Private Parking Industry Hits back blog discussion

trisontana

agatha1983 wrote: »

Thank you! I am really worried about getting bad credit rating! Do you know if they can do that?

No they cannot blacken your credit rating. The only way that can happen is in the very unlikely event that they take you to the civil court, the judge finds against you (again very unlikely) and you refuse to pay whatever the judge orders you to.

These private parking companies are just private citizens, not some quasi-government agency. Just as you or I cannot blacken somebodies' credit rating without going through the proper legal steps, then neither can they.

agatha1983

Thank you! I'm going to sit tight and see what happens. Thank you for your advice. It really has put my mind to rest.

Horntail99

My girlfriend received a "penalty notice" yesterday from CP Plus for outstaying her welcome at the Medway services (MOTO) on the M2 in Kent. Unusually, this service area has a perfectly legitimate way out the back of the services which we both use quite regularly. It seems they clocked her going in at 10.15 - perfectly true - where she powdered her nose and went to visit a client nearby, via the back route. Later in the day, she did the same again, entering via the back route and exiting some minutes later onto the motorway and this time they clocked her out at 14.42

All other matters of the legality of these notices aside for a moment, it could have been easily challenged as she has a date/time stamped receipt showing she clearly couldn't have been in the services for the time they suggest. However, she went and paid the "fine" on the phone this morning!

I'm seething! Not with her, she just didn't want the hassle and I can understand that, but today I've been reading this forum and a number of others on the subject and I can't believe these people get away with what sounds to me like extortion. They prey on fear and vulnerability.

I've also seen it mentioned that they seem to target female drivers in particular, although I have no idea if there's any substance in that - certainly they could quite easily see if the RK is female from the DVLA information they receive so I guess it's possible.

I would love to see if there is any truth in this rumour, it looks to me like a greater number of female drivers complaining on the forums, or guys driving a vehicle registered to their female partner or whatever. After reading all the information about these scammers, nothing would surprise me as to the depths they might sink to.

I wondered if anyone else has any views on this or can add any evidence to the theory?

trev-nc

Hello Martin,

It would be easy for me to be hypercritical of you especially over the comments made the other week “Complain to your MP you said and enforce this ban” You even provided email addresses. I expected a little more from you! However rather than 'mud sling' I will pick up upon some of the good points that you and Kelvin raised and on this occasion emphasise the need for good sense and politics, After all “we all think we know what's best”. But I must say I believe that your right! The BPA is predominately a trade association regardless of the denial, however let it be known that they do show great empathy to the motorist and those that trespass whilst considering the human rights of the proprietor.

The BPA does not represent all within the industry and I for one let them have my broadsides as and when required. To their defence and quite frankly in all honesty “They have in the past tried their uppermost to bring stability and a sense of reason and responsibility to an industry that just won't listen” furthermore I will go on record saying that “Their code of practise is excellent and the Approved Operator Scheme I will endorse emphatically and proclaim that its a credit to be a member of. In addition I am very proud to be an 'honorary member' of the Institute of parking professionals which is very much sponsored by the BPA.

It does appears that the BPA nowadays wishes to wash their hands and rightly so of anyone and everyone who enforces or inflicts a punishment on a would be motorist / trespasser by the use of a wheelclamp or tow truck! The BPA's current attention is focussed at having a last gasp effort at regulating the ticket issuing before that too becomes to late. Unfortunately and I'm afraid to say that the cowboys will overcome sense and logic in that industry also and it won't be long before the press have another field day. My response is; “ if there is a plan to stop this from happening then you could have and should have done it with Vehicle immobilisation and those that tow willy nilly” In this day and age It is a fact that:

'Nothing will ever deter more than clamping' “it is unsurpassed”
'Public awareness as never been greater'
The industry is regulated by the Sia
All Vehicle immobilisers have had a CRB check
and that they are educated to BTEC level 2 in VI and Conflict management

There are codes of practises in place and trade associations with arbitration for offenders. My staff are Screened and Vetted to BS7858 standards. Wear Uniformed and operate in liveried vehicles, we all work with reasoning. We operate from offices with landlines. We are UKAS ISO 9001 Approved and now more recently we have become a member of the Elite Securities industry Authorities Approved Contractor Scheme.“Yet there is less controls over my ticket issuers” and you want to head in that direction.

