Successful complaints about private parking tickets - how to get them cancelled!

Double_Whammy

First, a big thank you to moneysavingexpert.com for all their help with helping consumers.

Secondly, many thanks to Coupon-Mad, Umkomaas, Bargepole and everyone else involved in helping with the guidance on this Parking Tickets, Fines and Parking forum.

Short version: I received a Parking Charge Notice for £90 for allegedly breaching the terms and conditions of the 3 hours maximum parking at Central Retail Park, Patriot Drive, Rooksley, Milton Keynes, MK13 8PU. After following the advice in the Newbies section in this forum, a complaint was made to the retailer(s) in the Retail Park and the PCN was cancelled.

Long version: A toy was ordered on-line from Smyths Toy Stores for one of our sons for Christmas and arrangements were made to collect it from their Milton Keynes store so that we could get it before Christmas. On arrival at the Retail Park car park it was noted that the car park was very busy, not surprising for the week before Christmas. After queuing to get into the carpark and eventually finding a car parking spot I went into the toy shop to collect the toy. Whilst I was queuing up to collect the toy that we had purchased on-line, I noticed a couple of other toys that I thought might be suitable for presents and spent another £30. I'd never been to a Smyths superstore before and thought to myself that whilst I was here, I might as well look to see if I could find some other presents. The superstore was very busy (no surprise there!) so £170 later, I queued up to pay for the items and after a coffee at Costa's, left the retail park.

In mid January I received a Parking Charge Notice (PCN) from Euro Car Parks for staying more than 3 hours in the car park that they manage. After reading the newbies guide, I phoned Smyths Toy Store in Milton Keynes to ask for them to cancel the PCN and was initially told that there was nothing that they could do and that I should use the Euro Car Parks appeal process. I asked for them to use the exception process and they said that the only exception process that they knew about was for any contractors and their staff only and even then, it could only be used in advance. I politely explained that this was not always the case and that the exception process could be used for Customers as well. This was escalated to the store manager who said that he was willing to try and call the car park company with me present, but could I come in the following day to the store so we could call them together. I initially agreed to this (as it was the only option at the time) but after putting the phone down I had second thoughts as I live an hours drive away from the retail park and had other family commitments the next day. I then read some of the posts on here and saw that Hobby Craft had been able to cancel tickets quite quickly. By coincidence, Hobby Craft were also in the same retail park (and our family have a Hobby Craft store card). I called Hobby Craft and explained that I am a loyal Customer and that I had got a PCN. Again, it took a little explaining regarding the exception process but once on-board, I emailed a copy of the PCN to Hobby Craft and they said that they would look into it for me. I also called Costa and Next who are also in the retail park and were both initially not as forth-coming but said that they would get someone to call me back.

The following day with still no email back from Hobby Craft, I called Smyths with whom I felt I had more clout. i.e. here I am, a model Customer who goes along to pick up one item and then spends a further £200 in a retail shop when retail shopping is increasingly being done on-line. The store was incredibly busy and I had two receipts that were date and time stamped 3 hours apart. Surely the CEO of Smyths could intervene if I have no joy with the store manager? So I drafted an email explaining my plight that could also be used to email the CEO and the press if necessary. I then called Smyths store manager to explain that I couldn't make it in person to the shop but I do have an email ready to send if he could just let me have his email address. The Smyths store manager was more sympathetic this time (perhaps he had done his own research?) and he explained that the exception process that they had been given was issued by Euro Car Parks and only gave their version of what their exception process was. I sent over my email and the following day received an email back from Smyths to say that the PCN had been cancelled.

I also received an email back from Hobby Craft to say that the PCN had been cancelled and then I also got a voicemail from a manager at Next to say “Sorry you've got a PCN, please let me have the number and we'll get it cancelled for you.”

After talking to various retailers, it appears that the methods the retailers can use with Euro Car Parks is to a) Forward a copy of the PCN to Euro Car Parks asking for the PCN to be cancelled. b) Forward the registration number and PCN to Euro Car Parks informing them that the car was a 'visitor' or 'contractor' for the day or c) Forward a copy of a complaint email from a Customer to Euro Car Parks which contains the PCN number and registration number.

Either way, I strongly recommend that retailers are contacted to get PCN's cancelled.

Coupon-mad

That's very good advice and a perfect outcome!

A good example too, that even the retailers you didn't shop with are often happy to cancel a retail park PCN because they want your goodwill and want you to shop there, of course!

fuzzything

I parked in Tesco in New Malden for over the 3 hour limit, and used the YourParkingSpace app to pay for the extra parking as per the signs, but accidentally used my old car reg instead of the new one.

I immediately filed an appeal with Horizon Parking. I then checked the newbie faq for anything similar but could not find anything in relation to having paid for parking on there. I happened to see a post about someone else using the wrong reg and the advice from the forum members was to ask the landlord to cancel the ticket, which otherwise I would never have thought of. I contacted Tesco and within a day it was cancelled. Many thanks for the great suggestion.

