Parking Charge Notice from Athena ANPR Ltd for parking at Lidl

Mykz

Hi All,

Apologies but I am very new to this, however I would appreciate some help and advice....thank you in advance for anyone who replies!

I received a 'Civil Parking Charge Notice' from a company called Athena ANPR Ltd on 09/08/13. I supposedly exceeded my stay in a Lidl's car park dated 02/08/13 by 20mins, the letter details the time and has photos showing my car enter and exit.

On the day I received this charge, I admittedly googled on what course of action I should take, and with the websites and forums that I came across the general advice was to just ignore, however I have now recieved my second letter from Athena and googled for more information again, but this time round I have found new information that I should have appealed the charge instead. Any ideas on how best to proceed? I guess it's too late to appeal via the POPLA route?

Strangely enough, I followed my friend into the car park as I do not live in the area and she did NOT receive a charge, despite entering the premises before me. Do these private parking companys pick and choose who they harass?

Thanks again in advance

Mykz

Oh, forgot to mention that my husband is the registered keeper

Umkomaas

I presume the correspondence thus far has been addressed to your husband as the RK. If so, best left like that for the time being as pursuing the RK means the PPC has more hoops to jump through than pursuing the driver.

So your husband now needs to deal with this (but you can do all the work on it, provided it goes under his name). You need to do a good bit of reading about the process from here on. Learn about soft appeals and POPLA appeals. Any correspondence your husband sends need to be in the 3rd person e.g., 'the driver did not see the signs'. He should not declare who might or might not have been the driver on the day.

The other important action that you must take is to make representations to THE manager of the Lidl branch; are you close enough to visit, if so, make an appointment, dress smartly and assertively state that as a customer (show receipts or credit card/bank statements for the day) you do not welcome being hounded by some private company you've never previously heard of sending demands for huge amounts of money, all because you spent that time in the Lidl store shopping, spending your money to swell their profits!

So in tandem with approaching the manager, get off a soft appeal to Athena (do a forum search because there has been a very recent Athena/Lidl thread in the past few days with a similar case as yours).

HTH

EDIT - if you're on FaceBook why not make a complaint on there, and saying words to the effect that they only need to see what is happening to Aldi on their FB page as a result of customers being persecuted by PPCs on their car parks.

The_Slithy_Tove

Lidl are so thoroughly in bed with Athena (just observe the way the CCTV/camera system is integrated into the tills), that they deserve all the scorn it is possible to heap upon them. Lidl claim they have to "enforce" car parking rules, but fail in so many respects
- it p***es off genuine customers
- it often violates planning permissions
- it always circumvents business rates on the not-free-any-more car park (the signs even say "charges apply")
- it is utter nonsense in that they "charge" for parking out of store opening hours

A plague on all their houses.

Coupon-mad

Complain to Lidl's Head office with a copy of receipt, and send a copy to Athena who are pretty tame (do not get them muddled up with a rogue firm called 'ANPR Ltd').

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4694729

As you can see from that thread, Athena should cancel it once the registered keeper appeals (albeit a late challenge) with proof of shopping that day in Lidl. Definitely send a copy to the Lidl Head Office or just march in store and ask for a 'word' with the Store Manager re a complaint. And facebook is another complaint approach; just post a major grumble about this harassment on their fb page if they have one, as Umkomaas has suggsted.

Better to get it nipped in the bud now than to have junk mail upsetting you re 'debt collection' threats for months on end, just for daring to spend money in Lidl!

Mykz

Thanks for the replies everyone, unfortunately I no longer possess the receipt and I paid in cash, so a bank statement is also out of the window! Would it still prove useful to go and speak with the store manager if I do not have proof of purchase?

Coupon-mad

Mykz wrote: »

Thanks for the replies everyone, unfortunately I no longer possess the receipt and I paid in cash, so a bank statement is also out of the window! Would it still prove useful to go and speak with the store manager if I do not have proof of purchase?

100% yes, worth a complaint! Look how many have succeeded in just 6 weeks of me collating them (and not everyone had a receipt!):

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/62837690#Comment_62837690

Take any other recent Lidl receipts you may have (to prove you are a regular customer if you are) and say how upset and angry you are to be harassed just because you shopped there. And to get sent a scary letter after the event gave you no idea there was a problem, otherwise you'd have still had that receipt.

COMPLAIN! Do not meekly 'query' it, not 'can you help, sorry but I stayed a bit too long and...' More like 'Right Mr 'Store Manager', I am here to complain about this horrible parking ticket that your agents have posted to me from when I was here the other week...' :mad:

DTDfanBoy

Mykz wrote: »

Thanks for the replies everyone, unfortunately I no longer possess the receipt and I paid in cash, so a bank statement is also out of the window! Would it still prove useful to go and speak with the store manager if I do not have proof of purchase?

It may be useful but I couldn't be bothered when I was in your situation

I spend about three minutes composing some very brief emails to Athena ANPR Ltd, the end result was they cancelled my parking charge :cool:

Coupon-mad has posted the link to my thread which contains all the email correspondence between myself and Athena. A few emails should get them off your back, but you're probably safe simply ignore their demands if you can't be bothered wasting your time on the matter. They send a few letters out to non-payers but don't take anyone to court

Whoops didn't read that you were already ignoring them, I'd just continue doing that, or complain to Lidl

Umkomaas

From Coupon-mad

Take any other recent Lidl receipts you may have (to prove you are a regular customer if you are) and say how upset and angry you are to be harassed just because you shopped there. And to get sent a scary letter after the event gave you no idea there was a problem, otherwise you'd have still had that receipt.

I think this is an important point to press with retailers that employ PPCs on their car park and for which there is a 'secret clause' in contracts that allow for charge cancellation if receipts are subsequently produced, that the importance of retaining receipts for at least a few months is essential in anticipation of any potential PCN.

Nice big notices in Aldi/Lidl/The Range windows wouldn't go amiss.

Customers, whilst we value your business, you are not as important to us as the Private Parking Company we employ to persecute and possibly prosecute you. If you have shopped with us today and taken even a few moments longer than the short time allowed, keep your receipts, as they are one of the few chances you have of avoiding one of our FINES'

FINES - Aldi's words, not mine!

Mykz

Hi All, just wanted to give a quick update on my parking charge...after sending a few emails to Lidl Customer Services and cc'd CEO (as suggested by DTDfanBoy) it is with great relief that they finally agreed to cancel my parking charge! Thanks again to everyone who replied!

The_Slithy_Tove

Mykz wrote: »

it is with great relief that they finally agreed to cancel my parking charge!

Yay! :j
More proof that hassling the principle seems to be a good strategy.