Parking stories in the News/media

Coupon-mad

Coupon-mad said:

Here's yet another story about McDonalds and their completely pointless and deluded use of UKPC to issue £100 PCNs to their most loyal customers:
https://www.cambridge-news.co.uk/news/cambridge-news/residents-parking-hell-fines-make-26027965.amp

Do you know what, McDonalds?

You DON'T NEED a parking time limit.  Never did.  Kick the PPC out.

Yet another McDonalds rip-off, this time a hapless family in Coventry being caught out by UKPC and dragged to a court claim situation:
https://metro.co.uk/2023/02/25/coventry-dad-furious-after-getting-fine-for-parking-at-mcdonalds-18346823/amp/

Who in their right mind thinks it us OK to charge genuine shoppers £170 for their kids slowing their visit down due to the heinous crime of using the soft play area, except the BPA and IPC?

Only in PPC World...

McDonalds, for the love of God, STOP DEFENDING THIS CRAP.

Coupon-mad

Someone from Brighton got a £100 PCN from NCP for daring to use the badly-signed drop off at Gatwick Airport:
https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/driver-uses-chatgpt-ai-100-29295189.amp

He got it reduced down to the early discount of £15 even though his appeal was late.  Not bad.

This PCN discount shows that a regime can easily operate at a lower level even than the DLUHC are proposing.

Proves that £50 discounted to £25 (or even lower: how about £40/£20) is sustainable.

Coupon-mad

Take a bow, Horizon Parking, for reportedly failing to prevent unfair PCNs from being issued to motorists who didn't even park in the Tesco car park at Haddington (Scotland):
 https://www.eastlothiancourier.com/news/23340073.haddington-fines-wrongly-issued-long-stay-car-park-near-tesco/

Apparently, it's been an issue for years - reported time and again since 2015 and it looks to me like Horizon can't be bothered to make sure the drivers who park in the adjoining Council car park are exempted properly.

A % will always just be paid without question, either by idiots with more money than sense, or lease firms.  Lucrative stuff, eh Horizon?

Coupon-mad

Here's a good news story: https://www.hexham-courant.co.uk/news/23336837.car-parking-charges-ponteland-memorial-hall-scrapped/

ParkingEye's unsuitable, money-grabbing, PCN-generating contract appears to have immediately driven so many potential service users away from Ponteland Memorial Hall, that it isn't being renewed!

"Ponteland Memorial Hall is an independent self-funded charity, which provides space for a bowling and tennis club and hires rooms as a venue for parties, weddings, markets, meetings, sports activities and awards nights."

Totally unsuitable community hub to be infested with ANPR cameras. Must have been appalling in its detrimental effect on unsuspecting customers.

Looks like they (and their oft-reported damaging effect on custom) were sussed within months.  I'm guessing the charity got loads of complaints.

Sensibly, no parking firm is being appointed at all and the car park will be free, to bring back users who were driven away.  Perfect.

More landowners should follow suit.

Coupon-mad

Back to the crap PPC articles, this time from NI, where a taxi driver was wrongly accused of parking at a retail park for 5 hours:
https://www.derrynow.com/news/local-news/449838/parking-company-refuses-to-clarify-if-camera-is-faulty-after-derry-motorist-mistakenly-issued-100-fine.html

Smart Parking reportedly refused to explain how come 'double dip' PCNs are happening at a Derry car park (even though they are always a feature of ANPR, and are caused by systems being deliberately set to report 'first in, last out' images within 24 hours).

"The Derry News contacted Smart Parking to ask whether there was fault with the CCTV cameras it uses to detect parking contraventions at the site on the Strand Road, which houses a gym and a toy store.

The Derry News also asked the company if it could give assurances to people that it would not issue parking fines to people who stayed within the two-hour limit.

However, Smart Parking did not respond to our requests.

Speaking to the Derry News, Willie Doherty, manager of City Cabs, said that while it could provide its driver with the evidence needed to contest the fine, members of the public did not have that facility available to them."

Lack of human checks of ANPR data and failing to bother to find the missed 'orphan' images are what cause double dips.  We all know that.

Looks like many AOS members can't be bothered any more.  The BPA must be so proud of Smart Parking.

It's not as if any PPCs are ever banned any more AFAIK, so one must assume everything that firms like this do is perfectly acceptable to the BPA or IPC.  
 

Never mind human checks, eh?  Quicker and more lucrative not to bother.

Never mind the Surveillance Camera Code of Practice and the DPA 2018, eh, PPC World?

Boat_to_Bolivia

Coupon-mad said:

This silly story in the Scum (sorry everyone) appears to be about a ParkingEye (typical) ANPR failure double dip:
https://www.thesun.co.uk/fabulous/21513027/man-appeal-parking-fine-morrisons-leaves-people-stitches/amp/

I don't think any apologies are necessary CM....Scum sums them all up nicely!

Coupon-mad

I must apologise for even linking that rag though.

As a football fan, I hate the Sun and will never forgive them for their 'reporting' of the Hillsborough disaster, where they blamed the victims.  It was very painful at the time - I was so angry - and remains unforgivable trash that any football fan could have told them was never true.

Boat_to_Bolivia

Coupon-mad said:

I must apologise for even linking that rag though.

As a football fan, I hate the Sun and will never forgive them for their 'reporting' of the Hillsborough disaster, where they blamed the victims.  It was very painful at the time - I was so angry - and remains unforgivable trash that any football fan could have told them was never true.

I imagined that is what you had in mind and yes it was an absolute travesty.

Disgusting and as you say unforgivable...I didn't click on the link, no way I could bring myself to!

BikingBud

Coupon-mad said:

Found this too.

Not about private parking firms but VERY interesting:
https://londonnewsonline.co.uk/wandsworth-council-trial-to-fine-drivers-blocked-by-government/

"A trial scheme which saw drivers become the first in England to face being fined by a local council for speeding has been blocked.

The Department for Transport (DfT) has stopped Wandsworth council contacting drivers caught breaking 20mph limits and said the way the authority used its powers to enforce it was “unlawful”.

The Labour-run council put up speed cameras to catch drivers breaking 20mph limits in two roads in the borough where residents often complained about speeding in November 2022.

The eight-month pilot scheme meant drivers caught breaking the rules in Wimbledon Park Road and Priory Lane faced up to £130 fines from the council – with the penalty charge notice slashed to £65 if paid in 14 days.

The council previously said the scheme could be made permanent and extended to other roads in the borough if successful, as well as being rolled out across the capital.

But the DfT said it had asked the DVLA to stop sharing details of drivers caught speeding under the scheme with the council.

A DfT spokesman said: “Wandsworth council is carrying out this experimental speed enforcement trial using powers in a way that is unlawful.

“We have therefore taken immediate action and asked DVLA to stop sharing registered keeper details with Wandsworth council for the purpose of enforcing this scheme.”

The council said it had dished out warning letters to drivers caught breaking the rules on the trial roads so far but has not handed out any fines."

WOW.  Wow!  SPEED CAMERAS?! 

Who the heck at the Council thought this was lawful?!

And how much did it all cost?

More tot he point why can DfT not also take immediate action to stop DVLA sharing RK details for private parking companies.

Everyone know it's a scam so just crack on and stop it.

Jenni_D

Money ... DVLA makes a pretty penny out of it. (Even though they deny it, £2.50 a pop for keeper details which cost the DVLA a negligible amount to furnish automatically via KADOE, amounts to a pretty penny. Yes, DVLA will have maintenance costs, but nowhere near what income it generates).