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Original poster

Parking fine at Sainsburys superstore

132 replies

MyCheekyEagle · 04/12/2025 10:40

Recently I did a big shop at Sainsburys, which included trying & buying clothes and a big food shop. I ended up over staying by 18 minutes & have a parking fine from Euro car parks.
I sometimes read that people refuse to pay these extortionate parking fines to private companies. Is this true, has anyone ever not paid and got away with it?
I'm really cross that I have been penalised for buying clothes as well as my big shop 😡

OP posts:
toomuchfaff · 04/12/2025 10:42

if you were in the shop, shopping and have receipts, can the store not help?

MiddleAgedDread · 04/12/2025 10:42

where do you live? In Scotland these fines are unenforceable but in England I think they are. Also, you're lucky your Sainsburys has changing rooms, ours haven't reopened since lockdown!

Justploddingonandon · 04/12/2025 10:43

If you have your receipt to show you were actually shopping there you can ask the store and they may well cancel it, although ideally you'd've done this before you left.

VanCleefArpels · 04/12/2025 10:45

Do not ignore it. Ultimately you could end up with a CCJ - I have seen this many many times through CAB. Don’t listen to the pub room lawyers who will spout nonsense about these tickets being unenforceable. They are and they often are taken all the way to court - it’s a profitable business model. You just have to suck it up and put a timer on your phone next time. You have not been penalised for buying clothes. You have breached the terms of the carpark for which you have been “invoiced” as per the terms set by the land owner for permission to park there.

Original poster
MyCheekyEagle · 04/12/2025 10:47

Unfortunately I've lost the receipt. If I pay in 14 days the fine is reduced to £50, which is not a massive amount, but it's still annoying

OP posts:
Original poster
MyCheekyEagle · 04/12/2025 10:49

@VanCleefArpels thank you. I guess I'll just have to pay it promptly to get the reduced rate and be more careful in future. There are signs in the car park, it's my fault.

OP posts:
Kamek · 04/12/2025 10:51

I had this is morrisons because we were ages in the cafe! They were really good. Went in to speak to someone on the customer service desk and they were able to cancel it. Can you show on your banking that you spent money in the shop?

Rosealea · 04/12/2025 11:02

I'm guessing you're in England? In Scotland you can just ignore them because they can't enforce them, a few letters are sent then they stop. They're a bunch of chancers.

RollOnSunshine · 04/12/2025 11:04

Do not ignore it but do not pay it yet either. Show the store your banking transaction and ask that they get it cancelled.

Cantthinkofanewusernameffs · 04/12/2025 11:05

I got a ticket for over staying at Pets at Home. I didn't notice it had a time limit. I didn't pay it and nothing came of it. I got threatening letters for about a year, but they eventually dropped it.

xILikeJamx · 04/12/2025 11:06

As above, if you go to the customer services in the shop they should be able to contact the company and get it cancelled. I wouldn't worry too much about the receipt, just go in and ask them.

I used to work in a supermarket and you registered your car reg on their system, but if you changed cars it would take a few days to update and you'd get fines - which customer services could then get cancelled.

Frogbear · 04/12/2025 11:07

Cantthinkofanewusernameffs · 04/12/2025 11:05

I got a ticket for over staying at Pets at Home. I didn't notice it had a time limit. I didn't pay it and nothing came of it. I got threatening letters for about a year, but they eventually dropped it.

Everyone will have anecdotal stories like this but ultimately it’s a risk - you might be lucky and it will get dropped, or they will pursue and the costs will escalate massively!

Owly11 · 04/12/2025 11:11

Yes don't pay it. Go to money saving expert forums and it will tell you exactly how to not pay it.

Ariela · 04/12/2025 11:15

I would go to the customer service desk with date of transaction and card you paid with, they can look up the transaction (I have done this before to get a copy receipt), and likely cancel your fine.