So why did Miss Featherstone (bless her) poke an hornet’s nest with a stick. Is it more over due to the policies and actions of a mere proportion who don't comply and those who don't care. Those who are in it for profit and greed and fail as a service provider. Therefore we need good sense in being aware of this and rectifier this the only matter. Reasonable remedies derived from people with respect and high esteem like your self and the BPA. certainly not fag packet politics

May I recommend the following and seek your opinion

1. It should be the proprietor who decides, after all its his land. Let him keep his options open by choosing the best most respected service available whether it be 'Clamping' or 'towing away' or the use of an FPN (fixed parking notice) issued by hand or by ANPR (Automatic number plate recognition) it his choice. The Human Rights Act Article 1 protocol 1 - Property The right to enjoy ones property. (the car becoming chattel is exempt) Tort and the doctrine known as distress damage feasant makes good reading

2. There should be adequate signage. Volenti~non~fit~Injuria Lord Chief Justice Judge Quoted “placed where bound to be seen” Even Judge LT Hurst said “This day and age it is reasonable for a motorist to presume there is no such thing as Free parking and that all car parks usually have terms and conditions”

3. Should a motorist trespasses on to land and commits an offence that induces an action then the motorist must be treated with respect which is reasonable and any deviation from what is considered reasonable should be prosecuted under a public order offence. Minor incidents require a three strike and your out for both a company and its staff from a trade association.

4. Restrict the 'Fines or penalties' to £100. I use this term lightly but with statute it will mean no Vat added or included. therefore the charges will be cheaper to the motorist and their will be no need for further trickery (as mentioned). Access will be granted to the DVLA and the owner of a vehicle becomes responsible for the drivers actions. RTA 1991 section 21 Owners details.

5. Whether you hand issue an FPN or ANPR invoice, Whether its 'clamped' or 'towed away' it should all be the same price. That way the PEA (Parking enforcement agency) will sustain a need to use the cheapest most cost effective enforcement that's available to them and not what gives them the most profits.

6. It should be “One offence ~ One fine” No more 'pay up or I'll tow you away'. You could still turn up with a tow truck if the need arises for example in the event of a blockage, or an unreasonable time limit or as a result of being threatened or criminal damage. The PEA you will not be able to charge extra for this additional service.

7. With an FPN A 50% discount should be offered if paid within 10 working days but the PEA should charge more for late payment i.e. 20% per month and after for 90 days they should be able to start court proceeding.

8. Similar if a Wheel clamp remains on overnight or after hours then 20% per night is considered reasonable and similar for an overnight storage after being towed away.

9. Mitigating circumstances and Arbitration is made via the small claims courts and any breach of this statutes is prosecutable under the 1994 Criminal Justice Act 'Demanding money by Menaces'

I will ask you to criticise and condemn where apt. but foremost I hope you understand that 'The threat of Clamping' helps people (when aware) decide whether or not they are entitled to park and stay or not. The threat is massive and helps provide good car parking management which will be lost.

Trevor Whitehouse
Chairman National Clamps

Baxterolly

I've recently been issued an unofficial parking ticket behind the place where I work. Several companies rent the building and it has neevr been an issue till the other day, due to the fact there are signs saying for loading only I can udnerstand their complaints however all other employees of the surrounding companies park their cars there. So I am seeking advice as to what to do as I have been issued with an £80 fine! to be paid within 7 days, yet I am only a student and it is off the Vehicle Control Services issued in the same way as that of the council please advice me

I-LOV-MONEY

Baxterolly wrote: »

I've recently been issued an unofficial parking ticket behind the place where I work. Several companies rent the building and it has neevr been an issue till the other day, due to the fact there are signs saying for loading only I can udnerstand their complaints however all other employees of the surrounding companies park their cars there. So I am seeking advice as to what to do as I have been issued with an £80 fine! to be paid within 7 days, yet I am only a student and it is off the Vehicle Control Services issued in the same way as that of the council please advice me

Providing the ticket was from a Private Parking Company then this is the advice to follow.

devsen

thelawnet wrote: »

I read the article, and while there are a few references to 'unfair' charges, I do believe that most people will read it as a 'how to get my parking ticket cancelled' guide, fair or not. Because of course when you've just got an £80 ticket, it's never fair.

So I'm not surprised they're complaining, as people will look for loopholes to avoid the charges, nobody cares whether their own charge is 'fair', because they're the ones paying it. Expecting honesty or fairness to enter into it is unrealistic, the slightly nudge-nudge wink-wink section on 'what if you're not the driver' is an obvious invitation to fraud.

Hopefully of course more knowledge will result in better practice by the industry - proper signing, etc.

What about the unlawful letters and threatening behaviour of the Private Parking firms, we don't care whether they are members of BPA or not as far as we are concerned they are all the same...a normal firm will be closed down...this business is legalised theft in a grand scale and only operates in a country like England where consumer rights are the worst in the western world...get lost will you!

devsen

How much money do you and your members make out of clamping the cars of the poor people of this country Trevor...you only get away with it because of the silly laws of England..let us bring in the Scottish laws..

I-LOV-MONEY

Well hopefully it will be all change very soon, when the Government bring forward legislation that will prevent private wheel clampers.

