Unfair behaviour by Privately operated carpark management company

Coupon-mad

Reply to that FOI and ask for:

(a). copies of all notes, minutes, communications and emails to and from any internal staff or external stakeholders in 2022 (both before and after the parking regime went live) regarding the operation/signage at all affected car parks where this agent operates. This includes, but is not limited to, communications with Wise.  Names and email addresses may be redacted.

(b).  A copy of the contract the NHS Trust signed with Wise.  Names may be redacted as may any monetary £sum shared or paid between the parties, to protect the financial details of this arrangement;

(c). How many complaints of any description have bern received by the NHS Trust about this operation, at all sites where Wise have been allowed to 'run' (ruin) the car parks? All are to be counted, including phone calls and verbal complaints made to staff, and complaints made to PALS.

(d). How many complaints AND appeals have Wise received about the regime at the Trust's car parks?  All are to be counted, including phone calls and any stage appeal.

(e).  How many Parking Charge notices have been issued to date at each car park?  And how many specifically at the accessible bays in question? 

(f)  Please supply a copy of the Disability Impact Assessment carried out prior to enforcement and prior to the decision to expect disabled people to 'register' their Blue Badge (i.e. the mandatory anticipatory Impact Assessment as required under the Equality Act 2010 and the additional statutory EHRC Code of Practice) and any discussions about protecting disabled service users from parking charges;

(g)  A copy of the notes, minutes and communications relating to the tender process prior to awarding the contract to Wise, and any discussions/notes/communications or emails that explain why a company with no history and no truly independent appeals process was appointed?  Names and email addresses may be redacted.

(h). Is any staff member within the NHS Trust related to or is connected in any way with Wise Parking, or introduced/recommended that company to the NHS Trust? Please explain the connection/interest and whether that affected the tender process.

(i). Explain why the response to FOI xxx wrongly states that "the Hospital added the extra signs about registering a Blue Badge" when the evidence shows these are Wise Parking signs with IPC and other Logos? Please review that FOI reply which is indisputably incorrect, and respond truthfully and in detail: why were those extra signs added and who told Wise to add them and why (all communications to be supplied).  On what exact date were they added by Wise?

Snakes_Belly

So that small sign was put up after PCN's had been issued to blue badge drivers who had not registered their reg. no. because they weren't made aware.

I would be preferable to get it cancelled by the NHS however you have a good defence if it goes all the way.

dave77238u38

@Coupon-mad Thank you very much for putting all that together. really appreciate the help

DE_612183

is it just me or if you are disabled surely it would need to be a lot lower for people with certain disabilities to be able to read it?

Snakes_Belly

There should be signs when you enter the car park alerting drivers that the terms and conditions have changed.

The sign does look high up. 

Their business model relies on the fact that drivers will fall foul.

Snakes_Belly

DE_612183 said:

is it just me or if you are disabled surely it would need to be a lot lower for people with certain disabilities to be able to read it?

All these points, keep a list as it will help the driver to form a strong defence if the claim does escalate.

That also applies to NormDris who appears to have a similar issue and perhaps should start a thread of their own.

dave77238u38

Snakes_Belly said:

So that small sign was put up after PCN's had been issued to blue badge drivers who had not registered their reg. no. because they weren't made aware.

I would be preferable to get it cancelled by the NHS however you have a good defence if it goes all the way.

I originally contacted PAL's by phone days after receiving the PCN, they weren't very helpful, I have since emailed them complaining about the behaviour of Wise , still waiting for them to get back to me. (its been 3 weeks).   

Coupon-mad

Follow it up. Tell them you are now involving your MP and are not going away.

Coupon-mad

Dear xxxxxx,

cc: my MP 

No, it is not helpful. It's passing the buck.

When a disabled person complains that they have been discriminated against and wants PALS and/or the NHS Trust to step in and deal with your out of control agent, I don't expect you to send my complaint to that agent, believe every word they say then fob me off by repeating it verbatim.

Please send me a copy of the contract some misguided person at the NHS Trust actually signed with this brand new parking firm, who not only have no trading history but also offer a farce of a self-serving appeals process, where the Lead 'Adjudicator' boasts publicly that only 4% of hapless consumer victims win.

The Government is set to remove and replace the IAS (IPC so called appeals service) due to huge concerns from MPs, motoring and consumer groups.

Did you know?  Does anyone at this hospital care?

When you send me a copy of the ridiculous contract someone managed to agree to sign with Wise, kindly explain why (when handling my complaint) you didn't read it first and exercise the standard option to tell the agent to cancel this charge?  Don't tell me the Hospital didn't give themselves this option in the contract and is entirely allowing a member of the well-known greedy and rogue private parking profession to harass your disabled patients, whilst you stand back and try to wash your hands of it all?

Guess what? You can't.

The NHS Parking Principles remind all NHS Trusts that they remain liable for the actions of their parking agents at all times, and that contracts must not be let on the basis of incentivised 'income from parking fines only'.

That's what the NHS Trust has done...isn't it?

And they've carried out no disability Impact Assessment before signing up for this inappropriate contract.

So, the Trust stands in breach of:

- the Equality Act 2010 (the EA)
- the EHRC statutory Code of Practice re the EA
- the NHS Car Parking Principles, and
- the Consumer Rights Act 2015 (CRA).

The latter comes into play because signs and terms MUST be 'prominently' communicated by law. Before the additional signs were added, that term was far from prominent. I think we can all agree? Otherwise the Trust would not have ordered them to be added.

Therefore, despite the reply from Wise telling you that Additional prominent signs are merely 'nice to have', they are in fact a legal requirement under the CRA.

I look forward to a properly considered response and a copy of the supposed contract.  Kindly DO NOT ask your mates at Wise if you can release it.  You can, under FOI rules.  You may redact names and £ amounts if the Trust does actually pay Wise for this appalling 'service'.

Far more likely they pay the Trust a bounty from the proceeds of issuing as many parking charges as they possibly can.  A protection racket by any other name...did no-one at the NHS Trust bother to check the Car Parking Principles, nor even Google to learn about the impending Government changes that NHS England is well aware of?

I warn you that I am considering a court claim against the NHS Trust because this farce of allowing your agent to continue to 'play' you and demand money from me, has moved on to the realms of harassment, which is in itself a strict offence under the EA.

Yours sincerely,

dave77238u38

@Coupon-mad
Thank you again