Parking stories in the News/media

Castle

pinkelephant12 said:

Private parking firms issue 35,000 fines every day

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2024/03/15/private-parking-firms-issue-35000-fines-every-day/

This article appears to be about today's 5th anniversary of the Parking (Code of Practice) Act 2019, but it's behind a paywall. Can anyone access it?

If you google search the heading, the same article appears on every newspaper online site-a real "copy & paste".

nopcns

Private parking firms issue 35,000 fines every day

Promised government crackdown was withdrawn in 2022 following a legal threat by the private parking industry

Gareth Corfield
15 March 2024 • 12:01am

Private firms are issuing an average of more than 35,000 parking tickets to drivers every day amid a government failure to introduce a code of practice to regulate the industry.

An analysis by the RAC Foundation, the motoring research charity, of government data found that 9.7 million parking tickets were issued to drivers by private parking companies between April and December last year – equivalent to nearly 35,300 a day.

Each ticket can cost drivers up to £100, meaning the total daily loss to motorists can approach £3.5 million.

The RAC said drivers may feel “badly let down” by the Government after a promised crackdown was withdrawn in 2022 following a legal threat by the private parking industry.

Framework withdrawn in 2022

Friday marks the five-year anniversary of the Parking (Code of Practice) Bill receiving Royal Assent and becoming law.

Ministers passed the law after promising to regulate private parking operators, who have been accused of using misleading and confusing signs, aggressive debt collection tactics and imposing unreasonable fees.

However, the operators threatened a legal challenge against the Government, resulting in the framework being withdrawn in 2022 after just six months.

The code – originally laid before Parliament in February 2022 and due to come into force across Britain by the end of last year – stated that the cap on tickets for some parking offences should be halved to £50.

Steve Gooding, the director of the RAC Foundation, said: “Since March 2019, many things have happened. The five years have seen us through four prime ministers, a pandemic and a cost of living crisis.

“But what we’ve not seen is the implementation of the protections MPs were queuing up to support when the Parking (Code of Practice) Act made its way on to the statute book all those years ago.”

A spokesman for the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities said it would run a public consultation exercise “in due course”.

“We remain committed to introducing the Private Parking Code of Practice to help improve the regulation of the private parking system,” said the spokesman. “The Government continues to work with the industry and consumer groups to reissue the code as quickly as possible.”

Yellow boxes bigger than needed

The news comes as the RAC revealed that almost all yellow box road junctionsresponsible for generating the most fines in London and Cardiff are bigger than necessary.

Sam Wright, a chartered engineer, was commissioned by the motor insurer to analyse the 100 boxes across the two cities that were responsible for generating the most fines in 2019. He found that 98 were larger than necessary to prevent queuing vehicles blocking the path of crossing traffic.

London and Cardiff were the only parts of the UK in which drivers could be fined for yellow box offences. In other areas, only police forces were able to punish motorists for driving into box junctions when they should not.

However, the Government introduced new legislation in May 2022 to enable councils across England to apply for enforcement powers. A group of 27 councils have since applied for powers to issue traffic fines.

patient_dream

The same story with more explanation is the Daily Mail.

Hurry to read it because the Daily Mail has been putting a pay wall on many of their stories

It seems PARKING EYE are the worst offender

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13200773/Private-parking-firms-fine-35-000-motorists-day-RAC-Foundation-data-shows.html

The Dept of Levelling Up still living in the clouds and will be just one reason the country will sack Sunak

Umkomaas

The 'esteemed one' is reported to have outwitted UKCPM and their Gladstones appointed 'skilled advocate' in a 'landmark' case representing a delivery driver who'd stopped to drop off a parcel at a customer's property. 'Stopping is not parked'!  

What a victory!  There again, it might just have been a bit easier quoting 'Jopson'.  There you go, don't let straightforwardness get in the way of a good bit of self-congratulation.  😁

https://www.contestorlegal.co.uk/blog-3/stopped-is-not-parked-a-landmark-victory-for-delivery-drivers

Trainerman

Umkomaas said:

The 'esteemed one' is reported to have outwitted UKCPM and their Gladstones appointed 'skilled advocate' in a 'landmark' case representing a delivery driver who'd stopped to drop off a parcel at a customer's property. 'Stopping is not parked'!  

