details of the grounds on which you deny their claim.
If you want some help drafting the correspondence / court documentation let me - don't ask me what my job is!
I still think it would be stupid of them to issue Court proceedings for £50. Legal costs for small claims are not recoverable (small claims are claims less than £5000) and the only monies they could recover if they succeded would be the £50 and the Court issue fee. Also, Court proceedings are usually transferred to the Defendent's home court - if they are based in London are they really going to spend the management time, legal and travelling costs to send someone up to wherever it is that you live up North? If they are going to chase you through the courts, it is very unlikely that they would use solicitors. They are more likely to use a debt recovery firm, which (in my opinion) makes them even more dodgy.
There are quite a few dodgy companies around that send out demands for this that and the other in the hope that people can't be bothered with the hassle of disputing it / the threat of court proceedings etc. If you're not bothered about the hassle of Court proceedings, you should dispute the alleged parking offence. Court proceedings for something like this are really nothing to worry about - the small claims court is fairly informal and you won't see Rumple of the Old Bailey types in wigs and gowns.
Sit tight, get the correspondence going, build up a picture and take a view on this.
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Reminds me of a 18 months/two years ago when I recieved a 'threatening' letter from Havering Council claiming my car had been parked illegally in their borough. As I live 150 miles away from the area and had never been there in my life I was not too happy. After sending several letters stating they had made a mistake and demanding to know what 'evidence' they had (their form gave no vehicle details, etc), I was eventually told they would drop the charges. How kind of them (!)
However, try as I might they would not give any explanation or apology for their actions. So don't think that a local authority is any more accountable or professional in this regard than a bunch of clamping gangsters. It would have at least been useful to know if there was a 'cloned' car, so that I could have informed the Police...
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With the proliferation of speed cameras I think that we are going to see quite an increase in the number of cloned cars. I have already got mine lined up, P 585 HMH.
We might also see some of the new speed cameras receiving an extra coat of paint, courtesy of the public!.
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