Ticketed in staff (hospital) car park even with staff permit

annie0103

I qualified from uni in June this year and with our campus based at the local hospital, we had to have staff parking permits which allowed me to use any one of the staff parking areas in the 4 car parks there, which is run by the local council. Mornings are a nightmare with the majority of nursing staff working mornings, along with office staff etc. There are never enough spaces to go around and many staff have been ticketed for not parking in the proper bay, even though there literally aren't any left. What do you do, ignore patients and not start work until you can find a space?? Or pay £15 to cover parking in the visitors section? It's bad enough nurses having to pay to park at work :mad: They appeal but never get anywhere.

Anyway, on this occasion, I went to park and yet again, no spaces, 30 minutes of driving around and by now late for my lecture, I parked my car next to a kerb that didn't have a white marked bay, but it was in the dedicated staff parking area. My car wasn't in anyone's way at all, and I left a note to the council parking guy who is there permanently where I was exactly. I came back after the lecture to move the car to a dedicated bay later to find a ticket.
I have appealed, but the council said it was too late. I even sent in photos of where my car was to show it wasn't in the way.
I took photos of the other staff parking where they have bays marked on corners (yep, never seen a curvy car, but the bays still get filled with desperate staff) to show that where I was, was actually safer than where the marked bays were.
I took a picture of two cars in the same place as my car was, they didn't get tickets.
I appealed but the council said they weren't going to get into any further discussion unless I paid what was by now, £90.
I refused to pay and said it was unfair that the hospital got paid for the parking permit knowing full well that there aren't enough spaces to go around.
A couple of weeks later, I get the court letter through, so I wrote and sent pictures and more evidence again. A week after the court date, I get a bailiff arrive at 7am to either seize my car or I cough up £210 :mad:
I explained to the bailiff why I refused to pay and explained what happened, he was very sympathetic and dropped the money to £180 - but as a student, that wiped me out completely. I needed the car for my uni course and the work placement I was on for the course.
I had to go back to the uni campus to collect marked essays, and the two months between me paying the £180 and returning, guess what, yes the exact spot where I had been ticketed, has now been made into TWO MARKED BAYS :eek::mad: along with other parts of the same staff car park that wasn't previously marked as a parking bay.
Does anyone know if I can ask the council for my money back?