Umkomaas

fuzzything said:

I parked in Tesco in New Malden for over the 3 hour limit, and used the YourParkingSpace app to pay for the extra parking as per the signs, but accidentally used my old car reg instead of the new one.

I immediately filed an appeal with Horizon Parking. I then checked the newbie faq for anything similar but could not find anything in relation to having paid for parking on there. I happened to see a post about someone else using the wrong reg and the advice from the forum members was to ask the landlord to cancel the ticket, which otherwise I would never have thought of. I contacted Tesco and within a day it was cancelled. Many thanks for the great suggestion.

Great result, especially as it was Tesco who cancelled it for you. To be honest, they have not been the most customer-helpful retailer when their patrons have been savaged by PCNs. 

Was it via the local manager, or an approach to their head office, that did the trick?

fuzzything

Umkomaas said:

Was it via the local manager, or an approach to their head office, that did the trick?

I used ‘resolver’, under in store shopping experience. I admitted it was my mistake, but that I did pay for parking.

Resolver used the email address customer.service@tesco.com and the reply was from a customer service specialist.

Modworld

Successful PCN cancellation by PALS of Lancashire Hospitals.

PCN notice from ParkingEye — MoneySavingExpert Forum

Evilwoodlouse

My wife (as registered keeper) recently received a Parking Charge Notice from parkingeye, courtesy of a visit to the Bath RUH. The driver was taking an elderly patient for an xray as a follow up to a major cancer operation. Long story short, there is a free 20 minute limit at the RUH, the driver was within that after the appointment and attempted to pay at two different machines, neither of which offered any option for payment. They naturally assumed this was because they were in the free 20 minute limit, so walked slowly back to the car at the other end of the car park and exited the car park. The Parking charge notice was because the ANPR recorded the vehicle as on site for 36 minutes, not the actual time parked. My wife was absolutely fizzing - I think with good justification - because the implication is that a similar ticket would be issued for a vehicle on site for 21 minutes, making a complete mockery of the free 20 minute "parking" allowance. We checked how the machines work this past weekend and have photographic proof that they do not let you pay for parking if you are trying to do so within that first 20 minutes.

She appealed to PALS as follows, copied to the keeper's MP, the patient's MP and the MP for the Bath RUH:

"I am writing to you as the keeper of a private motor vehicle registration xxxxxx. I have received a Parking Charge Notice from a company called Parkingeye demanding payment of £80 for overstaying the free parking limit of 20 minutes in the Bath RUH carpark on 9th February. The alleged overstay is for 16 minutes, and the PCN reference is xxxxx dated 14 February.

On the day in question, the driver of the vehicle took an elderly patient to the RUH for a chest xray as a follow up to a major cancer operation. The patient arrived just before the allotted appointment time, had the xray, and then left the hospital very soon afterwards. The driver then attempted to pay for parking using two different machines at the hospital entrance. Neither machine offered any opportunity to pay for parking, were not displaying out of order notices, and in both cases the registration number was entered correctly. Because the driver was still within the free 20 minute parking time when payment was attempted, they naturally assumed no payment was needed and that they were clear to leave the carpark without recourse. The patient and driver then walked to the parked car and exited the car park. Because the patient is elderly and infirm, they walked slowly to the vehicle which was parked some distance away from the entrance/pay machines.

The PCN has arrived as a complete surprise and has caused considerable distress both to the elderly cancer payment, to the driver who was doing them a favour by giving up their time to take the patient to their appointment and to myself as registered keeper. It is particularly unjust as the driver was only too willing to pay any parking tariff due, and were thwarted from being able to do so through no fault of their own at two different parking machines. The £80 charge these cowboys are attempting to extort is out of all proportion to any parking tariff that would have been due for the time actually parked in the carpark.

Please would you therefore contact Parkingeye to get this PCN rescinded with immediate effect.

You will also wish to note the negative perception this sharp practice and use of this company to enforce parking conditions has caused. It has made the elderly patient very reluctant to use the RUH in future unless the hospital provides transport.

Please let me know if you need any more information to support this request, and I would be grateful for confirmation that you have asked Parkingeye to rescind the PCN.

Many thanks"

Received notification from PALS today that the charge has been cancelled as a goodwill gesture. Whilst pleased with the reply, it came with a restatement of the rules around paying if exceeding the 20 minute free parking limit, which grated just a bit as the driver attempted to do so at two different machines, neither of which offered the possibility to pay because this was within the 20 minute free parking limit. I couldn't let that pass so got the keeper to respond with:

"Many thanks for the reply and also to the parking manager for getting this penalty rescinded. Please would you also pass on to them the following:

Both myself and the driver are fully aware of the need to pay for parking if the 20 minute limit is exceeded and there is a history for this particular vehicle of paying for parking at the RUH over the past few months. However as I said in my original email the driver did attempt to pay at two different machines and because they were within the 20 minute free limit at the time they were attempting to pay the machine wouldn’t let them. We checked this is the case this weekend just past and I have photographic proof that the machines do not offer the option to pay within that 20 minute limit.

