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| Parking fine man received £20,000 | |
| (about 8 hours later) | |
| A man was awarded £20,000 in damages after claiming he was distressed by parking fines totalling £200. | A man was awarded £20,000 in damages after claiming he was distressed by parking fines totalling £200. |
| Z-Un Noon, from Tower Hamlets, east London, refused to pay four £50 fines to Newham Council and took the council to court claiming emotional distress. | Z-Un Noon, from Tower Hamlets, east London, refused to pay four £50 fines to Newham Council and took the council to court claiming emotional distress. |
| When a council representative failed to appear Mr Noon was given judgement by default and awarded £5,000 per ticket. | When a council representative failed to appear Mr Noon was given judgement by default and awarded £5,000 per ticket. |
| The council said it had not received the court summons and Mr Noon has since been ordered to repay the £20,000. | |
| The council initially fined Mr Noon £50 for committing a parking offence in October 2007. | The council initially fined Mr Noon £50 for committing a parking offence in October 2007. |
| After he refused to pay, the council enlisted the help of bailiffs and the case was closed. | After he refused to pay, the council enlisted the help of bailiffs and the case was closed. |
| Computers seized | Computers seized |
| However, when Mr Noon received a further three parking fines he pursued damages for emotional distress in county court. | However, when Mr Noon received a further three parking fines he pursued damages for emotional distress in county court. |
| The court ruled in his favour in the council's absence, and bailiffs were sent to retrieve the £20,000 from the council. | The court ruled in his favour in the council's absence, and bailiffs were sent to retrieve the £20,000 from the council. |
| This was just an abuse of the whole legal system Newham Council | This was just an abuse of the whole legal system Newham Council |
| "We first heard about the case when bailiffs came into our parking shop in East Ham," said a council spokeswoman. | |
| "They began to unplug our computers and take them away. We agreed to pay them to prevent them unplugging an important file server." | |
| She added: "If we had been aware of the case, of course we would have made representations in court. We would not have just ignored something like this." | She added: "If we had been aware of the case, of course we would have made representations in court. We would not have just ignored something like this." |
| However, last month Bow County Court ruled in the council's favour and Mr Noon has now been ordered to repay the £20,000 plus £7,500 in costs. | |
| "There is a standard procedure for challenging parking fines," the council spokeswoman said. | "There is a standard procedure for challenging parking fines," the council spokeswoman said. |
| "This was just an abuse of the whole legal system." | "This was just an abuse of the whole legal system." |