Parking stories in the News/media

Coupon-mad

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82160894#Comment_82160894

Good on him but they need to call out barrier-less zones as a scam toll, instead of calling it 'efficient' (as he did).

MrJenkinsEsq

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82132021#Comment_82132021

They refused to share any part of the contract. I have complained. In great depth.

Coupon-mad

Drivers charging electric cars handed shock parking fines

This one is from July but I couldn't see it on this thread:

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

"Does refuelling your car class as parking?

The answer appears to be yes if it’s an electric vehicle.

Guardian Money has been contacted by several readers who were fined after charging their cars away from home.

The motorists report being caught out by signs that fail to make clear that charging points are subject to parking tariffs or to store opening times. Also, they have found some chargers being advertised as available for use when it would be a breach of the car park’s terms and conditions to use them.

Kevin Laban hoped his electric car would save him money as well as the planet. However, after he used a charger in a supermarket car park he received an expensive surprise. Through the post came a £70 parking charge notice (PCN) for using the service when the supermarket was closed.

The app operated by the EV charger operator Pod had directed him to a bay in an Aldi car park in Weymouth. Parking is not permitted on the site outside store opening times and, unbeknownst to Laban, EV charging is deemed to be parking by the landowner.

Laban said that Pod advertises the charger as open to the public, while the car park’s cameras are set to immediately fine anyone who enters to use it. “If the landowner does not want people charging outside store hours, the chargers must be deactivated, or the EV apps must sync with the parking restrictions.”

Laban says there were no signs in the car park, on the charger or on the app stating it could only be used during store opening times.

Aldi cancelled the PCN when Laban complained and insisted that car park terms and conditions are clearly displayed.

Pod told Guardian Money that the app has the ability to show parking charges and restrictions, but that was entirely dependent on that being set by the landowner. The spokesperson added that landowners were responsible for notices about parking charges and restrictions displayed on site and while some prominently detail the relevant terms for EV drivers, others do not. He said that it was not possible to deactivate the chargers as the electricity supply would have to be cut every evening.

Laban’s experience exposes an anomaly in the rollout of EV chargers on private land: car park rules have not evolved to accommodate vehicles that stop solely to charge in a designated bay.

Another motorist, Clive Sanders*, paid more than he had bargained for when he charged his new EV in a Devon car park. He received a £100 PCN from the parking operator, Smart Parking, because he had only paid for charging. “There was no indication on the InstaVolt charger that I needed to pay the parking tariff as well as the charging fee,” he said.

“InstaVolt assured me they could get the PCN cancelled and gave me a letter to send to Smart Parking, but it refused to comply.”

InstaVolt said car park rules are set by the landowner and notices around its chargers warn that parking restrictions apply. It offered Sanders a £50 credit for the “inconvenience” after Guardian Money questioned the clarity of the signs.

Smart Parking said it was up to drivers to check the terms and conditions before using the car park. “There is no free parking and motorists must pay for the duration they stay,” a spokesperson said. “In this case, the driver stayed for nearly an hour without paying for his parking, so was he correctly issued a charge.

Anthony Stone* was hit with a £100 PCN after using an advertised charger in a Holiday Inn car park without registering his number plate at the hotel.

“How many contracts should a driver be expected to enter to charge a vehicle?” he said. “I understood that I was contracting with the charger operator to provide electricity, but it seems I was also entering one with the hotel or its parking operative.”

A spokesperson for Holiday Inn said vehicles are identified by ANPR cameras that do not distinguish between parking and charging. It claimed that the display screen tells drivers to register their cars for free parking before charging. It agreed to cancel the PCN after Guardian Money got in touch.

PCNs for charging are an increasing problem for EV drivers, according to the motoring group the RAC. “Signage needs to be clearer, so drivers realise straight away whether they need to pay for parking, how long they can stay to charge and the hours of operation,” said its head of policy, Simon Williams.

Names have been changed

 This article was amended on 17 July 2026. An earlier version misnamed Pod as Pod Point; the company changed its name in 2025.


Also to clarify, Pod said that there is no possibility to deactivate the chargers at certain times as the electricity supply would have to be cut.

