Overstayed at ASDA, I admit it - so do I pay up?

OurKev

I went and had a look at the car park - there are plenty of bright signs explaining the likely charge (free 3 hours).

So I spoke to Customer Services who sent me over to security.

I spoke to the security manager, admitted overstaying and asked nicely if they would cancel the charge on this occasion, as I am a regular customer.

He seemed pretty hopeful of sorting things out especially if I can show receipts (I suggested my card statement) showing I shop there, so I will gather things together and type an apologetic letter formally requesting the charge is withdrawn and drop that in.

Meanwhile I will use the appeal screen if it becomes available to notify Smart Parking.

Thanks for the advice,

Kev

Stroma

spacey2012 wrote: »

ASDA treat this as a big joke and pin the best complaint letters up in the office for staff to laugh at, so i have been told by a likkle birdie

Yes they may treat it as a joke until somebody actually takes them to court for an EA2010 breach by their agents and gets hundreds or thousands in compensation. Then drag their name through the press.

atilla

spacey2012 wrote: »

ASDA treat this as a big joke and pin the best complaint letters up in the office for staff to laugh at, so i have been told by a likkle birdie

Never seen one yet, and i visit all of them.

atilla

Umkomaas wrote: »

I guess this might hinge rather more on what the planning consent conditions were for the car park? But, as you say, if not actually shopping at Asda, the manager is unlikely to be able to help in this context.

Guess its going to be standard advice - appeal to PPC - appeal to POPLA.

I submit several appeals a month to these clowns. Never had a reply back yet within the 35 day limit. - not that i ever have any intentions of paying.

OurKev

OurKev wrote: »

I went and had a look at the car park - there are plenty of bright signs explaining the likely charge (free 3 hours).

So I spoke to Customer Services who sent me over to security.

I spoke to the security manager, admitted overstaying and asked nicely if they would cancel the charge on this occasion, as I am a regular customer.

He seemed pretty hopeful of sorting things out especially if I can show receipts (I suggested my card statement) showing I shop there, so I will gather things together and type an apologetic letter formally requesting the charge is withdrawn and drop that in.

Meanwhile I will use the appeal screen if it becomes available to notify Smart Parking.

Thanks for the advice,

Kev

Today I received an email from Smart Parking stating:-

Thank you for your recent communication.

I have noted the points you raised and would like to confirm that we are
cancelling the Parking Charge Notice.

If I can be of any further assistance please do not hesitate to contact me.


Yours sincerely,

Smart Parking Ltd


Thanks for the help and advice folks.

Kev

Stroma

Well done to you

jceconomics

Happy resolution here I see, but the "general rules" are very simple. If you overstay your free parking time in a privately run car park you can only be charged with breach of contract, which requires the car parking management company to prove what loss they have suffered as a result of you overstaying. This cannot be more than 50p-£1, so a penalty charge of £"70 or so is way of the scale of "reasonableness". You should therefore ignore all correspondence from the car park management company, whose process will involve increasing the costs over time before finally offering to accept a reduced fee. Pay nothing and they will go away. This will not affect your credit rating as this will only be affected by the awarding of a county court judgement against you. This will not happen. If we all stick together, these people will simply fade away.

trisontana

jceconomics wrote: »

Happy resolution here I see, but the "general rules" are very simple. If you overstay your free parking time in a privately run car park you can only be charged with breach of contract, which requires the car parking management company to prove what loss they have suffered as a result of you overstaying. This cannot be more than 50p-£1, so a penalty charge of £"70 or so is way of the scale of "reasonableness". You should therefore ignore all correspondence from the car park management company, whose process will involve increasing the costs over time before finally offering to accept a reduced fee. Pay nothing and they will go away. This will not affect your credit rating as this will only be affected by the awarding of a county court judgement against you. This will not happen. If we all stick together, these people will simply fade away.

Not true. Parking Eye, for instance, issued over 7,000 court papers in just on year. The game has changed and you now have to be pro-active is you don't want to end up in court.

jceconomics

I don't know whose car parks Parking Eye look after, but unless they are council owned these actions will fail. They may issue papers, but I doubt they will attend court on the day. This is because--and it really is very simple--if we are talking about a privately run car park they simply cannot issue a PCN. This is because all anyone is guilty of by overstaying is breach of contract--nothing more nothing less. If parking was free for two hours, then a charge of £70 for exceeding this by half an hour or even a full day would be seen by the court as a massively excessive estimate of the "loss" resulting from the breach. I have personal experience of this (several times thanks to my wife), and we have never got to the paper issuing stage.

It is only because people feel intimidated by these letters that feel they have to pay up. And is only because some ill informed people pat up that these companies continue with their desperate charade. Obviously, if court papers turn up you have to respond, but until that stage do nothing. They really will go away

trisontana

You haven't read the other threads on here have you? Parking Eye have taken people to court. They have won some cases and lost others.