'Unauthorised parking' what does this actually mean?

barns80

Hi all,

First post here, I hope I'm asking something that hasn't already been asked a million times! I couldn't find anything related to this though.

I'm the registered keeper of a vehicle and have been sent a 'fine' on the basis of 'Unauthorised Parking'. The photo evidence provided shows my vehicle at the entrance to the car park.

Now, I've had a look at the car park and the usual things apply - poorly laid out/very small warning notices, none in eye-line of the driver and would only be visible if you looked for them.

The vehicle in question actually suffered a failure of the windscreen wipers while driving, and the driver pulled off the road as it was unsafe to continue (there was a heavy downpour) - by chance this happened at the entrance to a car park, and it seemed safest to drive in there rather than stop on a busy road. 20 minutes later, the rain stopped and the driver cleaned the windscreen and drove off again.

I'm trying to build my case for the appeal, and I'm wondering if I should request that the parking firm actually provide evidence that the car was indeed parked? The more I think about this, the more I don't really know what 'parking' actually means. Would the driver have to have left the car, or picked someone up/unloaded/loaded something for it to be considered parking?

In the newbies FAQ, the other thing it's recommended that I raise a complaint with the landowner. In this instance, it's a Premier Inn car park. I'm definitely tempted to make a complaint, but the same FAQ seems to suggest you shouldn't give away details of who the driver was or really offer any sort of explanation. Does it hurt my case if I give full details to the Premier Inn of what actually happened?

Thanks for any advice!

Coupon-mad

I don't really know what 'parking' actually means. Would the driver have to have left the car, or picked someone up/unloaded/loaded something for it to be considered parking?

No.  Parking is stopping for a period beyond a grace period, and of course the driver doesn't have to have left the car, or everyone could get away with not paying in car parks, by leaving a person sitting there reading a newspaper.

You haven't said which PPC it is, ParkingEye maybe?

Half_way

If you have been sent a fine then this will have come form an official body, such as the Police, or council, or an official traffic warden working for the police.

 

Was this a fine, or a parking charge notice? there is a very very important difference between the two.

 What entity issued the parking ticket?

you could try somethig like this:

 Dear premier inn, i am the registered keeper of vehicle XXXX,. and on DATE/TIME the vehicle suffered a mechanical issue and had to pull of the main road and into your car park for a short amount of time as proceeding would be unsafe.

 I was later shocked to receive a parking charge notice form your agents PARKING COMPANY NAME, parking charge notice REF NUMBER  as the vehicle was not parked, but unable to continue its onward journey for a short amount of time until the issue could be resolved.

 I have used premier inns before and have had no previous issues and upto now only good experiences, and would consider using them again or I have been considering a stay/stays  at premier inns however this has put me off somewhat, and as a result i would consider holiday inn instead

barns80

Thanks for the replies! I appreciate the advice.

Coupon-mad said:

I don't really know what 'parking' actually means. Would the driver have to have left the car, or picked someone up/unloaded/loaded something for it to be considered parking?

No.  Parking is stopping for a period beyond a grace period, and of course the driver doesn't have to have left the car, or everyone could get away with not paying in car parks, by leaving a person sitting there reading a newspaper.

You haven't said which PPC it is, ParkingEye maybe?

it's ParkMaven. So, interestingly, nothing at the car park mentions a grace period. Is there some sort of well-defined idea of what a grace period should be?

What I find difficult is that it was obviously impossible to leave the car park while it continued to rain, but I just don't know if I'm complicating things by bringing the failure up. Having gone back and looked around the car park, it's obvious you can't see the signs by simply driving in - and only one sign mentions a 'contract' at all (in very small writing) and it took me a while to find it even in broad daylight when it wasn't raining.

I feel a bit like I want to mention the problem with the wipers, because it's the only reason the car was there, but by the sounds of it, legally it may have no bearing. So perhaps an appeal along the lines of the FAQ is the better way to go?

Half_way said:

Was this a fine, or a parking charge notice? there is a very very important difference between the two.

 What entity issued the parking ticket?

Thanks, yes sorry I should have been clearer - it was a letter sent to me by ParkMaven, they refer to it as a 'fine', but obviously it's a charge. There was no ticket as such, just a camera picked up my car at the entrance of the car park.

Thanks for the complaint example - that's really helpful.. I have a tendency to get overly-verbose in letters, I think you summed it up really well

KeithP

Parkmaven Limited. Not a company we have seen mentioned here before (apart from Gary Osner's interview).

Incorporated in November 2017. Company Number 11089886.

A BPA AOS member.

Their website leaves a lot to be desired -
1) no mention of their company number or address
2) link to their privacy page doesn't work


You tell us that they mention fines.

That in itself is worthy of a complaint to the BPA - implying a level of authority they certainly do not have.

See the BPA CoP -

Coupon-mad

 interestingly, nothing at the car park mentions a grace period.

It's not meant to be on signs, necessarily, or people might treat it as a free 5 or 10 minutes parking.

 it was a letter sent to me by ParkMaven, they refer to it as a 'fine', but obviously it's a charge

Are you sure they use the word 'fine'?  Show us the letter (both sides).

D_P_Dance

If they used the word fine it is likely, if you bring it t the notice of the APA, they will cancel it.  Under no circumstances must PCs use this word.  I suggest you read their Codes of Practice wrt assumption of authority.   Have you complained to your MP?

Umkomaas

ParkMaven have contracts with Premier Inn in Scotland. You're not based north of the border by chance?

fisherjim

Parkmaven appear to be a systems and software company not a PPC the few mentions of them seem to be in Scotland was this in Scotland at all?

Jenni_D

As above - if this was in Scotland then you should be safe to ignore it ... a registered keeper has no liability (yet) in Scotland.

MothballsWallet

KeithP said:

Parkmaven Limited. Not a company we have seen mentioned here before (apart from Gary Osner's interview).

Incorporated in November 2017. Company Number 11089886.

A BPA AOS member.

Their website leaves a lot to be desired -
1) no mention of their company number or address
2) link to their privacy page doesn't work


You tell us that they mention fines.

That in itself is worthy of a complaint to the BPA - implying a level of authority they certainly do not have.

See the BPA CoP -

Highlighting is mine - I think that's been illegal since 2007, thanks to a law that was passed for the whole UK, so even Scottish companies have to obey it. They also have to provide full contact details, and there are limited places where that has to be accessible: About Us page, Ts &Cs page, Privacy policy page, iirc.