Coupon-mad

https://www.edp24.co.uk/news/26604337.patients-brundall-surgery-now-face-parking-fines/

Patients at Brundall surgery could now face parking fines

UKPC this time.

Another disaster waiting to happen to the unsuspecting, ill and elderly who won't expect to see a screen like this. And drivers dropping off & waiting for their loved one to come out, won't see the screen at all.

Usually, these GP surgery ones involve CEL. But it's UKPC here, and the medical centre appears to have swallowed the usual spiel and are repeating it:

Brundall Medical Centre Car Park on The Dales has installed a new car park monitoring system to monitor unauthorised parking.

The system was put in place on September 30 to "make sure spaces remain available for patients and visitors who need them".

A spokesman for the general practice said: "If you use the medical centre car park, please ensure you log your vehicle registration number on the terminal inside the building when you arrive."

Patients who fail to register their vehicle plate could risk receiving a parking fine.

Oh dear.

MrJenkinsEsq

https://www.traffictechnologytoday.com/news/acquisitions-mergers/apcoa-acquires-uk-parking-patrol-to-expand-enforcement-offer.html

Parking and smart mobility services provider APCOA has acquired UK Parking Patrol (UKPP), a parking enforcement company that has operated in the UK for more than 15 years. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

UKPP will continue as a stand-alone business within APCOA UK, keeping its identity, team and client relationships. It serves clients across industries including airports, events and retail, and APCOA says service continuity for those clients is a priority.

https://www.apcoa.com/news/apcoa-acquires-uk-parking-patrol/

Coupon-mad

Driver warns of Castle Quarter parking system after £100 charge

https://www.edp24.co.uk/news/26610087.driver-warns-castle-quarter-parking-system-100-charge/

She later had the shock of a £100 charge in the post for not parking! She didn't pay.

The article mentions that Hozah changed the car park to ANPR in April. Not sure they issued the PCN.

Coupon-mad

Pensioner ‘bullied’ over parking tickets during cancer treatment

"chased by debt collectors over £680 in charges he ran up while in hospital"

Take a bow, Parkshield…

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/10/07/pensioner-bullied-parking-tickets-during-cancer-treatment/

The article says he relied on an exemption put in place by the hospital:

He provided evidence of his medical appointments and exemption, thinking there had been a mistake but he felt bullied and of course - despite the official NHS Parking Policy guidance requiring exemption for people attending ingoing appointments like this - they carried in regardless, no doubt seeing him as the usual elderly person who would just pay up.

Appalling that Parkshield rejected his appeals; their conduct blatantly breaches national NHS car parking policy.

Coupon-mad

The Star usually has articles about Excel in Sheffield, but this one is about ParkingEye:

Sheffield dad's £300 bill for 15 minutes extra in leisure centre car park when child was ill

https://www.thestar.co.uk/news/people/im-being-taken-to-court-for-staying-too-long-in-ponds-forge-car-park-sheffield-after-my-daughter-was-ill-9247015

“They are charging me £300 for a five minute overstay after my daughter had been ill”

A dad who spent five minutes too long in Sheffield car park because his young daughter was ill has been threatened with a £300 bill.

John Taylor had taken his four year old daughter swimming at Ponds Forge when the youngster became unwell as they got ready to leave.

ParkingEye slapped him with a postal PCN weeks later. It turned out that he had overstayed the two hours he paid for parking by 15 minutes - just five minutes over the 10 minute leeway that the company ParkingEye allows.

He challenged the fine, explaining the circumstances, but his appeal was rejected. The incident at Ponds Forge was in December 2022 and after nearly four years, John thought it had been forgotten.

But last week he received papers telling him they are taking him to the County Court for a claim of £308.

He said:

“I'm not sure I have the energy to fight them, so will probably pay this week.

They are charging me £300 for a five minute overstay after my daughter had been ill. It is supposed to be a family friendly venue.

“It seems very strange, and I’ve not been there since because of what happened. I made a mistake that has led to this. It feels like a ‘computer says no’ situation. It feels as though Ponds Forge would probably have scrapped it if they hadn’t handed control over to another organisation.

