[Closed] UKPC PARKING FINE,little wife in tears

Its not a parking fine its an invoice, ignore and ignore all correspondence.

Do a search on the forum its been asked a few times.

Luckily no fine for posting in the wrong forum. 😀

oops,sorry 😳

Look here, might be a more reassuring view for you

[url= http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/reclaim/private-parking-tickets ]Money Saving Expert Parking Guide[/url]

lots of advice on this on the pepipoo forum.

Basically just ignore any letters

Ignore
I only got 6 letters last time and 3 were reduced offers to get me to pay

Been there, done it and survived. Read the previous posts. Ignore all correspondence, and do not pay it.

The theory is that you have entered into a contract by parking there, in that there is a sign somewhere saying that you are agreeing to pay a fee of £xxx when you park there. Basically, they have to prove it was you/you Mrs who entered into the contract. If you don't tell em then they can't, especially if the car is insured for more than one driver.

Careful, the law changed recently and so the ignore advice may be a touch out of date.

Basically, they have to prove it was you/you Mrs who entered into the contract. If you don't tell em then they can't, especially if the car is insured for more than one driver.

The law has definitely changed on that. If you don't tell them who the driver was, then the "contract" is automatically assigned to the registered keeper. Very dodgy law just waiting for somebody to appeal to the ECHR, but as of now it's the law.

Doesn't change the general advice to ignore, but don't take my word or the word of anybody else on here. Get over to pepipoo - lots more keyboard warriors there, but also some who know what they're talking about.

Why park there? Excuse my ignorance but the land you parked on belongs to someone, why should you be allowed to ignore the terms of parking? You'd get the hump if I parked my car on your drive.

Partyboy - that's as maybe, but these firms can't invent laws and apply them to the land (that they don't own either, they're just acting dubiously as some sort of agent)

Theres always one partypooper

Are there lots of signs telling you the terms and conditions?

partyb,we park there because it's a 700 space carpark with a co-op convenience store and 2 empty wherehouses,and zero restrictions,the ukpc thing is very recent poss the last 7 days,as i parked thier myself last wednesday whilst popping to the bank,the d.i.y chain went bellyup about 2 years ago so everyone may as well still use the carpark,but i suppose i could pay 90p hour at the council c.p like you would p.b 😉

YAWN @ partyboy. Slow day in the [s]parking lot[/s] office ?

Just ignore both the letters form Ukpc and partyboy

Don't throw away any letters though. Ukpc don't do courts, but just incase..
Have a look round pepipoo and MSE for more advice

Costello,

It must be new as i live about 500 yards away and i've never noticed any signs and never seen an attendant of any kind apart from on days when the football club opposite have a match on.

I've parked there loads of times to use other places nearby and never had anything (although as i'm so close i tend to walk or bike there if i'm not buying bulky stuff).

I'll pop by later and have a look at the signs.

It'll catch a lot of people out if it is new signage that's being ignored.

Head back and check what the signs say if there are any, get pics as evidence in case there is any come back.

Might also be worth popping into the citizens advice if you want solid advice to work off?

Yes of course ignore me, I have a different view that you don't like.

last year I had to go into town and parked in a car-park situated behind some empty offices. the car-park was empty which made me a little suspicious so upon leaving my car i looked all around for any notices of private car-park to find nothing. Upon walking away I looked back at the way I'd driven in and there was no sign. I went about my business and 30 mins later and came back to a clamped car. I phoned the number stuck to my windscreen and a bloke drove up 10 mins later and said he'd release my car for £135..what the....? I thought he was having a laugh and told him so, told him I had no money with me so he got in his van drove off with the message to call him when I had the money...

The Car-parks other entrance is right next door to a police-station so, absolutely livid I went in and explained what had happened. They said there was nothing they could do about it as no crime has been committed..I said there must be something Fraud, embezzlement or even trespass of property!! I basically got laughed at with a sorry we can't help you, please shut the door on the way out.

Upon walking back to my car through the second entrance there was a sign 3 meters off the floor, approx 300mm High by 900mm long ...small writing...Private car-park. couldnt believe it. Made my Wife cry that also as I had to pay so as to collect kids from school. Wish the police had advised me proper...

