Parking Fine for having a puncture

Bossyboots

wazza wrote:

i think it pays to double check where you park in case there are hidden signs. i wonder if you would have got a ticket if you put a notice in the windscreen stating the car has broken down and you have gone to get assistance

The signs are not allowed to be hidden. If they are not clearly visible within the parking area then any parking enforcement fine is illegal.

However, in a pay and display car park the signs can often be some distance away so it pays to have a good check around.

It would have been at the discretion of the parking attendant if a notice had been in the window but local to me, someone got a ticket when their car was on a yellow line having been wrecked by a hit and run driver!! After the local paper got involved the ticket was dropped but the council wouldn't cancel it before then.

Thanks kpburke. Thats useful to know and I will stop fretting. (Silly to worry about something that didn't happen but my OH usually thinks he knows better so I wouldn't put it past him to do it again in the future).

Murtle

I've never heard of someone parking in hospital grounds, and being let off for not buying a ticket, and i think there are more mitigating circumstances when visiting poorly relatives/friends then for a puncture!

I'd pay sooner rather then later to avoid higher costs.

Bossyboots

dchurch24 wrote:

Probably not - with all the fuss (2 kids in the back) I really didn't think that it was pay and display - I didn't even think about it, as it was by the side of the road like a normal parking space.

Don't you have to pay for those spaces where you live? We do here, even in residential streets.

dchurch24

I'm not so sure. When visiting people in hospital, you actually intend to park there - I was forced to park by a fault.

I think I'm going to take it to court.

dchurch24

Don't you have to pay for those spaces where you live? We do here, even in residential streets.

No, not at all. Not even in our town high street - they are free for 2 hours - which I think is fair. We already pay quite a lot for the use of roads by way of road fund duty and fuel tax.

Bossyboots

dchurch24 wrote:

No, not at all. Not even in our town high street - they are free for 2 hours - which I think is fair. We already pay quite a lot for the use of roads by way of road fund duty and fuel tax.

Unfortunately we have fallen victim to commuters who park in the local streets and then get the train. Because of this, all the surrounding roads within a big circle have become residential and/or pay to park. As for the high street, thats limited to one hour and is 30p per 20 minutes.

dchurch24

How awful.

Even the car park at the train station here is free - no cameras, and is not manned though - which invariably means lots of break-ins.
In fact, when I used to park there, I used to leave my doors unlocked - I'd rather have the stereo nicked, than my stereo nicked AND a broken window.

Oddly, I was never broken into.

jockettuk

im going to glasgow next week Half term to visit my dad who is in sheltered accomodation he informed us recently that they have put meters up around his area and to have plenty of change with us as someone who visited someone else recently got a ticket and he had only gone to get some change. we normally leave the car at his house and walk into the city centre travelodge as they have no car park. im informed that i can leave it overnight free of charge but only up to 8am as my dad is housebound he cant go out and put some money in it.. This is leaving a sour taste in my mouth as im now having to book out of town travelodges etc therefore not being able to spend as much time with my dad i would like to,

This is just to show how easy it is to get a ticket and im now dreading visiting hoping that my dad doesnt take a funny turn etc and im not able to go out and put more money in the meter.

The trip is costing enough without having to fork out for parking tickets as well..

dchurch24

Yeah, that is just stupid. It's the new 'money making scheme' - it seems to have taken over as the speed cameras attracted a lot of bad publicity.

My mind is made up now - I'm going to fight them in court over it.

tonys_3

What you are going to Court for is,to plead guilty with mitigating circumstances.You can't plead not guilty as you were parked there without having paid for a ticket.And though you do appear to have a valid claim for mitigation,you will probably still incur a higher charge than the one you are facing at the mioment.
It doesn't help your case that all of you left the car[indicating that you might have been shopping there etc].And though you were coy about whether you actually had a spare wheel available in your car,it will come out in Court and would beg the question why you didn't change the tyre there and then.
If you are a member of the AA,or any other motoring organisation that has a legal department,check your case with them first as there is little point in throwing good money after bad,regardless of the injustice that you feel.Otherwise talk to your lacal Citizens Advice Bureau and get their view.
To show how much you disagree with their ruling,you could write the check on an old pair of knickers for example-its perfectly legal and it would be embarassing for them to pay it into the bank etc.Mind you,your own bank staf f would also get a giggle out of it too.