Douchey · 04/12/2025 11:18

MyCheekyEagle · 04/12/2025 10:49

@VanCleefArpels thank you. I guess I'll just have to pay it promptly to get the reduced rate and be more careful in future. There are signs in the car park, it's my fault.

Similar happened to me at a Toby Carvery. Contact the store, you can share a screenshot of the card transaction and even your activity section of your Nectar card showing you were there and spent money. Hopefully they can settle this for you, much like Toby Carvery did for me.

Crikeyalmighty · 04/12/2025 11:19

Pay it but if it happens again go back in store - we had this happen once and store got it sorted straight away - it’s done to stop people using it as an open ended freebie car park

SabreIsMyFave · 04/12/2025 11:20

I had this happen at Morrisons in another town some time back - 2 years ago maybe - and I was only in there 7 minutes past the 'allowed' time. I had spent £79 in Morrisons, and was/am a regular customer.

I rang the store and told them I was upset by this as it was a £100 fine, and I only ran over by 7 minutes. (And I am a regular customer.) I said I hadn't just used them as a free car park while I ran around the town for over 2 hours. I did look around the town for an hour and I admitted that, but I did a bunch of shopping, and had a coffee and a cake in the cafe.

The woman I spoke to was very nice, and said she will contact the company who issued the fine and get it cancelled. She did, and I got a letter a week later from the parking fine company saying the fine was cancelled.

So contact the store @MyCheekyEagle Flowers

JDM625 · 04/12/2025 11:22

How long was the max parking time? Ours is 3hrs! I too was going to suggest talking to the shop, but if you don't have the receipt, I'm not sure what you can do.

Cantthinkofanewusernameffs · 04/12/2025 11:28

Frogbear · 04/12/2025 11:07

Everyone will have anecdotal stories like this but ultimately it’s a risk - you might be lucky and it will get dropped, or they will pursue and the costs will escalate massively!

Show quote history

Well, yes. But OP specifically asked for anecdotal stories like this, so I shared mine.

KnottyKnitting · 04/12/2025 11:30

This happened to me once in Morrisons. I also did not have the receipt but could prove I had shopped and how much I had spent with my Bank statement- it was cancelled and I didn’t have to pay the fine.

KatRee · 04/12/2025 11:34

Another anecdotal story but we had similar situation 18 months ago at a retail park in South London. We’d been shopping with our toddler, had had lunch there with him and were just a little over the time limit. Partner (his car) received threatening letters for months, but on looking for advice online (I know!) decided to ignore and letters stopped a while ago now. TBH though, I think the best idea would be to approach the supermarket as others have done. Never occurred to me to do this at the time , but it’s not in their interests to allow genuine customers to be punished for spending time shopping

AngelaBB · 04/12/2025 11:34

Talk to Sainsbury’s, they will not want to lose a good customer. Go to customer services and ask to speak to a manager.

VanCleefArpels · 04/12/2025 11:43

Owly11 · 04/12/2025 11:11

Yes don't pay it. Go to money saving expert forums and it will tell you exactly how to not pay it.

This is terrible advice - I have spoken to many people who have ended up with CCJ’s and consequential impact on credit rating because of this kind of “wisdom”. It is not worth the risk

VanCleefArpels · 04/12/2025 11:43

KatRee · 04/12/2025 11:34

Another anecdotal story but we had similar situation 18 months ago at a retail park in South London. We’d been shopping with our toddler, had had lunch there with him and were just a little over the time limit. Partner (his car) received threatening letters for months, but on looking for advice online (I know!) decided to ignore and letters stopped a while ago now. TBH though, I think the best idea would be to approach the supermarket as others have done. Never occurred to me to do this at the time , but it’s not in their interests to allow genuine customers to be punished for spending time shopping

The letters may have stopped because they have started court proceedings!

Mamabear487 · 04/12/2025 11:45

It will have just been sent out automatically for you. My mums done this numerous of times all she did was appeal it with the receipts and they cancelled the fine.