Transparant

Hi everyone. I was recently hit quite badly by a very devious "parking enforcement" firm called Securak and want to share my story and warn people of what they are potentially facing.

Firstly, I would like to say, I dont care if these "organisations" are limited companies, that by no means makes them legitimate or fair. They work for self interest only.

My story:

I drove into a car park belonging to a pub. There were two sections to the parking site, one saying "paying customers only" and the other saying "car wash". I drove to the car wash section.

My intentions were to have my car washed and have a drink & a bite to eat while I wait. Litterally next door to the pub is the bank. I needed to withdraw some cash to achieve this. There was a young guy standing over one of the parking enforcement signs and I gestured to him that I will be 1 minute.

I returned from the bank and went to go into the pub and a small van rolled over and said that I am not allowed to go enter the premises because I have been clamped. I told them that I only went to the cash machine so I can pay for my food and car wash. They told me that it doesnt matter now and it has nothing to do with the pub anymore.

I was not going to take their word for it, so I went into the pub to speak to the staff. The pub staff said there is nothing they can do I just need to pay and appeal it, so I asked for a receipt for my a drink of OJ i bought to further validate my case.

I went over to the van that went back into hiding in the corner, waiting for another poor victim and showed them my receipt and again explained that i needed the money to spend in the pub and it was within my right to go next door and return. They said they wasnt interested.

I asked how much the bill was and he said "it was going to be £120, but now iv called for a lorry to come to tow your vehicle away & the minimum you are going to pay is £385, plus £40 a day storage and if you dont we have a baliffs department and we have the right to enter your property and seize your goods".

I told them this was unfair and they couldnt do that. I went back over to my car and got inside knowing that cant tow it with me inside. They immediately drove over, blocked my car in with their van and put another clamp on the other wheel.

I stepped out and had a go at them and they told me to step away from the vehicle. I tried to gain access to my vehicle again to recover my bag containing my wallet (how else would i pay) and important documents and they shouted grab him and plummetted towards me so I ran away in fear.

I called my brother to assist me and to cut a long story short we gained access to my vehicle and recovered my items. They called the police and had me arrested for THEFT of my own property and they even made false allegations saying I stole some of their items from MY VEHICLE, including an appled IPAD, A samsung galaxy phone, a set of keys and a digital camera. What were these items doing inside MY CAR for one and how did the expect me to pay without my wallet? Unbelievable.

They then had my car searched by the police after they towed it away to the clampers PERSONAL RESIDENCE where a small bag of an unidentifiable white substance was allegedly found in my car; all of this after they had made allegations of theft against me. It was rediculous.

On my release, I called the clampers and they said that their pound closes at 5pm, which is unheard of. How would an employee collect their car? This was clearly a brutal attempt to charge more for storage.

I called the next day and asked how we pay, they said by cash or card. I was happy because I knew I could reclaim the money on my card under section 75 of the consumer credit act.

When i offered to pay, they said they would only accept cash. They wouldnt tell me where my car was being held and told me that we had to meet them in an unknown location and pay cash and then they will give me directions to my car. I was not comfortable with this.

I tried to find out where my car was from an organisation called trace, which works with all the government registered parking enforcement agencies. They didnt know. I called the police and told them that I didnt feel safe. They said it wasnt their problem and advised that we should video it to be safe.

We arranged to meet them at a petrol station on the redbridge roundabout, some 15 miles away from our area. We were confronted by four large men that made a point of invading our personal space. I offered them my card and they refused to accept it.

Knowing that we were paying cash, I remembered the police's advice and took out my camera phone to record the payment. They said we cannot film the transaction. I proceeded to record all our faces and one of them smashed the phone out of my hand and became very aggressive. I called the police and two of them left before they arrived.

After paying £495 in cash, they directed me to their "pound" which they claimed was run by the police and staffed by the council. It was an abandoned industrial estate and our car was being held in a garage car park, still in a clamp and blocked in by one of their vehicles.

I felt uncomfortable and realised that my receipt stated that my car had already been collected. I called the police. They turned up 3 hours later. We called the clampers to come and take off the clamp, but they used a different lock that nobody had the keys to, so they had told the police they will have to cut it off. It was clear that they wanted to extort me for more money or maybe even harm me if I refused.

These organisations are run by aggressive steroid pumped bouncers that are very confrontational. They use bulley tactics to scare people into paying up, with the fear of daily charges and balliffs if you fail to meet their demands. This is no different to any other ransom crime.

They hide behind a limited company, which is registered to an address away from where they conduct their business and they leave no trail to contact or identify them. Their postal address is a PO Box and their telephone number is an 0844 diverted to a mobile. There is clearly no transparancy.

This should be ilegal.