Fighting Parking Tickets / Charges ('Fines')

[onomatopoeia]

And to answer the poll, I would have parked in a marked bay or not at all, so would not have got a ticket. I passed my driving test so I know what's in the highway code and I know the normal meaning of cross hatching.

 

[ACW]

By the way the letter IS fabulous.I just wouldn't have the patience to compile it when a couple of sentences would result in the same outcome; but granted, you didn't know that

Thank you for the compliment Ruth. Not so much of a thank you for highlighting how superfluous the letter was , I attacked it with the same fervour I use on my essays so probably got a little carried away!

If you ever need a willing unpaid victim to make the tea and do the boring jobs for you as w/ex you know where I am

 

[Steve Smith]

I would like to see the law changed so parking charges on private land are as enforceable as penalty charges imposed by traffic wardens.

A court will only enforce an agreed payment - i.e. a contract. If there is no contract, the land owner can only try to claim remedies for loss and to do that, he has to show evidence of a loss. This is just about impossible in the case of parking on land, especially land set out as a car park into which people are invited to come in and park in order to visit a shop.

i wouldn't like to see the law changed as it would open up for even more abuse than the current situation.


Steve.

 

[CaveDweller]

I would fight it but that's just me. I'm not one for sitting back and taking cr*p, but on the other hand I wouldn't have parked in a cross hatched area to start with

I got caught doing 96 in a 60 by a Gatso camera whilst testing my rally car and I argued against it. I got away with getting 5points and £300 fine instead of 6points and £600 fine which would result in me loosing my licence due to the totting up rule, I already had 6 points for similar offences before this happened. It's been over 5 years now since my first offences and the 6 points I got from them have been removed so I'm left with 5 still. I've learnt from my stupidity now though. I only play with it on private land and also have kids to worry about, sunday driving for me now.

 

[JonathanRyan]

So basically I can go park on my neighbour's drive and there's nothing he can do to stop me? Sure I read a forum post that said he could smash my headlights with a hammer.....

 

[srichards]

A neighbour's drive isn't a designated car park.

Having a car park that charges £1 an hour and 10 minute over stays costs £100 disproportionate in the extreme.

These companies are quite happy to hound the disabled (protected by equality act so legally allowed extra time) and the old (also allowed extra time) and wilfully ignore the BPA code of practice which is very clear on what they can and cannot do.

Parking Eye's ANPR system doesn't work correctly. Time stamps aren't synced and if you drop someone off and go back later it will lose the middle out and second in and claim you have been there the entire time. It's not fit for purpose and doesn't meet the evidential standards required for council level tickets. It's also been thrown out as evidence in numerous court cases due to its unreliability and lack of synchronisation. The system is also misleading and definitely isn't suitable for hospital sites which are governed by a further charter. There are ANPR systems out there that make sure only correct number plates can be entered and you know how much you owe. The parking eye system cannot tell you. You have to guess how long you have been there!!

They are also quite happy to go into court with contracts that aren't enforceable and fake witness statements and also take contracts in that are later than the date of the parking contravention.

The OFT also told the BPA they thought a fair charge was more like £12.

There are also other rules which define access to DVLA data and the parking companies are also wilfully ignoring those too.

People seem to have forgotten these companies were once just cowboy clamping companies. Their source of revenue for most of these sites is the penalty charge. They do not make a bean in a lot of cases if everyone parks exactly according to the conditions. Because they are so moronic at business normal people are being stiffed for charges they don't legally owe at all.

 

[MartynK]

I would like to see the law changed so parking charges on private land are as enforceable as penalty charges imposed by traffic wardens. That way, people would know that they run the same risk overstaying their welcome or parking badly in a private car park as they do on a parking meter or double yellow line.

You're entitled to your opinion, but that's all it is, unless parliament decides to act on it.

There is no human right to free parking on private land, although plenty of people apparently think there should be.

I haven't read anything on this thread suggesting that people believe they have a right to free parking on private property. There are a number of legitimate points about the legality of these parking charges/penalties, the behaviour of the parking management companies, and the grossly disproportionate sums they demand.