any advice appreciated

rhiannon94

Hi Guys I would really appreciate your advice on this issue. I have been parking in the golding homes residents car park without any issues since I moved to the property in november 2017. (I am a leaseholder). I have a council permit for the surrounding roads. I assumed this covered the residents car park. I was never informed by the leasehold company I needed a seperate permit. The letter to the leaseholders below pretty much sums everything up.
To whom it may concern
While I was on holiday I received 4 parking tickets for the residents car park. I am a leaseholder at ******** and have lived here since november 2017 and have never had any issues with parking until I went on holiday. I have been parking here for over a year. It was only on unsuccessful appeal (yesterday) to AM parking services that I found out I need a separate permit to park in the residents car park. I have a council permit and I had no reason to believe that AM parking services were not a subcontractor of maid stone council (hence why I parked there and received the ticket). My lease states I am provided with parking and the cost is shared within the service charge to the leaseholders, which is the area outlined on my lease (the car park in which I have been fined) . The leaseholders handbook states 'Car parking Where there is a communal car park all residents have the right to park a car within the designated parking area only. Specific spaces are not allocated to residents. You should not use the car park for commercial vehicles or caravans.' I was never informed I needed a separate permit for the residents. Surely this is the obligation of Golding homes to inform me I need a permit? It is not clearly outlined. I have now been left with over £300 worth of fines just before Christmas. I pay my service charge every month and had no reason to believe I needed a separate permit. I would rather avoid taking this issue to court, so hope we can come to a resolution. Surely Golding homes have connections to the parking company they use to enforce tickets?
Kind regards

Basically what I am asking is do I just suck it up and pay the fines? If I knew I needed a separate permit I would have obtained one! I just feel its really unfair but Im not sure I have a leg to stand on at the small claims court. Really I am looking for any advice anyone can offer. The leasehold company golding homes say there is nothing they can do.
Thanks in advance!

nosferatu1001

THEY ARE NOT FINES! Just invoices
Why would you think a council permit has anything to do with private land??

As you will be aware, because you haveread the obvious NEWBIES thread on page 1, before starting a thread, you have primacy of contract
You have rights to park
They do not have the right to make you display a permit
So you tell them to TELL Their instructor to cancel, and to add your car to a whitelist. If they dont, and ticket you again, you will sue them for trespass to your goods, as they have no righ tto inspect your vehicle for anything.

DOes your lease allow them to make any regulations?

Fruitcake

It is not a fine.
Of course you should not pay a bunch of unregulated scammers.

Complain to your MA/HA/landlord about this. Double check your lease/AST for any mention of a permit scheme, and any mention that a third party can issue you with charges or take you to court.

An unregulated third party cannot offer you something that is already offered within your lease/AST.

This is what judges have said about residential parking.

http://parking-prankster.blogspot.com/2016/11/residential-parking.html

You should also complain to your MP about this using the information in red from post 1 of the NEWBIES thread.

rhiannon94

Hi thanks for replying, the only problem is there is a sign in the car park with thte terms and conditions that says 'AM parking services' and says you must display a valid permit, however, I assumed they were a subcontractor of maidstone borough council and that I did have a valid permit! (As my leasehold company never told me I needed a permit to park in the car park)