Parking stories in the News/media

ChirpyChicken

Latest edition of parking review out
https://issuu.com/landorlinks/docs/parking_review_issue_394

kryten3000

Creative Car Parks operating without planning permission. Quelle surprise. 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cd9ke7gdew0o

Bazarius

Car1980 said:

https://www.theguardian.com/society/ng-interactive/2025/nov/04/strike-3-!!!!!!-copyright-lawsuits

In America everything is bigger as they say. The US version of DCB Legal, with claims of £24k minimum, but always discontinued. Despite this, most people still pay up.

Link appears broken The Guardian cannot find the article 

Car1980

Ah, that's because the !!!! In the URL should be a word beginning with p, followed by or, and ending in n.

Jenni_D

Let's see if posting like this makes a working link.  

Edit: nope 🙄

Nellymoser

A charity has been left 'dismayed' after finding out parking charges may be introduced in Bollington.

https://macclesfield.nub.news/news/local-news/charity-dismayed-as-council-considers-backing-out-of-free-car-parking-arrangement-277763

A spokesperson said: "As a vital and unique charity situated in the heart of our town but without our own parking on site, the Bridgend Centre views the car park at Pool Bank as essential to being able to provide our services."

kryten3000

TFL Charges of over £11k after auto payment account suspended.

https://www.theguardian.com/money/2025/nov/04/consumer-champions-london-ulez-auto-pay-blunders-fines

Coupon-mad

Can't recall if we had this article in October:

https://fleetworld.co.uk/ev-drivers-aggressively-and-unfairly-targeted-by-private-car-park-operators/

On the usual theme of ANPR PPCs' presence #killing the high street

...and in this case, targeting perfectly law-abiding electric vehicle drivers with terms they can't possibly read from EV bays:

EV owner/drivers are being “aggressively and unfairly targeted” by private car park operators who issue Parking Charge Notifications (PCNs) to those parking in bays that are specifically and clearly signposted for use exclusive for EV charging.

The practice was flagged by Norrie Hunter, a motoring and industry journalist who has been an EV owner/driver for more than four years. Hunter, previously media advisor for the Electric Vehicle Association (EVA) Scotland, said he was hit by a fine for charging his EV while staying at a hotel run by a major chain that offered free parking to guests.

There were no signs by the charging bay saying that guests had to pay. Although the 'fine' has since been scrapped, Hunter said that the practice is widespread among private parking firms who are engaged by hotels, city councils and tourist locations throughout the UK to monitor sites. Hunter elaborated:

“While governments, local authorities etc. boast of encouraging drivers to transition to electric vehicles, this money-grabbing practice is being widely condemned.”

#private parking ANPR: killing the high street

#private parking ANPR: killing the high street

Coupon-mad

Again, on the theme of ANPR PPCs' presence #killing the high street:

...disabled Southampton pensioner has hit out at Britannia Parking after being fined six times in less than a month at West Quay Retail Park:

https://www.dailyecho.co.uk/news/25578411.pensioner-fined-six-times-west-quay-retail-park/

Peter Sherriff, 73, says he was unaware of recent changes to the site’s parking system, which removed physical tickets and introduced new terms for blue badge holders.

Charged were issued on August 28, 29, 30, and September 1, 3 and 17. Peter said the new ticketless system had not been properly communicated to customers. He said: "I was in the process of buying a new freezer for my home and made a number of trips to and from John Lewis in Southampton City Centre over several days. "We were trying to find the right one, so I kept going to and from the store using the car park at West Quay Retail Park. On one occasion, I drove through the car park and couldn’t find a space, so after driving around a few times I exited the car park – I was even fined when I didn’t actually park in a space."

"I’m a blue badge holder and have parked at West Quay Retail Park for years and years, and it was always free for those with a blue badge.

"Whatever changes have been made to the parking policy have not been communicated to customers – I haven’t seen a single sign to warn shoppers that the parking policy had changed."

Sounds like he's been duped into thinking he has to pay. Sigh...

#private parking ANPR: killing the high street

#allegedly breaching the 'Code of Practice'

#ANPR firms: repeatedly breaching the Equality Act at a retail park near you.

The BPA must be so proud.

Nellymoser

Britannia Parking accused of taking advantage of West Quay Retail Park motorists after introducing ANPR and removing free parking after 8pm and for blue badge holders....

Teen Primark worker loses entire month's pay to PCNs. The shop assistant has 5 charges but is expecting another 8 to arrive as he was unaware the car parking where he works had changed.

https://www.dailyecho.co.uk/news/25599999.west-quay-retail-park-teen-primark-worker-loses-months-pay/

Pensioner fined six times in 3 weeks at West Quay Retail Park

https://www.dailyecho.co.uk/news/25578411.pensioner-fined-six-times-west-quay-retail-park/

Woman received 16 charges leaving her with a bill near £1,000. Two blue badge holders also received multiple charges.

https://www.dailyecho.co.uk/news/25596033.shoppers-tell-fury-west-quay-retail-park-fines/

 "It appears to me that this company are unfairly fining customers without telling them that the parking policy has changed."

"I didn’t see a single new sign warning that parking had changed."

Did the motorists miss them or are they NOT there ???

In their statement Britannia made no specific reference to signs warning users of the changes all they said was "all of our signs and procedures across all of our sites meet the BPA Approved Operators Code of Conduct."