The first thing that I'd do is contact the site/carpark owners and ask if 'x' company is representing them or being simple toe-rag's.

I had one from UKPC a few monts back. I have ignored all letters and received 3 in total but nothing more.

In my case I'd have happily gone to court and paid them a reasonable loss of fee.
Baring in mind it was a free car park and overan the allotted time by ten mins as the car broke down and shop was informed.

If it's the place I'm thinking then it's no way a 700 space car park! More like 50 max!!

Still wouldn't pay up though!

I don't for one moment condone cowboy clamping but legitimately signed car parks are a different matter. If you parked on the street and your ticket ran out (or you didn't put one on) would you moan if you got a parking fine?

I don't for one moment condone cowboy clamping but legitimately signed car parks are a different matter. If you parked on the street and your ticket ran out (or you didn't put one on) would you moan if you got a parking fine?

Agree 1,000 percent. However a reasonable 'fine' would be £20-30.

I was fined £70 for an illegal Uturn in London by a council. Why does it need to be soo high?

Basically just ignore any letters

This + 1000

DO NOT be tempted to call or write to them, DO NOT engage ANY sort of dialogue. Simply IGNORE them and they WILL go away.

i have no prob paying when it's proper to do so,i've paid a council fine twice,once for overstaying and once for not being exactly in the box, that one got to me because all timings etc were fine ,but being an estate her back end can stick out a bit,but it was o.k with me and proportionate at a reduced rate of £25.00 payable to the council,£100.00 /£60.00 paid to faceless oiks on a free carpark is robbery.

renton,it probably is the carpark your thinking of,but i work at stadiums on occasion as part of some volunteer work we do,helping out on carparks believe it or not,i pack em in like sardines i do!!,getting 2 cars in a space meant for 1 is a dying art.... 😀

I had one recently, about 3 weeks ago I think... nothing has even come through the post! and I found out that where I was parked, the finers just put signs up and have no actual authority to do anything. I have since pulled the signs down and destroyed them.

I was in the same situation almost 5 years ago. Turns out that there was a major local consumer campaign against the fines involving the local press etc and the shops and estate manager's got sick of the negative PR and hassle dealing with complaints. All tickets were cancelled.

Google "Solartron Retail Park UKPC" to see some of the comments etc.

Keep all letters, check money saving expert etc to see if you should respond and how, but back then their business was based on scaring money out of people. Get angry 🙂

I don't for one moment condone cowboy clamping but legitimately signed car parks are a different matter. If you parked on the street and your ticket ran out (or you didn't put one on) would you moan if you got a parking fine?

If you put your supermarket trolley back in the wrong place in a car park and they tried to fine you £100, what would you say to them?

The law has changed regarding you having to identify the driver.

However, they're still not allowed to enforce unfair 'contracts.' In the highly unlikely event that they actually pursued you beyond "please send us some money, or we'll send you letters in brighter ink," it'd be for their consequential loss, which will be about a fiver. In short, whilst they could technically take you to court, it's not worth their while and they know it. They rely on people being frightened by threatening letters and enough pay to make it worthwhile. It's legalised extortion, ostensibly.

(I am not a lawyer, etc)

a reasonable 'fine' would be £20-30.

Private companies aren't allowed to issue "fines", end of. They can only send you invoices for use of their services.

Council fines (and people empowered by the council to issue them on their behalf) are a different matter.

I don't for one moment condone cowboy clamping but legitimately signed car parks are a different matter. If you parked on the street and your ticket ran out (or you didn't put one on) would you moan if you got a parking fine?

Interestingly this is "kind of" the whole debate - parking on a street isn't private land - its public and council owned. As such fines issued in such a case are issued by the Council and are legally enforceable. (All AFAIK, correct me if wrong please.)

However when you park on private land, the fine is just an invoice, and a massive legal grey area.

I'd hazard a guess that [b]partyboy1101[/b] is just playing Devil's Advocate. Either that, or it is one stupendously ill-suited moniker.

hmm tbh partyboy makes one suspicious that he is an astroturfer..

More to the point, how tall is your wife?

