Clutch failure, took <2 minutes to get going again - Stopping Prohibited East Midlands Airport fine

Coupon-mad

Complain to the Airport that VCS are not applying the byelaws exemption for emergency stop situations.

darkovo

Coupon-mad said:

Complain to the Airport that VCS are not applying the byelaws exemption for emergency stop situations.

I did write to the Airport, and got this reply, they obviously aren't interested...

"Thank you for getting in contact with us. By way of introduction, my name is Edward and I am one of the Customer Feedback Team for East Midlands Airport.
VCS, also known as Excel Parking, are a third party company who enforce the "No Stopping" zone in operation in and around the airport site, issuing fines to people in contravention of this. As such, you would need to take any correspondence in appeal of your fine up with them directly. We would not be able to assist with this.
You should find the information to appeal your fine in any correspondence they have sent you, including any escalation process as necessary, or you can also visit https://excelparkingservices.co.uk/contact/.
While we would not be able to assist further with this matter, I hope this helps point you in the right direction.

Kind regards,
Edward
Customer Feedback Team
Olympic House, Manchester Airport, M90 1QX"

Fruitcake

Edward is ignorant. He thinks VCS are able to issue fines. They are not.
He thinks VCS and Excel Parking Services are the same company. They are not.
He thinks the airport owner/management company cannot get this cancelled. They can.

Go higher up the food, complain again about the failure to apply airport byelaw exemptions, and the incorrect statements by Edward.

Hey, what a great name for a book or film title.

The Ignorance of Edward.

How did you get on with you complaint to your MP?

Half_way

Do as he says and get in touch with VCS, tell them that the vehicle had to stop due to an emergency and as per the by-laws in force at that site they (VCS) can not pursue you over this matter and as this site is covered by bye-lawss VCS must cease pursuing this matter immediately.

 You are trying to get a response from VCS stating that the Bye-laws are old/out of date/obsolete etc which apparently was/is a one-off mistake ( that has been reported many times in the past)

 You can then reply to "edward"

Dear Edward, thank you for your reply, as I am sure you are fully aware you are jointly and severally liable for the actions of your agents, in this case the un regulated parking company VCS which has a different company name  ( Company number 03767288) to that of Excel parking (Company number 02878122)

As an un regulated private parking company, they have no power to impose fines or penalties, something that you should be aware of

 And depending upon what nonsense VCS trott out - ie if they come back with bye-laws are old and obsolete, then you can fire that back at Edward stating that bye-laws are a requirement of the Civil aviation authority and if an agent of the airport has stated that these are no longer in force then the airport operators licence from the CAA may not be valid for commercial and general aviation at the site

 The above may require a little bit of digging around/research to verify but if correct then follow it up with a complaint to the Civil aviation authority and keep putting on the pressure

 

VCS's antics at this site need to be stopped as it is pushing problems into the local communities, places such as Diseworth

Also please read this:

 https://www.theguardian.com/money/2024/sep/14/airport-parking-fines-bristol-unenforceable-bylaw

darkovo

@Fruitcake and @Half_way Thanks for the replies, I didn't notice the difference in company name! I'll have a read and follow this up wiith the Airport.

As for the MP, I contacted the 2 councillors in my area that continually give the local people updates on things locally, 1 is conservative (same as the MP for the area). The other is independent. Both have tried to help swaying things in the past, but to no avail. They both agreed the MP for the area wouldn't get involved due to it happened outside of his constituency.

Fruitcake

You can only contact/complain to your own MP. They represent you, no matter what happened to your nor where it happened. MPs are the only ones who can make the changes to the unregulated parking industry happen. 

You should (must) complain to your MP. The councillors are wrong to suggest otherwise. Nothing will ever will happen if people don't complain to their MP.

kryten3000

darkovo said:

As for the MP, I contacted the 2 councillors in my area that continually give the local people updates on things locally, 1 is conservative (same as the MP for the area). The other is independent. Both have tried to help swaying things in the past, but to no avail. They both agreed the MP for the area wouldn't get involved due to it happened outside of his constituency.

You complain to the MP who represents the constituency you live in, it doesn't matter where the PCN was issued, they should be able to make contact with the IPC through the "dedicated portal" they offer to MPs.

skuther

I have had nearly identical situation - except Leeds Bradford airport.

Car stalled for 51seconds on link road to their car park at 5am in the morning.

 I am keeper not driver (but was passenger and eyewitness also).

