Horizon PCN - Start time is showing as 1 minute 57 secs earlier than my booking

Rfm1701

Hi - sorry this post is very long, but I wanted to include all the information I have.

On 30/1/26, I parked at Oean Plaza, Southport, whose car park is managed by Horizon. I drove round for a few minutes looking for a space near the cinema, found one, then changed as the car next to me on the driver's side was very close to the line. I went to check the signage to see if I could use used the Parkonomy app to pay, as I use this for work too and I thought it would be easier than paying at the machine after the film. I had only used that car park once before, a few weeks prior to that date and had used the machine then. Now it's clear it would have been better to do that on 30th Jan. I thought the arrival time was6.25pm, so that's what was put on the app booking. I paid £12 total for parking due to adding extra time on for the end, to cover being held up for any reason, so I consider that it has all been paid for in full, and left well before the departure time on the booking. The other day, a parking notice arrived from Horizon Car Parks saying the arrival time was 6:23:03, which was backed up by a camera image of the car. The charge is £51 if paid within 14 days, and then will rise. I'm furious. Surely Horizon can tell that's a tiny human error - who on earth would lie about the start time to save on less than two minutes of parking?! It's a discrepancy of one minute and fifty-seven seconds! It's not as if overstayed the departure time. And how do I know their cameras were set to the correct time, to the exact second? Surely no-one can remember their arrival time to the exact minute and second. As far as I am aware, most fines for overstaying are about the departure time. It would be understandable if the discrepancy was five, even ten minutes or above. An appeal has been submitted online and I have also written to them to add a couple of details, and copied in the company that owns the car park and retail park. The charge has now been put on hold for 28 days while the appeal is assessed.

The letter to Horizon stated that:

-There is no allowance made for a tiny human error over the start time, or for a clock running a minute fast. There's no grace period.

-The fine is disproportionate to the time outstanding (someone who overstayed by half an hour or more would get the same fine), which hardly seems fair. The time overstayed seems not to be quantifiable - the issue seems not to be the amount of time, just SOME time.

-I have already had so many expenses this month that a fine like that would leave them struggling well into next month. I have had to factor in boiler and central heating repairs, a newish (second-hand, refurbished) phone as the old one stopped working, and car repairs (gone in for diagnostics yesterday - thankfully, it's repairable.

-January 2026 is the tenth anniversary of my dad's death, so I went to the cinema to see a film we both liked as a way of commemorating his life and to get something positive out of January (always a bleak time due to the bad memories). This has now been soured by these petty crooks/sharks (not that that term was used in the letter) and they have ruined it entirely for the driver which actually hurts more than the idea of the fine itself. Now Iwill likely remember that date for a parking notice, not trying to do something positive to commemorate a life...

I have asked the company who owns the retail park and car park if they can do anything. I have never had a parking ticket in ten years of driving or ever been in any kind of trouble. I am hoping it can be withdrawn or at least sorted at this early stage, even if I can pay something like £20 instead. This is beyond pettiness.

Since sending my appeal to Horizon, I have found some more points that I could add to an appeal, but I don't know if it would be better waiting to see if it gets rejected and then appeal to POPLA with these additional points.

1. Fairness under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 - The Act looks at whether the amount claimed is lawful and fair, if contrary to good faith, it causes an imbalance in the parties' rights. Horizon want £51, rising to £85 if not paid within 24 days! This sum is not commercially proportionate and that kind of amount is punitive to the motorist, considering the time discrepancy is only 1 minute 51 seconds.

2. If there's CCTV footage of me driving around to park and then consulting the signs, surely it's reasonable to allow a grace period, even at the start of a booking.

3. The de minimis principle in British law (mostly contract law) - essentially meaning that the law does not concern itself with trifles i.e. the time discrepancy is almost nothing. According to this, the law does not encourage parties to bring legal actions for technical breach of rules or agreements where the impact of the breach is negligible. I think tis is definitely true in my case.

Has anyone ever seen the start time of a booking only be slightly off compared to the time the parking company has recorded? If so, do you think the motorist would have much chance of winning a appeal or of winning in court?

Rfm1701

Sorry for any typing or grammatical errors - I was typing fast!

Coupon-mad

I don't think this PCN is about the arrival time, because you paid in full. They are not allowed to issue PCNs for 'not paying quickly enough' if you pay for the full stay.

Check the app. Is there a typo in the VRM for that session or did Parkonomy default to a works vehicle?

You will never have to pay this but next time come here first and NEVER appeal like that. You've quite possibly binned the winning appeal point, by saying who was driving. Horizon don't always use POFA wording so they may not have had a right to keeper liability. Saying who was driving in an appeal is a rookie error.

But obviously no paying, so don't ask that!

Rfm1701

Hi,

The PCN says, "Failure to pay for the full duration of parking", so I think it must be about the start time. No errors on the screenshot from the app that I can see. I left well before the end time on the booking, which is backed up by the photo on the PCN itself, so it can't be about the end time. There are no other drivers of the car as no-one else is on the insurance, so I thought there was no point denying it as they would find that out. I am not paying it, which is why I appealed it, but I didn't know there was a plethora of online advice, so I may have put in the appeal too early because I couldn't think how else to go about it. The PCN was dated 5th Feb and only arrived on 10th.

Rfm1701

P.S. Thanks for the comment. I've never had a PCN before so it was so confusing, and upsetting with everything else that was going on.

Coupon-mad

The PCN says, "Failure to pay for the full duration of parking", so I think it must be about the start time. 

It cannot be. That was banned a year ago.

What about wrong location Code? Something about the app payment is wrong.

There are no other drivers of the car as no-one else is on the insurance, so I thought there was no point denying it as they would find that out.

No that's wrong. How did you think that a 'rogue parking industry' oik firm could find out who is on your insurance policy? And no-one said to 'deny' it. Anyway:

Big mistake as this would have been 100% win at POPLA if Horizon's NTK didn't use keeper liability words on the back.

Rfm1701

That's what it says at the top - "Failure to pay/Validate for the Duration of Stay ANPR".

Rfm1701

And the app gives a location number and the name of the car park/retail park, but the PCN doesn't - it just gives the name of the car park/retail park.

Rfm1701

I also use my own car for both work and personal use, hence why the app would have defaulted to the one vehicle, as no others it could have chosen from.

Coupon-mad

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81883060#Comment_81883060

I know. We see that phrase often. And they use the same wording whatever the cause.

They either:

(a) think that you didn't pay at all (wrong location code, needs checking by looking at their signs & taking a photo, or several)

or

(b) think that you paid, but didn't pay the right amount for your full stay. But you know that's wrong and I've explained that 'paying too late' is no longer allowed. PCNs for that are banned.

So it cannot be (b).

I would email their complaints email and ask what exactly they mean, explaining the above two scenarios and insisting on clarity.

The phrase on the PCN is as clear as mud.

Rfm1701

Thanks - will give that a go.

And I've read the small text on the PCN - It says that on 30/1/26 AT 23.27 the vehicle breached the terms and conditions. But I have a screenshot of my parking booking from the app showing it was booked until 23.59. So if they're judging by the departure time, it looks like they have no case…