Hospital Parking Charge

tajasti1

Hello All,

Thread mainly to ask advice on which route to go down regarding parking charges from hospital.

Wife is currently undergoing chemotherapy at Charing Cross hospital. It has a pay & display section which we normally use when we first arrive then move the car to staff area when issued with a permit.

Today we arrived and I put the ticket onto 12:37, blood test and an appointment with consultant was at 12:!5 so this is normally enough time. However we were delayed with the consultant. We then get moved to the ward but due to being on the treatment so long she is now very sick & on the way to the ward threw up. Once there, no beds so we had to wait in the day room which delayed getting a permit. Having got the permit & gone to move the car there was a ticket on their. issued at 13:12 & I got back to the car at 13:!6 :mad:.

I have noticed on the ticket the only this is the registration number, the model is 'unknown' and the colour is 'Blue' but the car is actually black.

The car park is ran by CPP (Car Parking Partnership) & having discussed with PALs and the people from Security/Front desk they advised appealing through their process and writing all of what has happened. If not then when we are back in 2 weeks to have another word and they will see what they can do.

However long ago in the past I had a fine issued from staying in a 2 hour shopping car part longer than that (despite actually shopping) & I sent an email through a template saying I was not identifying the driver & to stop contacting me which seemed to work.

So my question do I go option 1 and try to explain through their appeal process or go for 2 which is try to find another template & go that route?

Thanks in advacne

Coupon-mad

I have noticed on the ticket the only this is the registration number, the model is 'unknown' and the colour is 'Blue' but the car is actually black.

Ignore that.

Do the appeal as keeper, citing the NHS Car Parking Principles have been breached and that your wife meets the criteria for the PCN to be cancelled, as set out in that Government policy.

Do not say who was driving. Appeal as keeper, and with your wife's consent, divulge some proof of her ongoing treatment, and name the Consultant who she was held up with. I assume the letter is addressed to you, not your wife?

In this case, no need to use the template from the NEWBIES thread.

tajasti1

Coupon-mad wrote: »

Ignore that.

Do the appeal as keeper, citing the NHS Car Parking Principles have been breached and that your wife meets the criteria for the PCN to be cancelled, as set out in that Government policy.

Do not say who was driving. Appeal as keeper, and with your wife's consent, divulge some proof of her ongoing treatment, and name the Consultant who she was held up with. I assume the letter is addressed to you, not your wife?

In this case, no need to use the template from the NEWBIES thread.

It was a ticket on the window rather than a letter through the post. Do you have a link to the NHS Car Parking Principles?

I do have a letter about the appointment time so I can scan that in as proof of appointment.

Coupon-mad

Do you have a link to the NHS Car Parking Principles?

Even quicker than you typing those words, or me replying, is the magic of Google.

tajasti1

Is this acceptable?

I dispute your 'parking charge', as the registered keeper of the vehicle, I deny any liability or contractual agreement. There will be no admission as to who was driving and no assumptions can be drawn

My wife is currently undergoing Chemotherapy at Charing Cross Hospital under XXXXX. The current process means parking is paid for parking to allow enough time for a blood test, consultation with the consultant, transport to the ward, admittance into the ward, the ward issuing the paperwork and then the issuing of a parking permit by security to allow use of the staff parking area.

On the date of the PCN the ticket was allowed sufficient time (12:37) with an appointment of 12:15. However due to delays with the appointment, violent vomiting during transport, a delay in getting a bed in the ward resulted in a delay in obtaining the permit and thus the ticket expiring. The penalty was issued at 13:12 with the car moved at 13:16.

Given the seriousness of her condition, the snowball effect of the external delays and the breaching of NHS Car Parking Principles my wife meets the criteria for the PCN to be cancelled, as set out in that Government policy.

Formal Note:
Should you later pursue this charge by way or litigation, note that service of any legal documents by email is expressly disallowed and you are not entitled to assume that the data in this dispute/appeal remains the current address for service.

