Brent Cross Shopping Centre Fine - UKPC Confusing signage for Children parking and Electric vehicles

12b3

Dear Members 

I want to post this to inform as well as get an idea on bits I could add on the appeal to the parking firm in addition to what is there on the newbies forum


I received a £60 fine from UKPC for parking in what I assume is a mix use  children bay / electric car bay ,the signage is confusing , I happen to have an electric vehicle that I didn't need to charge at that time but I did park there because  I had my two toddles in a buggy with me and the marking suggested to me at least that this this is  parent with buggy bay as well as an electric car charging bay

The charging points have been installed recently and this had  just the buggy sign in the past  but now it looks like this: 


the signage reads: 


I received this letter some days later and had to go back to take these pics , highly annoying ,

 they have cameras in the car park confirming that they can view and confirm that I came out & went back of the car with 2 kids in a buggy  , I feel it is not my responsibility to provide CCTV evidence and I hope they can get it on their own.



Would like to know if any one else has had this issue & letter  with UKPC, I was also a customer at the centre that day and spent there.

Regards

Gr1pr

Never been that way, but that PCN is a £100 Parking Charge Notice, not £60

The signs also says so in very small font buried in the small print 

The photos on that PCN appear to be MNPR , not ANPR , and they won't have access to any CCTV 

Zbubuman

Oh look, another parking company moving the goal posts again. Should be easy to beat as the signs and marking do not make sense and are ambiguous. 

Is it permitting electric vehicles who are charging only? 
Is it permitting electric vehicles with small children, who must also be charging only? 
Do the electric vehicles also need to be with small children ( when charging)? Can an electric vehicle park and charge in these spaces if they don't have small children?  

which one is it? 

12b3

I complained to the shopping centre and got a reply , lets see what I get next , I wish I could get compensation for my wasted time from this parking firm.

LDast

You won't be paying a penny.

First of all, you should be complaining to whoever owns or manages the land and appointed the intellectually malnourished scammers, UKPC. Keep your photo showing the ambiguity of the ground markings. Make sure you also have the embedded EXIF data. Make a note of the date and time you took it.

You should also appeal with something along the lines of the following:

The driver has not breached any term in any contract. If your intellectually malnourished staff cannot understand the problem you have by providing a parking bay marked as for Parent & Toddler AND for EV charging, as evidenced by the attached photo, then they are obviously more stupid than I expected. The driver was accompanied by two toddlers on the day. The driver parked in a bay marked, as evidenced, for Parents & Toddlers. Never mind the point that the EV was not actually plugged in to the charger, the fact that the bay was marked for Parents & Toddlers use means that no terms could have been breached as your sign states that Parents & Toddlers must use the designated bays.

Whilst I should be astounded at the absurdity of your company issuing a PCN under these circumstances, I am not, because I already know about your firms shady practices and underhand scams. I will be highlighting the problem with you issuing a PCN when the parking bay in question has ambiguous markings to the BPA and the landholder that stupidly granted your company a contract to scam motorist out of their hard earned money in the first place.

Either cancel the PCN with immediate effect or issue me with a POPLA code where we both know you will auto-withdraw or waste your money on an assessment that is bound to lose.

Gr1pr

12b3 said:

I complained to the shopping centre and got a reply , lets see what I get next , I wish I could get compensation for my wasted time from this parking firm.

Just goes to show how well trained a UKPC operative on the ground is, not very, so anything to get their hit rate up and let others deal with the fallout 

Their reply won't stop UKPC boots on the ground doing it again, and again 

Coupon-mad

How can they have mixed use EV charging and/or Parent & Child bays?! Laughably ambiguous and clearly the retail park thinks they are for either/or.

1505grandad

"Their reply won't stop UKPC boots on the ground doing it again, and again"  -  nor data being given willingly by the DVLA

12b3

@LDast

Great reply , see attached exif data posting here for completeness

LDast

Just keep that handy.

I'd still send the appeal, just to elicit any kind of response from the Neanderthals at UKPC. You may not get compensation but a bit of Schadenfreude can be equally satisfying.

KeithP

Doesn't look like you will need it, but with this ambiguous situation keep in mind Section 69 of the Consumer Rights Act 2015...   

69 Contract terms that may have different meanings

(1) If a term in a consumer contract, or a consumer notice, could have different meanings, the meaning that is most favourable to the consumer is to prevail.