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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

Parking ticket

64 replies

TrainsandDiggers · 31/08/2018 13:05

I have been fined £100 for parking in a pay and display car park for less than THREE MINUTES - as corroborated by their own photographic evidence. I have just lost my appeal.

Technically, I know I should have paid for ‘up to one hour’ parking. Really though, does this not seem incredibly unreasonable? There were other spaces available and by the time I had bought a ticket I could have been on my way.

I know I’m technically wrong but AIBU to be just a little bit peeved about this? My husband thinks I am. I just think there’s no good will in the world any more.

OP posts:

KatieMarieJ · 31/08/2018 14:36

So reading between the lines as you're ignoring my questions, you've overstayed by the grace period plus 3 minutes? If that is the case then unfortunately I wouldn't expect you to wriggle out of it. Some companies never do court, some only go after low hanging fruit, some are extremely litigious. Just remember that if it does go to court it will be for significantly more than you currently owe.

Nesssie · 31/08/2018 14:39

So 3 minutes is unreasonable in your opinion? What about 4 minutes? What about 5 minutes? Where does the cut off end? Its 'up to one hour', not 'between 3 minutes and one hour.'

Of course you are being unreasonable. You tried to get away with it (fair enough), but got caught and now need to pay the fine.

BarbaraofSevillle · 31/08/2018 14:43

I certainly think there should be a grace period of 5 to 10 minutes.

It can take that long to go into a car park, look for a space and not find one, decide you're not happy with the price, which often isn't displayed at the entrance, or find you don't have enough change and leave, so you shouldn't have to pay in those circumstances.

prh47bridge · 31/08/2018 15:11

If it's a private company then ignore it. There are some good threads on money saving expert on this

That is bad advice. As per my earlier post, the law changed in 2012 and the Supreme Court ruled in Parking Eye v Beavis that these charges could be enforced. Unfortunately a lot of people are still reading and repeating old advice. Hundreds of people every week are finding out in court that the advice to ignore is wrong.

Ariela · 31/08/2018 16:21

Have you asked for photographic proof you were parked? In that you may have driven in, drove round for 3 minutes looking /waiting for a space, then given up.

LaurieFairyCake · 31/08/2018 16:33

I got fined £60 for driving into a car park. I pulled up at the meter to see how to pay (out of order) - drove to the next meter (out of order) and then thought fuck this and went somewhere else.

I wrote to them and said I wouldn’t be paying the fine and looked forward to showing the court the two photos of the ‘out of order’ meters. Apparently there was a further meter somewhere else that was in use - massive car park and it wasn’t obvious.

They never wrote back. What underlies this has to be ‘reasonable’. There is no way it would have been reasonable for me to drive further looking for a working meter.

I’ve also ‘won’ before. I’ve driven in, looked at the meter and realised I didn’t have enough money for it (£2.50 for 15 mins and no card payment!) so drove out as I wanted to park for 4 hours. Again, it’s unreasonable for me to be fined if you can’t know what the charge is until you enter - it is not reasonable to charge for entering.

You ‘parked’ though which is different. But it’s not black and white.

Witchend · 31/08/2018 16:59

I think if you get out and go into a shop you don't have a leg to stand on.
I'd probably have done the same for 3 minutes, but would think it was a fair cop if I was caught.

PersianCatLady · 31/08/2018 17:14

Have you asked for photographic proof you were parked? In that you may have driven in, drove round for 3 minutes looking /waiting for a space, then given up
I think that the OP has already done this - "as corroborated by their own photographic evidence"

musmusculus · 31/08/2018 17:22

Im sorry you got a ticket OP, it does seem a little jobsworthy but I really hope you didn't use your excuse ' There were other spaces available' in your appeal letter

JuniperBeer · 31/08/2018 17:45

The land owners employ Parking Eye as a service to fine people. They can cancel fines v v v easily just by emailing Parking eye. So for the poster above who parked in Aldi and could prove she was a customer there fine. They will be able to tell by the time on your receipt what time you paid so it should be near the time you left.

If you went to aldi. Paid. Then went off shopping next door somewhere and took advantage of the car park, they would be able to tell that you weren’t solely shopping in aldi.

Gersemi · 31/08/2018 18:18

KatieMarieJ, if you read the OP's posts you would know that she says she didn't overstay any grace period, she stopped for three minutes and didn't pay. Presumably the camera recording shows that she parked and went inside the shop so it wasn't an issue of someone changing their mind about parking.

TrentBridge · 31/08/2018 18:21

Agree don't ignore it. But it is worth appealing to POPLA (as stated by someone above). Essentially saying that the fine is unreasonable for the length of time etc (there is a good template on Money Saving Expert). I did this when I overstayed at a car park a few years ago (genuine mistake) and it got overturned.

sprinklesandsauce · 02/09/2018 13:59

YABU. It was pay and display, you didn't pay, so you got a fine.

I do think it is daft being fined for 3 minutes, but you knew the rules and chose not to pay so you were prepared to take the risk and can't complain when it backfires.

PurpleFlower1983 · 02/09/2018 14:08

YABU but I suppose you won’t be chancing it again!

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