NHS Hospital Car Parks

DizzleUK

Ok, I know all the blah de blah about how private car park tickets are unenforceable etc, but I want to throw the following scenarios at you all to see what you think.

I work for a hospital, and if anyone else works in one they will know what the parking there is like! Impossible!

I am awaiting a Staff Permit but there is currently a 20 week waiting list for one and so am obliged to park anywhere else but the staff car parks. Using the visitor car parks costs me £2.70 a day. Over the course of the month that's around £60!

If that wasn't bad enough, on certain days of the week it is impossible to find a car park space at all so I end up forced to park in the Staff Car Park.

Luckily, the hospital car parks are not fully enforced a lot of the time, so I have been known to not pay, pay a little bit (minimum £1.70 for 3 hours) and park in the staff car park without getting a penalty notice.

As I am staff, the Parking Services department have my number plate and details on file by way of my application for a permit.

So....

1. If I get a Notice whilst in the visitors car park, should I not pay it still, in light of the possibility they may check my details against their records and see I am staff and use this as evidence that it WAS me that brought the car into hospital grounds and therefore liable?

2. If I get a Notice whilst in the Staff car park, am I equally screwed?

I'm pushing my luck at the moment and it's only a matter of time before I get issued with one (I've around another 10 weeks before I'm likely to get a permit) and I'd like to know whether to ignore it or whether I should actually pay up!

NB A memo went round to staff a few months ago stating that non-payment of parking fines would be passed to DCAs pretty swiftly.

Coblcris

"NB A memo went round to staff a few months ago stating that non-payment of parking fines would be passed to DCAs pretty swiftly."


This is clearly an implicit admission that they are unenforceable in my opinion.
DCAs are powerless and toothless.

Did they use the word 'fines' ?

taffy056

Okay for a start they are not penalty notices unless they are issued by a council, most NHS hospitals I know have private parking companies doing the rounds in the hospitals, these tickets are completely and utterly unenforceable in law, and are just parking invoices! Basically pay the £1.70 and that is it, if you get booked completely ignore the threatograms you will get.

DizzleUK

I've not personally seen the memo as it was issued before I started, it was brought up by another of staff when we were discussing parking the other day.

The staff are divided into two camps...

The ones that say "f*** 'em and park where you like" and the ones that think that they should be paid and you risk losing your job if you don't (bearing in mind they all have permits anyway).

If I do get one, I won't be paying it until a court asks me to, but I would like to keep my job, and that's what I'm more concerned about.

taffy056

DizzleUK wrote: »

I've not personally seen the memo as it was issued before I started, it was brought up by another of staff when we were discussing parking the other day.

The staff are divided into two camps...

The ones that say "f*** 'em and park where you like" and the ones that think that they should be paid and you risk losing your job if you don't (bearing in mind they all have permits anyway).

If I do get one, I won't be paying it until a court asks me to, but I would like to keep my job, and that's what I'm more concerned about.

They won't sack you for this as these tickets are completely unenforceable in law , if they did there would would be unfair dismissal claims being put in, what does your contract of employment say? also what is the story behind waiting 20 weeks for a permit?

sassy_one

This is another unenforceable 'ticket' (can someone find a new name for these invoices please as I hate saying ticket when there not!)

Simply ignore it and they will get fed up and go away, no read to tell them you are not going to pay, as there is no law on there side!

PasturesNew

£2.70/day's cheap. If I got a job where parking was chargeable, then I found out it was only £2.70 I'd pop to the shops and treat myself for my good fortune.

taffy056

PasturesNew wrote: »

£2.70/day's cheap. If I got a job where parking was chargeable, then I found out it was only £2.70 I'd pop to the shops and treat myself for my good fortune.

i disagree, if you were charged £650 a year (which this is) out of salary that could be minimum wage, its a huge chunk of money to fork out, sorry but you shouldn't be charged to park in your own work space. My local hospital trust doesn't charge for patients or staff parking.

muckybutt

Been there done that one ! came out the other side smelling of roses.

I did 6 months work for a local hospital Ponte General in fact, anyhow we were temp workers and were told you cant have a permit as you are temps, we would have been happy to pay £11 per month for a permit but they wouldnt let us so the alternative was to either use the council run car park half a mile away or pay £5.70 a day for the hospital car park.
Me being me I chose neither and decided to park on hospital grounds where there were no lines or signs etc, loads of warning notices and threats and eventually got a ticket for being parked in a restricted area ? courtesy of Balfor Beatty, got the union involved in the matter as they had just taken over the parking chaos and had been dishing tickets out like confetti.

Fast forward had six threats off them and they've given up I presume as I havent heard anything since feb I was so insenced about their regime that I used to cut open the ticket envelopes and put notes inside telling the driver not to pay them and that they couldnt be enforced, got to the point where staff were coming upto me asking for advice.

DizzleUK

The 20 week waiting list is a guideline time. Parking permits are issued as old ones are surrendered when an employee leaves, so they base this figure on staff turnover (short term contracts etc).

£2.70 per day may not sound a lot, but when you are on a 20 hour week contract at £7 per hour it's a fair chunk over the month. I get overtime most weeks that puts me up to a full time equivilent so it's not terrible, but I'm not the only one in this position and some can't/won't do the overtime.

Strictly speaking, doing a full 8 hour shift plus lunch and the time before and after shift walking to and from the car, I should be paying £6 per day. £2.70 buys you 8 hours exactly! So £120+ per month is just plain rediculous and I refuse to pay it (and it's not even London).

Driver8

DizzleUK wrote: »

The 20 week waiting list is a guideline time. Parking permits are issued as old ones are surrendered when an employee leaves, so they base this figure on staff turnover (short term contracts etc).

£2.70 per day may not sound a lot, but when you are on a 20 hour week contract at £7 per hour it's a fair chunk over the month. I get overtime most weeks that puts me up to a full time equivilent so it's not terrible, but I'm not the only one in this position and some can't/won't do the overtime.

Strictly speaking, doing a full 8 hour shift plus lunch and the time before and after shift walking to and from the car, I should be paying £6 per day. £2.70 buys you 8 hours exactly! So £120+ per month is just plain rediculous and I refuse to pay it (and it's not even London).

Don't they make you sick? No pun intended either, just how do these scum sleep at night?

Again a tax on the sick and those looking after them.

Why, just why do we have to put up with this crap? If this were France riots would ensue, why aren't we making the so called powers that be listen to us?

Just follow the money trail, that's why the powers that be like it. All to government coffers.