Parking stories in the News/media

Nellymoser

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c04y6dvpdx5o

The driver said he was quite perturbed and annoyed after receiving an unpaid toll charge fine in March followed by another in April as he'd never been near the Warburton Toll Bridge. In his case a VRM misread by the ANPR cameras was blamed. He also raised concerns about his personal information being released by the DVLA.

Another driver who did make journeys across the bridge said "the system was "not fit for purpose". He received an unpaid toll charge for a crossing in March but on checking his emails he had actually paid.

Like Charlotte Nichols MP Altrincham and Sale West MP Connor Rand has been "inundated" with messages about the bridge. He says "it's clear whatever is happening isn't working - it's broken at the moment".

While Peel Ports admits there had been "some genuine customer experience issues", its assessment found no evidence of a "systemic failure" of the scheme.

Connor said: "What I'll be saying to the transport minister and the department is that if they don't take those issues seriously then we might need to look at what other action we can take - including parliamentary action - to solve the issues."

patient_dream

Parkingeye initially refused Judy's appeal but following "a further review" they decided to cancel the charge "as a gesture of goodwill".

AMAZING what Parkingeye do when the media gets involved ??

GESTURE OF GOODWILL INDEED….. WHAT A LOAD OF RUBBISH PARKINGEYE

Nellymoser

Indeed. Media involvement certainly seems to have a high success rate at getting pcns cancelled.

nigelbb

Private parking firm fines double since pandemic

Drivers were hit with a record 16.5 million private parking tickets in 2025, equivalent to more than 45,000 every day, or one every two seconds. If each ticket led to a £100 demand, the charges could be worth up to £1.65bn.

The number of tickets issued rose from 14 million in 2024 and has almost doubled since 2019, when 8.4 million were issued.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/gift/22169078b2459313

thefunkaygibbon

Here's a fun one in the Guardian:

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/jul/15/drivers-charging-electric-cars-parking-fine-ev-pcn-car-parks

And a question to go along side - is charging a car parking?

IMO, no, you are refuelling your car. If you fill up at a petrol station, that is not parking, so why is this?

Car1980

Goods on display: Items on a shop shelf or in a shop window with price tags are invitations to treat. The customer makes the offer to buy at the till, and the cashier accepts it. [1, 2, 3]

The situation here seems to be that a contract is imposed on you by the manufacturer of the flooring, or the landlord of the building, that you agree to pay £100 for walking to the till to pay.

I don't see how there can be a meeting of minds in such a situation.

cooldude255220

https://issuu.com/jpp01/docs/parking_news_july_august_2026?fr=sMjhjMzgzNzY1ODU

1505grandad

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82070018#Comment_82070018

Oh dear - I feel a hypo(crite) coming on.

Le_Kirk

There is nothing in that article that one could disagree with but shouldn't he be telling his members, the Parking Companies, not us, the customers who agree we want a fair, smooth, entrapment-free experience where the signs are clear, fair and honest and the technicals (PDT or APP) work?

Car1980

Elephant in the room: follow Kelvin Reynolds' advice and the end result is less profit.

Enforcement should be the biggest part of the customer journey if you run a business that makes money from "enforcement"! 🤣