What a victory!  There again, it might just have been a bit easier quoting 'Jopson'.  There you go, don't let straightforwardness get in the way of a good bit of self-congratulation.  😁

https://www.contestorlegal.co.uk/blog-3/stopped-is-not-parked-a-landmark-victory-for-delivery-drivers

Interesting. Describes Mr Yamba as a Lay Rep,  I thought he was qualified. They also seem to think we are in USA  ... "tire" indeed !

Coupon-mad

'Cold-hearted' parking firm fined ill blue badge holder for pulling over

A woman has branded a parking firm "cold-hearted" after her husband pulled over because he felt unwell - and was hit with a £100 fine.

https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/1877753/ill-driver-fined-pulling-over/amp

This is parking management, is it Group Nexus?  Taking zero notice of extreme and mitigating circumstances - and never mind the Equality Act, eh?

The BPA must be so proud.

Coupon-mad

Here's a typical situation of two adjacent car parks with insufficient barriers or delineation:

Long Buckby train passengers caught out by parking confusion

Martin Heath - BBC News, Northamptonshire

https://sg.news.yahoo.com/long-buckby-train-passengers-caught-063525742.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvLnVrLw&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAACIXC_ov6BdHqcwWFFdM6fHwZXPy8CTO0IjD5X_s6C_eV0qPABDHMWiLDvXLeYdXGkC6V1KhtEf_C4XL4BnpHFqeSdxQzepOPOHNpZw6B_2gWuijxNCXSnEnA0MosZnc5S5VvHmg9dKvi24XJK9ZF3q7C1X18IVka9MAP8AYVcEh

Saba (the first parking company) offered a space for a day for £6.  They booked a space each and parked side by side.  The victim said: "We had our lovely day out and came back, no ticket on the car, but about three weeks later, I had a parking fine from the ANPR camera."

Ms Diprose appealed against the charge, issued by (second parking company) Total Parking Solutions, who manage part of the car park, but the appeal was rejected.

The company offered to reduce the fee to £20 as a 'goodwill gesture'.

LOL!

She said: "I don't think anyone would be looking [for different parking companies] when you feel you've done the right thing and booked a ticket.

Total Parking Solutions (TPS) said: "TPS oversees the parking arrangements at Long Buckby, boasting a separate entrance from the SABA-managed area. Our aim is absolute clarity for motorists always."

Saba have been invited to respond.

The BPA must be so proud.

Let's sweep it under the carpet again, eh?  It's pretty much always "not a breach" when victims complain, and the BPA actually thinks it's OK if a scum PPC 'reduces a charge to £20' even when the motorist's case is that the issue was caused by the PPC's own fault, such as useless lack of prominent signage.

Whatever2023

Umkomaas said:

The 'esteemed one' is reported to have outwitted UKCPM and their Gladstones appointed 'skilled advocate' in a 'landmark' case representing a delivery driver who'd stopped to drop off a parcel at a customer's property. 'Stopping is not parked'!  

What a victory!  There again, it might just have been a bit easier quoting 'Jopson'.  There you go, don't let straightforwardness get in the way of a good bit of self-congratulation.  😁

https://www.contestorlegal.co.uk/blog-3/stopped-is-not-parked-a-landmark-victory-for-delivery-drivers

Not sure why he has said that the case sets a precedent as it does nothing of the sort.

Nellymoser

Good parking management operators wouldn't be taking delivery drivers to court for stopping to deliver goods. With the parking industry experiencing a market failure delivery drivers have turned to the gov to address the problem.
https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/658341
Exempt all delivery drivers from parking fines

Coupon-mad

Whatever2023 said:

Umkomaas said:

The 'esteemed one' is reported to have outwitted UKCPM and their Gladstones appointed 'skilled advocate' in a 'landmark' case representing a delivery driver who'd stopped to drop off a parcel at a customer's property. 'Stopping is not parked'!  

What a victory!  There again, it might just have been a bit easier quoting 'Jopson'.  There you go, don't let straightforwardness get in the way of a good bit of self-congratulation.  😁

https://www.contestorlegal.co.uk/blog-3/stopped-is-not-parked-a-landmark-victory-for-delivery-drivers

Not sure why he has said that the case sets a precedent as it does nothing of the sort.

Nor will Excel's appeals (plural) whatever the outcome.  Too little too late, IMHO.