“My problem with Ponds Forge is that they handed parking over to some company, and they are clearly not in control of it. They say they want to engage people with sport and health, but have contracts with an organisation who doesn’t care if your child is ill. They picked the contractor. They should be able to tell them what to do.”

He feels ParkingEye pursued the charge aggressively without responding when he tried to tell them about the mitigating circumstances.

ParkingEye belched out a load of rubbish which I won't quote here but basically, to pursue this one appears to breach consumer law. No consideration period to arrive & pay. If he'd even been given a mere 5 minutes (which isn't enough in a pay to park site) he would never have got a PCN.

How can't hey ignore the CMA so blatantly?

Coupon-mad

Inverness driver furious after debt collectors chase fine she didn’t know she owed from city centre car park

https://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/fp/news/inverness/7125850/strothers-lane-car-park-inverness-martha-barnes-interview/

Martha Barnes, 77, was fined £170 after overstaying at the Strothers Lane car park, which could have been reduced to £60 if she had been told she owed it.

Inverness pensioner is warning people of the “unfair tactics” used by a city centre car park after being chased by debt collectors for a fine she didn’t know she owed.

Martha Barnes, 77, says she was shocked when she got a letter on September 8 saying she owed £170 for overstaying in the Strothers Lane car park, next to TK Max and the railway station.

The letter, issued from Debt Recovery Plus, threatened Mrs Barnes with legal action if she did not pay and read: “You may not have responded to previous letters due to an oversight”.

However, the pensioner insists “this was the first time” she knew there was a parking fine to pay. The Island Bank Road resident admits she overstayed at the car park “for a few minutes” on July 8.

A notice on the Strothers Lane car park, which is operated by Smart Parking, clearly states that “failure to comply with the terms and conditions may result in a fine of £100”, which “will be reduced to £60 if paid within 14 days of date of issue of the notice”.

A spokesperson for Smart Parking told The Press and Journal they wrote to Ms Barnes at the address given to them by the DVLA, but didn’t get any response.

Her concerns have been passed to the compliance department of the International Parking Community.

To avoid further problems, Mrs Barnes decided to pay on the day she received the letter.

YES…YOU READ THAT RIGHT.

SHE ACTUALLY PAID IT!

She then tried to appeal the fine by contacting Debt Recovery Plus. However, her attempt was unsuccessful.

The pensioner explained: “They said; ‘Well, you’ve paid it. Therefore, the case is closed. Safe driving. Goodbye.'”

Mrs Barnes then tried to get help from the International Parking Community (IPC), a DVLA-accredited private parking trade association, of which Smart Parking is a member.

But she claims she was told that paying the fine is seen as “an admission of guilt”, after which the case is closed.

Inverness Strothers Lane Car Park ‘a real scam’

Mrs Barnes told The Press and Journal she believes the whole situation is “a real scam”.

She said: “You either take the risk of legal action against you, or you pay it, and then it’s too late, you can’t do anything. It seems to me it’s a real scam. They’re certainly making a lot more money than what they’re entitled to, in my opinion.”

The pensioner said that what upsets her the most is the fact that she did not even know she owed anything, as she claims there was no communication from Smart Parking directly.

She added: “The first you know of it is when you get a letter from the debt recovery people. It’s just a scam. The only way to put it is a scam. And I don’t think they should be getting away with it.”

Mrs Barnes now wants to warn other people not to use the Strothers Lane car park. It also comes after she looked at the customer reviews for Smart Parking.
The parking management company has 1.1 out of 5 stars on Trustpilot after nearly 1,900 reviews.

The IPC said the usual rubbish… not worth quoting that lot.

But basically she has paid it when she could have ignored it. This is Scotland! Nothing would have happened.

She is also mobility impaired (which would make any overstay illegal under the Equality Act 2010) as seen in the top picture which shows the 77 year old leaning on a stick.

We've been quoting this article since 2010 but maybe this is one for the CMA now:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8488737.stm

Jenni_D

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/82162975#Comment_82162975

This story was one of the scrolling news banners on BBC Breakfast this morning.