Where to complain about illegal parking charges?

[FriendlyNeighbourhoodAccountant]

Hi all

Not really sure where I'm going with this, but wanted to get some help.

I received a private parking notice for parking in a roadside diner car park for 7 minutes. I wanted a coffee, when I entered the car park I could see that the diner didn't actually open until 9am. I made a phone call while parked up, then left. The signs clearly state parking enforcement is in effect 9am to 9pm Monday to Sunday. I parked up and left prior to 9am so have appealed the parking charge. This was rejected as the company said I needed to enter my details on the tablet inside the restaurant. This isn't possible as the restaurant isn't open until 9am (hence why I assume the parking charges are from 9am to 9pm, based on their opening times). I have appealed to POPLA and fully expect the fine to be cancelled on that basis.

I emailed the director of the company that owns the diner to ask them to speak to the parking company and change their camera/fining system to only be able to send out automated fines between 9-9, per their signs. The director could not have been more obtuse and told me, in writing, that the fines are 24 hours a day. This is in contravention of the signs posted in the car park. Luckily I'm fairly local so could drive back and take a picture of the sign for my appeal, but anyone simply passing through and wanting to visit a roadside diner just off a busy stretch of dual carriageway prior to 9am would not be nipping back to get a photo to prove their innocence.

I've complained to the company, but the director isn't bothered. I've emailed the local newspaper to see if they'll raise any awareness. You can't see if the diner is open from the road so have to enter the car park to find this out, meaning you're fined with no way to stop this happening. I can't imagine how many people have been caught out by this.

Does anyone have any ideas of any next steps? I'm just feeling very annoyed that a company can issue fines without warning, against their signage, and have no intention of stopping, clearly it's a good money spinner for them.

You could try Trading Standards at your local council - emphasise that it’s about the misleading signage, not the parking. If they don’t deal with that issue, they might know who you should contact.

Thank you. I'll speak to trading standards. It just really annoyed me knowing the director is aware he is issuing fines to people outside of the times on their signs and is fine with it, it feels like they're trying to make money in an unscrupulous manner.

Take a photo before they change the signs. I had a charge cancelled once based on signage. They altered it not long afterwards so you do have to be quick

Ombudsman, go back to the directer and say you’re making a formal complaint and contacting the ombudsman to take the issue further.

Thank you to the two above. I have taken photos as we used this in our appeal, I have also let the director know. Not sure whether the ombudsman or trading standards will take it seriously but I'm fuming with the fact a company is making money knowing they're sending illegal fines.

Wait and see if they take you to court. If they do they're even more stupid than they look now!!

I have appealed the parking fine, Smart Parking rejected it but I think the response was quite generic so more of a "computer says no" response. I have taken the appeal to POPLA who are the ombudsman for them, and I fully expect the appeal to be upheld because I didn't park in contravention of the parking signs, so I don't expect it would get to court. If it did I'd obviously fight it but as I expect it won't I feel something needs to be done to stop the general public being charged when they haven't parked illegally, especially as the director is aware and fine with it happening. At what point is it earning revenue by deception? Or fraud by dishonesty? God knows how much they'll have earned from people unable to go back and take pictures of the sign.

Ahh right. I was thinking you'd already gone through the parking companies appeal process including the tribunal.

POPLA, run last time I looked, by the Ombusman Service has reputation for being fair and decent. The other one, run by the rival parking group, does not.

Tactically it's better to focus on your own case and its facts rather than going down the rabbit hole of wider injustice - even if that's real.

If you choose to do so think about involving the local media after you win at POPLA.

Hopefully POPLA is fair then. I do find it horrendous that unless you're able to go back and take a photo of the sign, though, that you are resigned to having to pay the fine (because without the photo you have no proof you parked legally). The fact that the company is trying to earn money this way, knowing it is charging people at all hours when the signs say 9-9 only.

Can see you've edited your post after I was typing to add the media suggestion. Once (hopefully!) I win the appeal I'll be doing this.

I used to work in Tribunals as an MoJ official.

The number of people I've seen who would have won if they'd focussed on the facts of their case lose because it became a 'conspiracy' by the DWP or whoever runs well into double figures.

My appeal was on the basis I was parked at 8:01 to 8:08, which is before the 9am-9pm period that the parking enforcement applies. I did also mention that Smart Parking rejected on the basis that I didn't put my reg into their tablet inside the restaurant but the restaurant was closed, although regardless parking before 9am in my opinion shouldn't be subject to a parking charge. Hopefully that's enough to get it cancelled, but it definitely grinds my gears that they're knowingly not following their own signs.