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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Lidl parking charge

157 replies

RahRahRa · 17/09/2021 10:21

I do most of my weekly shopping at Lidl and have just received a parking fine for overstaying in the car park by 29 minutes, the time limit is 1 1/2 hours.

Yes I should have paid attention, it is a new branch that we’d never been to before and tbh I just didn’t think about the time limit.

This is such a shame, I love Lidl but have three kids all with varying levels of ASD who slow me down (I don’t take them all with me but often have one or two). I am also a bit of a ditherer and like to take my time choosing.

I will appeal the fine but I don’t fancy my chances of it being revoked. As I can’t risk this happening again, I have no choice but to not shop there anymore. Their prices have gone up anyway and we have closer supermarkets so no real loss to me - Apart from the parking fine!

Lidl say there’s nothing they can do as a third party looks after their car parks but they must be involved in setting the policies so why on Earth do they allow this to happen to loyal customers? 🤷🏻‍♀️

OP posts:
EdgeOfTheSky · 17/09/2021 20:02

@jessycake

In our Lidl you have to put your number plate in a machine behind the tills as you go out , or you get a fine, we never shop there .
What’s so terrible about that?

In our Waitrose you have to pay £1-50 and can claim it back at the till if you spend a certain amount.

Tesco, you either put in a code given to you at the till if you buy, or else pay on exit.

Only Sainsbury’s is free, for 2 hours on ANPR, but they are further from any other shops/ stations

WeBuiltThisBuffetOnSausageRoll · 17/09/2021 21:02

You can try giving your ASD sob story and receipt to the parking company

@WeBuiltThisBuffetOnSausageRoll….there’s the ableism you were looking for 😆

Hmm, yes - quite....

Even for just one simple non-technical solution, they could announce the number plate over the tannoy after an hour and a half and very easily confirm if the customer is still inside the shop.

Have you any idea how much resource that would take to implement?

Well, that's why I'd expect them to go down a more technical and labour-saving route. Even that basic suggestion could be automated with ANPR cameras and automated announcements, with only an actual human needed to verify right at the end. Everybody is saying how nobody could possibly need to be in there for so long, so it's not like they'd have many cases flagged up to query, is it?

One Lidl (or might have been an Aldi) I went in on holiday asked you to input your registration number on one of several screens on the packing shelf before you left - I entered the reg and then a photo of my car driving in to the car park popped up for me to confirm that it was indeed my car.

Obviously, a non-customer parking there would not be able to do this (or even know they'd need to) and would thus get ticketed (even for parking for a relatively short time).

I presume the system would flag up if somebody tried to beat the system by 'checking in' by popping into the store before leaving for the railway station - and then their car not being picked up on the camera exiting the car park until hours later after they had ostensibly paid for their shopping and should have left within ten minutes at most.

WeBuiltThisBuffetOnSausageRoll · 17/09/2021 21:03

Sorry, Jessy had already commented on that 'checking out' system. I don't see the issue with it at all, personally - seems a very fair system to me.

BlackeyedSusan · 17/09/2021 21:08

Same happened to me in Asda. Was revoked when I sent proof of receipt and disability showing why I was slow.

BeautifulBirds · 17/09/2021 21:11

I worked for a supermarket and the car park was operated by a third party. Customers who had been fined used to come in, prove they had shopped with us and I would email the car park operator to waiver the fine. It's quite straight forward.

Complain to the head office if the store won't help.

Actupfishy · 17/09/2021 21:57

I had one revoked, just appealed with copy of bank statement showing the spend

Sarjest · 17/09/2021 22:06

Present your receipt and explain why you to took so long. They don’t want to lose that kind of custom. Mine was revoked (a few years ago).

pelosi · 17/09/2021 22:23

I agree with pp. do you have proof of the kids’ ASD. Appeal bases on that.

XenoBitch · 17/09/2021 22:25

YABU.. 2 hours in Lidl?

PumpkinsGalore · 17/09/2021 23:08

How in Santa Claus's Workshop, did you manage to spend 1 min short of TWO HOURS in Lidl?!?!

PumpkinsGalore · 17/09/2021 23:15

@SoloISland You are not registered as disabled - nobody is.
I also have a blue badge. I receive the highest rate of PIP. That's it. There is no 'register' of disabled people! 🤣

Lockheart · 17/09/2021 23:45

[quote PumpkinsGalore]**@SoloISland* You are not registered* as disabled - nobody is.
I also have a blue badge. I receive the highest rate of PIP. That's it. There is no 'register' of disabled people! 🤣[/quote]
Actually it depends on your local authority, some do keep voluntary registers of those who are classified as disabled. Not all, but there are those that do.

There is no national register.

Hont1986 · 18/09/2021 02:48

I think there is a 'register' of blind people? Don't know anything about it other than i know I've seen 'are you registered as blind?' on various forms before.

Another one here who has no idea how OP spent 2 hours in a shop with six aisles. Especially since Lidl famously has very little choice. It's not like she was getting stuck on deciding between 15 varieties of strawberry jam, either you pick their own brand or maybe one other.

Ikeptgoing · 18/09/2021 05:20

@Fluffypastelslippers

op are your children registered as disabled? If so, the Blue Badge will cover all parking.