Also VCS.

posted original appeal via their website.

almost identical response to one above from them! it arrives as a pdf from a "no-reply" email, so not quite sure how to even respond to them (assuming I should at all).

I have (as of this afternoon) complained to airport about them.

Also written letter to MP.

I will be interested to see this turns out.

thanks

Le_Kirk

Dear Edward, if I was driving through your airport and you happened to step on the road in front of my car, should I stop, as in an emergency or........

LDast

This OP has already been advised to raise their complaint with the CEO of EMA, Steve Griffiths and also to respond to "Edward". Here is the suggested outline of a complaint to the CEO:

Subject: Formal Complaint Regarding Parking Charge Notice and Unacceptable Response from Customer Service

Dear Mr Griffiths,

I am writing to formally complain about a Parking Charge Notice (PCN) issued by Vehicle Control Services (VCS) for a vehicle for which I am the registered keeper. This charge was issued following a brief emergency stop caused by a mechanical failure, which is clearly exempt under Section 4(4) of the East Midlands Airport Byelaws.

VCS continues to pursue this charge based on the assumption that I, as the registered keeper, was the driver—an argument that was dismissed in the persuasive appeal case of VCS v Edward [HOKF6C9C] 2023. As they are fully aware, there is no presumption in law that the registered keeper is the driver, yet VCS persists in making this baseless claim.

Additionally, your customer service team, referred to this speculative invoice as a “fine.” This is a fundamental error. VCS, as an unregulated private company, cannot issue fines, which can only be imposed by statutory authorities. The customer service team should be able to distinguish between a speculative invoice from a private parking company and an actual fine.

While I do not intend to escalate this matter to court, if VCS chooses to do so—following their usual vexatious modus operandi—I will hold East Midlands Airport jointly and severally liable for any unreasonable behaviour by VCS. I also have a signed witness statement from a passenger in the vehicle at the time, confirming that the stop was unavoidable due to the mechanical failure and falls under the emergency exemption in the byelaws.

Attached is a copy of the Notice to Keeper for your reference. I expect immediate action to cancel this unlawful PCN and a review of the inadequate response from your customer service team.

Yours sincerely,

And a suggested response to "Edward":

Dear Edward,

Thank you for your response, though I must express my exasperation with its numerous inaccuracies and evasions. Your claim that “VCS, also known as Excel Parking” is incorrect. While VCS and Excel may share directors, they are distinctly separate legal entities with different company registration numbers. Should they unlawfully exchange my data or initiate legal action in confusion of these entities, that would be illegal and EMA would be jointly and severally liable as the contractor.

Additionally, your reference to VCS issuing “fines” is concerning. As an unregulated private parking company, VCS cannot issue fines—only statutory authorities hold that power. What they issue are speculative invoices. It is not only unacceptable for an EMA representative to mischaracterise them as fines but to highlight such ignorance as you have done in your correspondence, is quite frankly an embarrassment.

Your claim that EMA cannot assist in this matter is simply an attempt to fob me off. If you are not already aware, as the landholder, EMA is jointly and severally liable for the actions of its agent, VCS, and you could easily instruct them to cancel this charge, particularly since the emergency stop in question was necessitated by a mechanical failure, which is exempt under the East Midlands Bylaws 2001, section 4(3) and 4(4).

It is also worth pointing out that if EMA wished to hold owners or keepers liable under the airport bylaws, that would be within your authority as the landowner, although this has not been pleaded and is not legally possible here. VCS, as a third party, is definitely not the airport owner, and their 'parking charge' is purely for their own profit. Unlike a penalty under the bylaws, which would go to the public purse, VCS’s charge is based solely on contract law, and their allegations only apply to the driver.

As the registered keeper, I cannot be assumed or inferred to have been the driver, nor can I be pursued under any distorted interpretation of agency law. VCS has issued an invoice that, by law, can only hold the driver liable, not the keeper.

It appears that there is a lack of understanding here about who is the organ-grinder and who is the monkey in this contractual relationship. Rather than allowing your agent (the monkey) to act unchecked, I suggest that this matter be escalated as a formal complaint to the highest levels of management. Given the potential legal ramifications, it may also be wise for a responsible adult to ensure your legal advisors are aware of EMA’s potential liability if VCS is found to have behaved unreasonably should this escalate to litigation, as is the modus operandi of this firm of ex-clamper thugs.

I expect this matter to be taken seriously and for VCS to be instructed to cancel this PCN without delay.

Yours sincerely,