Car Park Operators - do I bring them in?

G1DGO

I would appreciate some feedback please. I am a small business owner and have 8 allotted car park spaces close to a busy high street. I'm round the corner to a train station and there is a local hall / venue which holds day time events.

Invariably some of my spaces are taken by non customers which is fine if they are only there for a short period and I still have empty spaces for customers. However, recently and more frequently all 8 spaces are taken up even when there is nobody inside my shop. Other times cars park in my spaces all day and there is nothing I can do. I've even had cars parked for a week at a time!

I have had so many comments from my loyal customers who tell me that they would come in more frequently but they can never find a space to park in.

I've been approached by a car park operator (I'm not going to mention their name but they are one of the larger ones). They have offered to put up cameras whereby anybody who parks and then walks off without coming into my shop will receive a ticket as they will have video evidence to show this. They assure me that real customers will not receive a ticket. No receipts will be required as their cameras will track them coming into my shop.

Assuming their cameras work properly I am leaning towards taking them up on their offer as us retailers are struggling enough with online competition.

I know car park operators are unpopular but my business needs help. Should I allow them to put up their cameras and film people using my car park spaces? What other options do I have?

bigisi

No need to spam the forum with multiple posts, pick one and stick to it, multiple threads just confuses matters.

Ganga

G1DGO wrote: »

I would appreciate some feedback please. I am a small business owner and have 8 allotted car park spaces close to a busy high street. I'm round the corner to a train station and there is a local hall / venue which holds day time events.

Invariably some of my spaces are taken by non customers which is fine if they are only there for a short period and I still have empty spaces for customers. However, recently and more frequently all 8 spaces are taken up even when there is nobody inside my shop. Other times cars park in my spaces all day and there is nothing I can do. I've even had cars parked for a week at a time!

I have had so many comments from my loyal customers who tell me that they would come in more frequently but they can never find a space to park in.

I've been approached by a car park operator (I'm not going to mention their name but they are one of the larger ones). They have offered to put up cameras whereby anybody who parks and then walks off without coming into my shop will receive a ticket as they will have video evidence to show this. They assure me that real customers will not receive a ticket. No receipts will be required as their cameras will track them coming into my shop.

Assuming their cameras work properly I am leaning towards taking them up on their offer as us retailers are struggling enough with online competition.

I know car park operators are unpopular but my business needs help. Should I allow them to put up their cameras and film people using my car park spaces? What other options do I have?

What are they going to charge you for this service or are they going to keep the money raised by the illegal parkers:eek:

JP1978

If you do so, ensure that they are a current member of one of the trade bodies and also ensure you have an absolute assurance that you have final say on cancelling any ticket with zero cost to you or your customer if so needed - whether that be their (PPC) or customers mistake. You dont want to lose customers over been charged £80 by a PPC.

Also, if your in Scotland, dont bother - PPC's are toothless.

Hoof_Hearted

Why not just get some convincing signs printed? Just copy one from the parking cowboys.

Norman_Castle

G1DGO wrote: »

I know car park operators are unpopular but my business needs help. Should I allow them to put up their cameras and film people using my car park spaces?

If you choose to do this make sure the signs are large and obvious, don't let the parking company dictate this. Your intention is to provide parking for your customers, their intention is to earn money from unwelcome parking.

forgotmyname

They have camera's tracking people into a shop?

So it will know that i dropped your customer off just outside the carpark due to no spaces and then drove in and parked when a space became available. So it appears nobody actually shopped with you.

Hope your rich enough to pay them to go away when they start ticketing your real customers.
Cost the Co-Op a lot of money to get rid of theirs.

vikingaero

G1DGO wrote: »

I've been approached by a car park operator (I'm not going to mention their name but they are one of the larger ones). They have offered to put up cameras whereby anybody who parks and then walks off without coming into my shop will receive a ticket as they will have video evidence to show this. They assure me that real customers will not receive a ticket. No receipts will be required as their cameras will track them coming into my shop.

Most ANPR cameras rely on time in & time out to issue tickets and they still get it wrong.


I can't see a parking cowboy viewing CCTV for hours on end and matching your customers to cars. ANPR isn't reliable and now you want to rely on ANPR & facial recognition. Good luck! What if one car is parked in forwards and I reverse in but it looks like I get in the "wrong" car? What if I'm a regular customer but I pop down the road to buy a pint of milk? Likelihood is that if I'm a regular customer and I get a scam invoice, I'll be equally pished off with you and not come back.


Gates/chains/automatic barriers/stick on notes that are hard to remove etc.

waamo

Issuing tickets for leaving a site. Good luck with that. If it goes to court remember to take your toothbrush.

debtdebt

Just start blocking people in with your own car and walking off. Leave a note for them to come see you at the shop if they want to leave the car park.

Deastons

debtdebt wrote: »

Just start blocking people in with your own car and walking off. Leave a note for them to come see you at the shop if they want to leave the car park.

This is actually illegal - even on private land, you can't block someone's access to a public highway.