It may well be true that the vehicle was on site for longer than the 20 mins but it was parked for less than 20 mins which is compliant with the conditions for the free 20 mins. I also checked the (very confusing and impossible to read) signage at the RUH and it does not say you have to pay for time on site. Even if it did, the parking machines would not permit this.

It should also be noted that a busy car park like at the RUH will mean that some time will be needed to locate a vacant parking bay, and that an elderly and frail patient will need some time to walk from the pay machines at the hospital entrance to the far end of the car park if parked there. This is why the vehicle was on site for longer than 20 mins. There has to be some common sense and latitude applied here and I am glad that this has prevailed in this instance. Not everyone has modern technology or is able to use apps or phones to pay for things (especially the elderly) so an option to pay by cash should always be available to avoid RUH/parking eye falling foul of age discrimination legislation.

Please note however that parkingeye with their sharp and punitive practices are painting the RUH in a really poor light and causing lots of additional stress to unwell people who have better things to worry about than this. I really hope RUH will reconsider using companies like this to extort money from people who need to use the hospital in future.

Is the parking manager an RUH or a parking eye employee?

Received almost immediately the much better response from PALS:

"Thank you for your feedback regarding your experience with parking at the RUH. I will ensure that this is passed through to Parking Eye. Please may I reassure you that the parking contract is currently out to tender and so feedback like this will be used when making important decisions. The Parking Manager is an RUH employee and I will be sure to raise this with him directly. Thank you again for your feedback, please do contact me if you would like to discuss this further."

Really pleased with how this has played out and hope with all my heart that this ultimately will lead to a cash cow being taken away from parkingeye (hopefully not to be given by another legitimised extortion racket).

Just goes to show that appeal to landowner in the first place is always best approach (I got there eventually) and that you should always fight and not pay these people a penny unless you absolutely have to........

Umkomaas

@Evilwoodlouse - Thank you so much for this harrowing, yet ultimately successful story. It sums up perfectly the reason why venal and rapacious parking companies should never be allowed anywhere near a hospital. Your determination to prevail over PE is very commendable ... and well done on your victory. 

If you want to push this further, why not write to your MP and describe, as you've done so eloquently above, the story, ask that he/she notes how hospital patients are so often thrown to the parking wolves by hospital trusts, and ask that a copy of your correspondence be forwarded to Neil O'Brien MP of the Department for Levelling Up who is responsible for bringing some sense and control into the private parking sector. 

I'm so pleased this worked out well for you and the patient. 

Coupon-mad

We checked how the machines work this past weekend and have photographic proof that they do not let you pay for parking if you are trying to do so within that first 20 minutes.

Can you send that proof to ParkingEye and tell them you are about to report this to the BPA.  Give ParkingEye seven days to respond then report your evidence to the BPA:

info@parkingeye.co.uk

sara.r@britishparking.co.uk

 Please may I reassure you that the parking contract is currently out to tender and so feedback like this will be used when making important decisions. 

More importantly, perhaps, to stop an inappropriate tender process and contract:

Could you also reply again to PALS and ask them to alert the Parking Manager to the new statutory Code of Practice, brought in to curb the worst excesses of private parking firms within an inherently rogue industry and point out that the new code (here):

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/private-parking-code-of-practice

- reduces the cap on parking charges outside of London to £50 (lower rate breaches) and £70 (higher rate)
- bans additional charges for pseudo 'debt recovery'
- requires clearer signage and payment methods that work, including paying by cash/other methods
- requires parking firms to allow a suitable consideration period of at least 5 minutes before parking plus (in addition) a suitable grace period of at least 10 minutes after parking; both being minimums which should be longer for larger car parks or those where the cameras are placed on the boundary/along an approach road.

State that new car parks (i.e. new contracts, by any reasonable interpretation) will almost certainly be expected to comply straight away with the new rules, which are currently laid before Parliament and about to 'go live' within weeks.

As such, you urge the Parking Manager to read the new Code and rationale, and you expect RUH to add to their tender requirements that the successful bidder will comply with the NEW Code of Practice set by the DLUHC.  This is vital to avoid a race to set up new contracts that will 'beat the changes' and abuse the intended grandfather period, to operate outside the code and against patient and visitors' interests as well as the Government's intentions.

Fruitcake

The BPA has already told its members it should start applying the new "rules" straight away. This applies to ParkingEye now, and to any BPA member who tenders for the new contract.