To not want to pay this fine?

[Imamiddleclasstwat]

My 8 ur old dd is in hospital with suspected appendicitis. I drove her to a and e and she was in agony, could barely stand and the nearest car park is about 3-400m from a and e. There's no way she could walk so I parked in the 20 min drop off slot and carried her in. She was then sent straight to the surgeons and spent the night on morphine and didn't want me to leave her to move the car (massive hospital, probably would have taken about 20-30 mins on total), she was in pain, unwell and scared. I didn't feel I could leave her in that state. First thing next morning I went to move the car and have received a £50 fine, the ticket was put on after an hour.
I'm going to have to pay it aren't I? Feels like there's no compassion. I saw a police car also with a ticket.

In the grand scheme of things £50 is a bad overnight charge to park exactly where you wanted to at the time.

You had the option and opportunity to move it and chose not to. I don't think you'd do any thing different if it happens again so I would say £50 isn't too bad.

I don't really know how I could have done anything different, I couldn't carry her from the car park and I couldn't leave her. She's seriously ill.

While I appreciate your DD is poorly/didn't went you to leave her, unfortunately, I think you were being unreasonable to leave the car there all night - your daughter really would have been ok for 20 mins.

Those 20 min drop off areas need to be used correctly so that everyone who needs to can use it. When I take my Nan to the hospital, I rely on that section near the door to get her out and into her wheelchair so I can leave her at the entrance and go and park my car somewhere - if people just left cars in them I would really struggle as getting a disabled space is virtually impossible and I can't manage with a normal space.

Meant to say I hope your DD is better soon, I've had an appendicitis and it's awful

The fine is justified imo. It is short term parking and you parked over night. I get your Dd was ill but if everyone did the same and refused to pay the fine there would be no drop off/collect short term parking for people that need it.

I'm sorry that she's so ill - but you should have gone to move your car. It would have taken you only 10 minutes if the car park is only 300-400m away from the hospital. She was, after all, in the care of the nurses.

I totally get why you don't want to pay it, but you will have to.

I agree with the others. Especially as you were in there for an hour before they gave you a ticket at all. There might have been other people with family members that needed to be taken to Casualty that couldn't get in the drop off zone because you were there.

I would try to look at it like a charge rather than a fine. Like airport parking.

I'd have been more surprised not to get a ticket I think.

Pay it. If everyone did what you did no one would get into a and e. I was in same situation. I waited until dc was heavily medicated, settled him with a nurse and went and moved my car.

You broke the rules so unfortunately you need to pay the fine or risk it doubling after 14 days.

Sometimes the right decision is also the wrong decision. I'd have made the same wrong decision too but would have accepted £50 was the price of my error.

Best wishes to your DD. Hope she's better soon

Tbf you could have moved it while she was in surgery. I'm not having a jab like I said you made the decision you made and I don't think you would change it even knowing for sure you'd get the fine.

I was in a hospital short stay car park for a check up and unexpectedly got admitted. I made sure that someone told the appropriate people so that I didn't get a fine and DH came and moved it asap. Perhaps if you'd managed to tell someone appropriate something different might have been done - but under the circumstances, I don't think that it's unreasonable for them to have imposed the fine. I quite understand why you parked there though!

I was reading your OP expecting to get to the bit where you left the car there for 30 or 40 minutes, but overnight is absolutely taking the piss.

Considering you were probably blocking other people, who may have also needed to use the "quick drop off area" to get their sick child quickly into the hospital, you're lucky it wasn't towed away.

Pay the fine.

If everyone else had done what you did the bay would have been full and you would have had a problem getting your DD in. Can't you see that therefore you were causing a problem for others so of course you should pay the fine? Everyone there is going to the hospital you know, they're not having picnics.

Yes, it was a horrible experience for everyone. Yes, you are going to have to pay the fine

I don't suppose anyone wants to pay a fine but you need to. The bays were for quick, emergency drop offs, you would have been pretty hacked off if you'd had to manage the 3-400m from the car park if someone else had done exactly what you did and the bays were full.

50 quid is not bad for that. I'd just pay, you don't need the hassle at the moment. Pay it, forget it and focus on your dd

But we parked in one of these 20 min drop offs when I went in to have dd. I told dh to go shift the car, but as it was Christmas midwives said there wouldn't be wardens about so don't worry, and we did get away with it. There were plenty of empty spaces there too so didn't feel bad that we'd blocked others from dropping off or anything, but if we did get fined I would have just paid

Worth appealing given the circumstances

I think it's just one of those things and you have to pay it. Hospital parking is atrocious. Hope your DD is feeling better

They did give you some extra time. It was a wonderful minute bay and you got a ticket after an hour. If they didn't ticket everyone would park there for more than the time limit.
It's annoying and it must have been a very stressful time for you. I think I'd pay it and regard it as a donation to the hospital for her care. Usually the hospital keep the parking funds.

Is it a council fine or private company? If it's council I would try and contest it under the circumstances.

I'm going against the general consensus here and I would have done exactly the same as you. My ds at the same age had a suspected appendicitis and it was terrifying and he was incredibly ill, put in the resussatation area, people constantly watching while we waited for a diagnosis. There is no way I would have left him in agony to move a car, he was terrified.
I can see how this is selfish, I can see how this could inconvenience others but having watched my child being fretted over by worried hospital staff that his temperature was far too high, his heart rate incredibly fast, my car would be the least of my concerns.

And I'm sure I'll get a flaming for this but unless you are in such a scary position I can't imagine anyone on here in the same situation rationally thinking 'hmm my child is terrified and in agony in a scary place with strangers, oh well I'll just leave them alone in this state for at least 20 mins'

Op I hope your dd is on the mend and totally sympathise with you.

A wonderfully minute bay.

Sorry about your DD. I hope she feels better soon.

I'm afraid that I think you should pay the fine. I completely understand why you did it and how it was unavoidable but I still think you should pay. It's A and E, lots of people will have an emergency the clue is in the name and they have to do something to stop people parking any longer than the 20 minutes.