Read this http://singletrackmag.com/forum/topic/ukpc-parking-ticket-issue

And then read the link I posted within it

Ignore it all, don't make contact with them and it will all be ok!

What the chuff is an astroturfer? I stick by my comments but do agree with Hora, a more suitable cost is probably more appropriate. As it happens I have a client who has a number of car parks and they are plagued by people parking and not paying, why should you get to park for free on someone's land? If it was not maintained there'd be plenty looking to claim if they tripped up and maintenance costs money.

'little wife in tears'? With a description that derogatory I'm surprised she's not in tears all the time! That is all!

Sticking up for the girlies Poppy? Bless you petal.

My god, really? I'm with poppydiamond on this one. such bullying language to complain about someone else's bullying langauage is pretty dispicable.

I'm not sure the OP was being serious and I definitely wasn't.

I'm not sure whether you're playing along or not getting it MrK?!

edit: Also, don't pay the fine. They're only interested in suckers paying up quickly and have no ability or desire to chase beyond a succession of letters.

I wish I was able to infer such amazing revelations about Costello's life (and wife) from just one word.

Truly amazing gift you two seem to possess...

Someone on the internerd said this

According to the BPA figures, and we know they never lie, there were 1.8 million private tickets issued in 2011, of which approx. 31% went unpaid, so that's about 550,000.

As only 845 resulted in court claims, and only 49 of those actually reached court, you don't have to be Rachel Riley to work out the odds of anything happening if you ignore them.

On the internerd so FACT

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/news/travel/2013/02/majority-of-motorists-win-private-parking-appeals

As it happens I have a client who has a number of car parks and they are plagued by people parking and not paying

Well that explains a lot. Is it really a plague, or does your client actually make more money out of "fining" people than from the normal parking charges (as is generally the case with the pay&display/fine business model)? How do you feel about "fining" somebody 1,000 times the cost of buying a ticket for the overstay when they've only overstayed for 15 minutes?

We own a property which includes in the deed a private off road parking plot outside. We also pay business rates to the local council for the property including the plot of land for parking outside (I guess it increases the rateable value).
I'm with partyboy, I'll park on your private driveway and see how you like it.

Doesn't really matter if it's owned or rented IMO, The owner/tennent will be paying for the privilege thru business rates and/or rents. You just take the p1ss.

You appear to have not read the OP

He was parked in a retail park, not someone's driveway.

To be fair, I think there could be a place for private parking companies.

But they need policing, and not by themselves. Too many of them are a bunch of pirates with no interest in parking management, just bullying money out of people.

i've read that because the fine is on private land it is unenforceable

While we are at it. Isn't the above more strictly related to third parties trying to enforce charges.

The land owner has a right to form a contract, but not a parking company operating on someone else's land?

What would be a valid estimation of losses is another matter again.

He was parked in a retail park, not someone's driveway.

It does matter, as the locations have very different intended uses.

Parking on someone's private driveway was an example of how is should be viewed by you/us.

No - it's a strawman. You might as well suggest riding through somebody's garden is the same as riding cheeky trails in the woods.

It does need better guidelines/laws, rather than just seen as a civil issue.

You're suggesting criminalising people parking on private land? 😯

Free parking in retail parks is there to generate revenue through custom.

Free parking on someone's driveway is there to generate animosity.

Don't pay. They will go away however in the unlikely event they took you to court you could challenge the signage as it should be up to "red hand standard" which states that there should be very clear signs throughout the car park that would be impossible to not notice.

Then if that failed you could go down the road of proving that the fine is out of proportion to the business they would likely have lost due to your parking.

But seriously don’t even respond, they will go away. Also you could take them to court for harassment if they go too far.

Good Luck

If there are still any shops open near the carpark in question it might be worth letting them know and they can warn their customers or whinge at the parking company. If the landowners really don't want people using the spaces - that's what pallisade fences are for.

I know and doesn't matter, it's still private land that someone owns or is paying for one way or another. Parking on someone's private driveway was an example of how is should be viewed by you/us.
It does need better guidelines/laws, rather than just seen as a civil issue. landowner should be protected equally tho.

'little wife in tears'? With a description that derogatory I'm surprised she's not in tears all the time! That is all!