What is meant by 'registered disabled'?

There is no 'disabled register'

HmmHmm YES you can be registered disabled and Local Authorities do indeed maintain register of disabled persons in their area. You have to ask. Legislation is s29 NAA 1948 & CSDPA 1970.

It is separate to the DPB (blue badge) process, which will give automatic eligibility to be registered disabled but you still have to ask.

Pretty sure NAA & CSDPA are not just England but also Scotland and Wales

Anyway, you get sent yellow disability registration card. The list is always far less than number of actual disabled people in the community as people forget to ask to be registered. It has tight criteria for each category (eg fit mental health need to be under a CMHT or psychiatrist, partial or blind registration decisions are made by opthalmologist, etc)
This is just to correct a couple of PPs earlier on the thread and won't really help OPs situation other than she can say her children are registered disabled with ASD if they are (as children it'd be under children's act legislation)

Ikeptgoing · 18/09/2021 05:30

Oooh a few more PPs are claiming there is no disabled register . Depends on which country .. but

Yes there is. It's a duty for every local authority in England (& pretty sure in Scotland and Wales too unless they repealed the NAA) .
No it isn't voluntary for the LA to maintain a disabled register. It's a duty under National Assistance Act 1948 . It is however voluntary for disabled persons whether they ask to be registered disabled or not.

BarbaraofSeville · 18/09/2021 06:50

FGS people aren't suggesting that there's a 'register' of disabled people, merely using it as a shorthand for the fact that they qualify for PCP/a blue badge and consequently they are likely to take longer than many people in the supermarket.

Eyesofdisarray · 18/09/2021 07:07

These are parking charges NOT fines!!!!!!!!

LemonFantaGin · 18/09/2021 07:39

Sent proof you were in store and they will squash it for you.

Ikeptgoing · 18/09/2021 08:38

@BarbaraofSeville

FGS people aren't suggesting that there's a 'register' of disabled people, merely using it as a shorthand for the fact that they qualify for PCP/a blue badge and consequently they are likely to take longer than many people in the supermarket.
Yes they are Hmm Read those PPs comments and the actual comment I quoted. Anyway it won't add much to OPs situation as Whether she has DPB (blue badge) for her Children or whether they are registered disabled, adds little to parking notice/ invoice situation

I doubt anyone would ask for proof of their disability if she wrote a letter to the company.

I think there's been some good advice earlier on this thread about pepipoo and writing to Lidl with photocopy of till receipt explaining also have SEN children. There's also helpful fb group you can ask to join called "Private Parking PCNs- free advice and appeals" who are super helpful

herculesoffline · 18/09/2021 08:39

@BeautifulBirds

I worked for a supermarket and the car park was operated by a third party. Customers who had been fined used to come in, prove they had shopped with us and I would email the car park operator to waiver the fine. It's quite straight forward.

Complain to the head office if the store won't help.

This isn't the case for every supermarket, and in any case OP literally says she's tried this..
Ikeptgoing · 18/09/2021 11:44

Find and ask to join this fb group OP. They will help you go through process

But definitely think it is worth considering whether to email Lidl head quarters and also manager of the supermarket branch with photocopies of the notice and your receipt and say that you have SEN children and are a regular customer, so can they please arrange to have this fine wavered?

Lidl parking charge
Original poster
RahRahRa · 18/09/2021 21:32

BeautifulBirds as herculesoffline has said I’ve tried contacting Lidl, twice by phone and once by email - but it appears that they literally couldn’t give a monkeys about keeping their loyal customers 😒

OP posts:
Ikeptgoing · 19/09/2021 10:34

@RahRahRa

Then your option is to use the advice groups suggested to argue PCN on a technicality . The fb group literally gives you advice within 24 hours on your post.

Don't go back to Lidl. I regularly take 60- 90 mins (albeit in a large shop) as I'm disabled and cannot get round easily. So it only takes a long queue at tills or a slow toilet stop for me to go over that time.

Luckily only Lidl has made 90mins restriction on path king, Asda Waitrose Co-op Sanisburies all have 3 hours. Aldi's has no parking restrictions (but the aisles are crowded)

Fluffypastelslippers · 19/09/2021 10:48

@SoloISland

am registered as disabled. And that entitles me to a Blue Badge. OK? OK … Means they accept that I am disabled and give me the relevant privileges. We call it registered here in Ireland which does not mean there is a written register.... That is the terminology they use and I am not sure what your issue is? Please google the term? Yes some local authorities do have a disabled register so they can check re parking privileges etc.

Goodness I was only asking Sad

I don't have an issue, i was asking because I wanted to know. So Ireland has a register for disabled people? Thanks. No need to be quite so rude though Confused

Fluffypastelslippers · 19/09/2021 10:53

@TimeForTeaAndG

I didn't say I did, the we I was referring to was my DH and I.

Oh, you said 'up in Scotland we...' so forgive me for assuming we referred to people in Scotland rather then just you and your DH Confused

But more fool you for paying, they are not from the council nor the police. They're a request for payment from a free car park, they've lost zero money by someone overstaying the arbitrary time limit.

If I breach conditions I'm happy to pay. I don't know why the need to name call, it is a choice I make, it's just different to yours, that's all.