Local MP Pete Wishart has labelled Smart Parking "a cowboy company” after he has been inundated with complaints about it from some constituents.
The Prankster can reveal the problem is not confined to Perth. Here is a report from the Bury Times letter page of 8th October.
The Prankster has been informed that Matalan Bury does not have ANPR, which means the ticket will have likely been issued via a warden using a smartphone.
UK Parking Control wardens have been recently found to be forging timestamps on their smartphones so it is not beyond the bounds of possibility for the same problem to occur with other parking companies.
If you have been issued a windscreen ticket by Smart Parking, or any other parking company, and you believe the times are not correct and that evidence has been forged, please contact The Prankster at prankster@parking-prankster.com, so that the matter can be investigated.
Happy Parking
The Parking Prankster
This disease is widespread in UKPC. It must have origins within the base camp, ie from head office bgut whether or not this could be proven within the current investigation is, I would think, dependant on the fraud squad gaining access to computers and emails.
ReplyDeleteEven text messages sent to their "employees" could enlighten us of what the head office instructions may have been sent.
Unless the management are incredibly stupid, and that is a possibility, I doubt any documentary evidence will be found. I imagine unscrupulous practices are more likely passed down the food chain by word of mouth.
Delete"Am I on my own with this or is it happening to other people…………."
ReplyDeleteThis obviously highlights how unaware the general public are to the nefarious shenanigans of the private parking industry. The latest victim I am helping actually responded to a windscreen issued begging letter and identified herself as the driver!!!!!! I had previously helped her with a ParkingEye postal ANPR but I did not highlight to her the status of fly posted begging letters so I am partially to blame for that.
I also discovered at a Christmas get together that a relative I am not in regular contact with actually paid one of these invoices. The parking industry is unfortunately still getting fat on the public's indifference.
Yes they are making themselves very popular in Perth!
ReplyDeleteMany stories in local newspapers about the chaos. It will be intersting to see if they push any claims through Perth Sherrif court?
Q.
Q, I'll let you know. The other half of a car owner in my family just overstayed at a Thick infested car park in Perth.
ReplyDeleteSmart parking..u use car park at local co op every morning on way to work..used it one day on way home and received ticket saying I entered car park at 5.30 and left at 7.30. next day..either anpr not set up right or someone has sat down and decided to try scam me for money.sent appeal back waiting on reply.
ReplyDeleteI have received a parking ticket in the post from smart parking limited for entering a pub carpark to pick my wife up not actually parking at all just waited for her to come out and took her home. Absolutely bloody fuming!
ReplyDeleteI entered a carpark bought some goods from shop then went to see my deseased dad then got a charge too say I had been 2 hours I was not think they have messed with camera times
ReplyDeleteDear Sir/Madam, Ticket TCxxxxxxxxxx
ReplyDeletePlease note that this letter has been written on my behalf. I wish to contest this ticket on multiple grounds as outlined below.
Initially, I believe that it was a scam, & I have made formal complaint to Bury Council, who advise, the ANGOULEME WAY RETAIL PARK, BURY, is a large upside down " U " style car park, which you can drive right through, & in the direct middle of your car park, is a small upside down U shaped Council car park, & you can walk between.
I am writing to formally challenge the parking ticket issued to my vehicle on 30/10/2024, at ANGOULEME WAY RETAIL PARK, BURY, which encloses in a small upside down, U shape, councils car park, named, George Street Car Park.
1. Personal Circumstances: I am a disabled pensioner on pension credit, and the car in question is a Motability-owned vehicle leased to me out of my benefits. I have held a Blue Badge for over ten years due to severe walking difficulties. I must advise that from birth, I have been unable to read or write, and I am classified under the Mental Health Act (MHA) as a person of below-normal intelligence. As such, I request reasonable adjustments in considering my appeal. This is written in hindsight.
2. Genuine Mistake: On the day in question, I drove into George st. car park, it was full, so went into the next gate, a few feet away, this I now find is called the Angouleme way retail park, car park, and I parked in a disabled bay & displayed my valid blue badge & timer to 1pm. This is feet away from, the George Street car park. Your ticket machine, did not work, so unfamiliar with the area, I purchased a parking ticket from a machine I had seen moments before. Unbeknownst to me, this machine belonged to Bury Council and not to the privately owned car park where I parked. Consequently, I displayed a valid Bury Council parking ticket on my windscreen alongside my Blue Badge.
3. Signage and Machine Issues: Your car park layout is a large U-shaped privately owned area with a small U-shaped council car park in the middle. While cars cannot cross over, pedestrians can easily walk between the two areas. There were no clear warning signs, for handicapped, or disabled people, indicating or preventing, that I was leaving the private car park and entering the council car park, nor were there any clear signs, suitable for handicapped or disabled people, distinguishing the two ownerships or indicating the invalidity of tickets between the car parks.
Additionally, the payment machine in the private car park was not working. This failure contributed to the confusion of a marked day, and crowds of people, and resulted in me purchasing a ticket from the nearby council machine. This situation could have been avoided had there been proper signage and functional payment machines.
4. Request for Mercy and Formal Complaint: I plead for leniency, as this was a genuine mistake influenced by my inability to read, the malfunctioning payment machine, and the lack of clear signage. I formally complain that the lack of adequate warnings and the faulty machine created a situation that misled me, especially as an out-of-town visitor.
Legal Grounds for Appeal:
The Equality Act 2010: Under this Act, service providers are required to make reasonable adjustments for disabled individuals. The lack of clear signage and the non-functional payment machine fail to accommodate my disability.
The Torts (Interference with Goods) Act 1977: The issuing of this parking ticket, given the circumstances, can be viewed as wrongful interference with my use of the car park.
Consumer Rights Act 2015: As the car park owner, there is a duty to provide services with reasonable care and skill, which includes maintaining functional payment machines and adequate signage, that caters for people with disabilities.
In light of these points, I request that the parking ticket be cancelled.
Yours faithfully,