Don't be so quick to judge, how do you know that he doesn't have a 'big' wife and a 'medium' wife tucked away who haven't had the upset of a parking fine?! 😆

It the quiet wife we are all looking for 😉

A very simple solution to such situations....

but i suppose i could pay 90p hour at the council c.p

90p? is that to much to ask to park? sounds like a pretty good deal to me. Personally I couldn't be bothered to drive around looking for alternatives to avoid the 90p parking charge.

Next time pay the 90p, be happy that you have done the right thing. Then you will avoid getting letters and "poor little wifey" being in tears in the first place.

I have a small car park that is used by employees and customers of a couple of retail premises i let out.
I get sick of people parking in my car park,which i pay for and maintain,then toddling off to the local post office or next door to the doctors surgery ( which has a large car park but my parking is nearer the entrance).
Sign's,threatening or polite,make no difference at all because some people believe they have a right to park where they want.Its not worth me policing it and i've had big problems in the past with lack of parking spaces for the employees.
Its also parking across the entrance to the car park and on the pedestrian crossing in front of my property.

joe, I honestly sympathize. Which I why the industry needs a genuine watchdog, and one with teeth.

Most of the complaints that get raised about private parking companies aren't about people getting nabbed for parking in driveways and employees car parks. People who do such things are nobbers. The complaints come from people being charged £120+ for having a wheel on a white line, or overstaying in a retail car park by 15 minutes, or poorly displayed permits when parked exactly where you are supposed to be parked.

Too many cowboys out there, and no one reeling them in.

Dear Costello
May I ask, is your "little wife" actually physically smaller than an average wife?
Or is it a term you use for wives of all sizes?

aye-aye - Member
Dear Costello
May I ask, is your "little wife" actually physically smaller than an average wife?
Or is it a term you use for wives of all sizes?

What size is your wife/husband?

Dunno about CZ's partner. But my girlfriend is 5 foot 2, this makes her quite little. Relative to me.

Is this ok with you?

Seems quite strange you'd be interested but hey ho.

We got out of one at work by just denying that we owned the van.

aye-aye - Member
What size is your wife/husband?

If it's any help to this little sub-plot of trying very hard to be offended on someone else's behalf, my little wife is 5'2" - her nickname is actually Little Bear. Should I go and tell her to be offended because some handwringer on STW has their nappy in a twist?

Well said, zokes.

[img] [/img]
Aye-aye, upset on someone else's behalf, yesterday!

That's not me.
That's my little wife.

If it's any help to this little sub-plot of trying very hard to be offended on someone else's behalf, my little wife is 5'2" - her nickname is actually Little Bear. Should I go and tell her to be offended because some handwringer on STW has their nappy in a twist?

I've ssen pics of your wife, Zokes. She's more than little bare

*Slow hand clap*

😉

To the OP - don't pay it, it will blow over. Been there, done that, it disappeared eventually.

Re the subplot/'little wife' saga:

The OP's use of words did strike me as definitely quite strange and possibly indicative of some 1950's attitude to 'the little woman indoors' and all that.

But there's absolutely nothing wrong with someone being offended on behalf of someone else. Especially when the 'someone else' does not have a voice in the current discussion. Even if the person it originally referred to was not offended - this does not preclude other people being offended by a certain use of language. It may not be cause for huge moral outrage (which no one has really expressed here anyway) but if someone finds that use of language odd or offensive in some way that's their perogative. Why would anyone else have a problem with this? If no one ever spoke about about the things they find offensive or troubling then a lot of important developments would never have taken place.

Plus, speaking up gives the OP a chance to explain themselves and we all learn a valuable lesson about communication.

there's absolutely nothing wrong with someone being offended on behalf of someone else

In that case, I'm offended (on behalf of Costello) at words like [i]bullying [/i]and [i]dispicable[/i] being thrown around due to one little word being taken out of context or being blown out of all proportion.

Plus, speaking up gives the OP a chance to explain themselves and we all learn a valuable lesson about communication.

Maybe we all will, but it's more likely we'll learn how many folk have a chip on their shoulder or unresolved issues they need to deal with.

Someone said somethng about ...

Rachel Riley

At that point I lost interest in parking fines.

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