Parking stories in the News/media

Nellymoser

Parking enforcement firm CPM slammed over mistake issuing fines to elderly couple on hospital visit

https://haringeycommunitypress.co.uk/2026/06/02/parking-enforcement-firm-slammed-over-mistake-issuing-fines-to-elderly-couple-on-hospital-visit/

Although the penalties have been dropped, the couple’s daughter has described the company as operating like “cowboys”.

Her parents visited the North Middlesex University Hospital for roughly an hour, starting from around 12.50pm, and then returned home. The following day, they received two parking charges from UK Car Park Management (CPM). The first was timed at 12.52pm and the second at 14.52pm on the same day. According to Emma, they were both accompanied by images time stamped at around 12.50pm.

Emma said: “I think they’re just cowboys, and if my mum and dad didn’t have me, they would have paid either one or both of those, just out of fear of it going up to £100 for each of them.”

A spokesperson for Agena Group, which includes CPM apologised to the family for the distress caused. Hospital visitors deserve to be treated with fairness, and on this occasion we fell short of that.

Coupon-mad

Private parking firms that operate in a way where they make ALL or MOST of their money if they issue PCNs have no place in GP surgery or hospital car parks IMHO.

A Royal Free London spokesperson said:

 “We are sorry that Mr Boland had a poor experience of our parking services while visiting North Middlesex University Hospital. As we carry out major building work, including the development of a new urgent treatment centre, we recognise the temporary pressure this has placed on parking for patients, visitors and staff.

To help maintain safe access to and from the site, we ask that all parking continues to take place within designated bays."

Useless! That helps nobody.

That final bit should have said:

"We recognise we need a temporary relaxation on parking enforcement, to be fair to our service users. To ease the pressure caused by the major building works, we have asked our parking provider to cease all PCN issuance to vehicles parked closely alongside kerbs, as long as access, doorways, other vehicles and ambulance bays are not obstructed."

IN.MY.DREAMS...!