Redx

in your earlier posts you mentioned it was a parking charge (notice) , or PCN for short

so I would NEVER use the word "penalty", because it isnt one , you made that up

call it what it actually is, nothing more , nothing less

or use the word INVOICE, which is what it really is

Coupon-mad

That's very good!

Egbert_Nobacon

Sorry to hear of your wife’s illness.

I do understand the worry you both are going through.

It would be an absolute disgrace if the PPC fail to cancel in the circumstances but as previously seen most don’t have morality or humanity.

If ever there was a case for involving your MP this is it.

BTW sure the Daily Mail would love to hear of this.

The_Deep

Have you found this?

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/nhs-patient-visitor-and-staff-car-parking-principles/nhs-patient-visitor-and-staff-car-parking-principles

Get your MP on side, these scammers have no place in hospital car parks.

The whole industry is a scam, relying on threats of court, and the public's ignorance of the Law, A bill is currently before parliament which will regulate the scammers, many of whom are ex-clampers.

This is an entirely unregulated industry which is scamming the public with inflated claims for minor breaches of alleged contracts for alleged parking offences, aided and abetted by a handful of low-rent solicitors. Is has been suggested by an MP that some of these companies may have connections to organised crime.

Parking Eye, CPM, Smart, (especially Smart}, and others have already been named and shamed in the House of Commons as have Gladstones Solicitors, and BW Legal, (these two law firms take hundreds of these cases to court each week), hospital car parks and residential complex tickets have been especially mentioned. They lose most of them, and have been reported to the regulatory authority by an M.P. for unprofessional conduct

The problem has become so widespread that MPs have agreed to enact a Bill to regulate these scammers.

Sir Greg Knight's Private Members Bill to curb the excesses, and perhaps close down, some of these companies passed its Second Reading in the Lords this month, and, with a fair wind, will l become Law later this year..

All five readings are available to watch on the internet, (some 7-8 hours), and published in Hansard. MPs have an extremely low opinion of the industry. Many are complaining that they are becoming overwhelmed by complaints from members of the public. Add to their burden, complain in the most robust terms about the scammers.

tajasti1

Thank you all, I will e-mail across the appeal today.

I have to agree with you all about the annoyance of these people & how they do pry on vulnerable/desperate people.

MPs are only doing something because they are overwhelmed rather than because it is the right thing to do?

tajasti1

Sent the request in & this was the response:

Dear Sir / Madam,
Thank you for your correspondence in relation to the Parking Charge incurred on 25 February
2019 at 13:12, at Charing Cross Hospital Resident & Staff Parking Area car park.
In your appeal you state there were mitigating circumstances relating to a medical issue on the
date of the parking event.
In order for us to consider your appeal further, please provide additional evidence to support your
appeal. We would suggest the evidence is relevant to the medical issue stated and is
appropriately dated.
This Parking Charge has been placed on hold for 28 days to enable you to provide the evidence
requested. If this information is not provided within 28 days, the appeal may well be rejected and
a POPLA code provided.
Alternatively, payment can be made by telephoning our offices on 0330 900 7777, by visiting
https://www.carparkingpartnership.co.uk/payments or by posting a cheque or postal order to Car
Parking Partnership, PO Box 635, Chorley, PR6 6NJ.
If this charge has been paid and you choose to provide further evidence relating to your appeal,
please forward this to us for consideration.
Yours faithfully,
Car Parking Partnership Team

In regards to their request for "In order for us to consider your appeal further, please provide additional evidence to support your
appeal." I could send in the discharge summary which shows that her admission time was 13:00. It does also confirm what condition she has which it sounds like is what they want to confirm.

I don't have a letter which shows the appointment time, possibly could get it when back at the hospital on Monday.

If I was to send both of these in do you think hat would be sufficient or do I need a letter from the hospital? I'm not really sure who would write the letter as there were different departments at each stage