Debt Too Old to Enforce – 6-Year Limit (Ireland)
In Ireland, a private parking company has a maximum of 6 years from the date of the alleged parking incident to take you to court over an unpaid parking charge. If that 6-year window has passed, the debt is too old and the courts will not enforce it. This rule applies to private parking charges because they are treated as ordinary contract debts, not criminal fines.
Legal basis
Statute of Limitations Act 1957 s.11(1)(a).
How to identify this in your case
Compare alleged parking date to date of demand. Over 6 years = automatic defence.
Sample appeal wording
To: [Operator / Debt Collector] Re: PCN [NUMBER] dated [DATE] The alleged parking event occurred on [DATE], more than 6 years ago. Any cause of action in simple contract is statute-barred under s.11(1)(a) Statute of Limitations 1957. I plead the Statute. Any proceedings will be defended on this basis with costs sought. Delete this 'debt' from your records. Continued pursuit will be reported to the CCPC as a misleading commercial practice. Yours faithfully, [NAME]
Replace [PARKING DATE], [NtK DATE] etc. with your own dates before sending.
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