I recently entered a private car park run by Parking Eye in Liverpool centre and because I had never come across this type of payment before I asked someone who was also buying a ticket what you had to do to get the ticket . He pointed to the signs and said I had to enter on a keyboard the last 3 letters of my registration then pay the money which is what I did - £1.50 for 1 hour as I was picking up my wife from a cinema visit. After about 40 minutes I realised that the cinema show was going to finish a bit later than I originally thought so I went back to pay for another hour to make sure I was covered for time.
Approximately 10 days later I received a Parking Charge Notice with a fine for £100 for failing to make the appropriate payment for parking time. There are no phone numbers but I appealed on-line to be told I had not entered the full registration but only the last 3 letters and therefore was liable for a fine of £100 or £60 if paid with 14 days but as a 'gesture of goodwill' they would accept £20. I appealed again saying that if they checked they could easily see that I had not exceed my time and had paid the appropriate fee - the car park is only a small open air one and at most there. were 15 cars in the car park and in the time between me paying for the first and second tickets only one other car had gone into the car park . I was then told by the parking company that their internal appeals were finished and I could only appeal to POPLA , a so called independent appeals company. I sent an appeal to them explaining all that had happened only for my appeal to be rejected on the basis that the tickets I paid for were invalid because I had only put in the last 3 letters of the registration and therefore by parking with an invalid ticket I was breaking their terms and conditions and was liable to a fine of £100..
I feel that a fine of £100 is in fairness out of all proportion for what is an honest mistake but one in which I did not fail to pay any fees which were due for the duration of my parking. Also I would have thought that as the ticket issued to me is invalid then I feel that the ticket should be cancelled as the issue of such a ticket would seem to be an unlawful action.
Having started my appeals to both Parking Eye and POPLA under the impression that fairness and common sense would be sufficient I now realise that an argument on more of a legal basis is going to be required in order to take this further and I would appreciate any help or information that could be of benefit if this ends up in court.