Parking Eye fined me for staying 5 minutes and 4 seconds.

norm_

I lodged an appeal stating I changed my mind about parking and should be given a reasonable amount of time to leave.

They rejected my appeal, but in the very PDF document it states:

Clause 13.1 of the current BPA Code of Practice, released on 6th January 2020, explains that a driver must have the chance to consider the Terms and Conditions of the car park before entering into a parking contract. If a driver decides not to stay and leaves the car park, a reasonable consideration period must be given before the driver can be bound by a parking contract. The amount of time in these instances will vary dependant on site size and type of car park, but the code states that it must be a minimum of 5 minutes.

In my counter-appeal with POPLA I quoted the Parking Code of Practice the government set out, which says:

• A compulsory 5-minute cooling-off period in which a motorist can consider the terms and conditions and change their mind about parking.

How likely do you think my appeal is?

Thanks 

Le_Kirk

On the basis of the above it should be a slam dunk but you will have to emphasise that it is a minimum of 5 minutes.

porridgestation

Without revealing too much information, how large was the car park you rejected the parking event in?

Clause 13.1 states a minimum of five minutes to consider the contract (naturally the PPC knuckle draggers impose the minimum possible time without consideration) so should your entry and consideration of the first sign you were able to read safely to digest the terms and conditions was more than 3 seconds from the entry point (and subsequently the exit point) then the five minutes is considered unreasonable.

The PPC would naturally reject your appeal as they're still dribbling at the possibility of your credit card, but should POPLA also reject (they're generally too stupid to understand contract law) then a breach of the BPA would be a wonderful bottom slap for Parking Eye.

1505grandad

POPLA decision posted a few days go may be of interest (also see posts afterwards):-

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/80373417/#Comment_80373417

Coupon-mad

Stress to POPLA that the 5 minutes is a minimum and there is no way that the in/out cameras are synched with each other to the second. The PCN is a joke.

If you then parked elsewhere, say so (prove it if you can) and state that you gained no amenity from the ParkingEye infested site.

norm_

porridgestation said:

Without revealing too much information, how large was the car park you rejected the parking event in?

The PPC would naturally reject your appeal as they're still dribbling at the possibility of your credit card, but should POPLA also reject (they're generally too stupid to understand contract law) then a breach of the BPA would be a wonderful bottom slap for Parking Eye.

Sorry for late reply.

The car park was small. I was discussing with my girlfriend whether we wanted to go to the venue in question, only minutes later did I see the T&C's for the car park and opted to leave.

I didn't explicitly state in my appeals that I disagreed with the T&C's of the car park. Will this potentially be used against me. Or does the Code of Practice let you leave for whatever reason you choose, after all it states "If a driver decides not to stay and leaves the car park" it doesn't say for what reason.

I understand I will have the opportunity to add comments to any evidence Parking Eye add to the POPLA appeal, should I quote the BPA terms then?

Coupon-mad

Nothing in your first appeal matters.

norm_

In the "evidence pack" Parking Eye submitted to POPLA they referenced this:

Additional Information

Clause 13.1 of the current BPA Code of Practice, released on 6th January 2020, explains that a driver must have the chance to consider the Terms and Conditions of the car park before entering into a parking contract. If a driver decides not to stay and leaves the car park, a reasonable consideration period must be given before the driver can be bound by a parking contract. The amount of time in these instances will vary dependant on site size and type of car park, but the code states that it must be a minimum of 5 minutes. 

Please note, a consideration period does not apply when a parking event has taken place. The BPA Code of Practice defines a parking event as a limited free stay period or when a driver pays for parking. In these instances, a motorist is given a reasonable grace period at the end of their parking event before a Parking Charge Notice is issued. The code states that this period must be a minimum of 10 minutes.  

I'm at a loss why they think in this particular instance that clause doesn't apply in this case?

Coupon-mad

They are saying you stayed past the 5 mins consideration period and in their greedy minds, you accepted their terms by staying.

Thus under the BPA CoP, no consideration period then applies (because the BPA changed the CoP in 2020 to remove the consideration period if a car 'stays').  Shocking. But they did.

The Government has rewound that back to a fair application of BOTH periods in the new statutory CoP but it's not 'going live' until 2024.

Do what I advised in my last reply.

Alepko

Coupon-mad said:

They are saying you stated past the 5 mins consideration period and in their greedy minds, you accepted their terms by staying.

Thus under the BPA CoP, no consideration period then applies (because the BPA changed the CoP in 2020 to remove the consideration period if a car 'stays').  Shocking. But they did.

The Government has rewound that back to a fair application of BOTH periods in the new statutory CoP but it's not 'going live' until 2024.

Do what I advised in my last reply.

Hi Coupon-mad… almost a year later and this thread is relevant to me.

I’ve just received a parking ticket from ParkingEye on almost the same terms as the OP. However this was for my new dentist, on their site they claim they have a ‘free’ car park out the back, and do not mention the requirement for putting in your number plate at reception.

After parking (not in a bay as the car park was absolutely full, but this is not what I received the PCN for for so isn’t mentioned) I dashed inside to make a quick payment. 

I received a PCN for being in the car park for 5 minutes without putting my registration in. Do you think I can try my luck with a case for a 5 minute minimum consideration period?

Whilst I did leave the car, I assume that people leave their cars to go and read the signage. For all they know, that 5 minutes was me changing my mind. I still think the grace period should apply as £60 is pretty steep. 

I am going to take pictures of their signs and see if there’s any other inconsistencies, including with the notice.

thanks!

Coupon-mad

You do need your own thread.