The Prankster can reveal BW Legal have been misleading motorists as to the signage in place at the particular time of their parking event.
As the wording on the signage is obviously key to any case this will of course have a material bearing on any claim. In Excel v Cutts the judge found that the signage at the Peel Centre was deficient and misleading as they were in March 2010. The judgment can be found here. It will be persuasive for any cases around that time. Excel owner Simon Renshaw-Smyth was so upset he said the ruling was ".....an embarrassment to the judicial system" and the judge was "not fit to serve the civil courts"
In the Cutts case evidence was presented to show that in the three years from 2008 to 2011 Excel issued a total of 11,498 parking tickets to drivers who had parked at the Peel Centre car park without paying and displaying. But, by comparison, this council car park in the centre of town, similar in size to the Peel centre, but with pay and display nine times larger, issued only 3000 tickets for not paying and displaying in the same time. It is clear therefore that Excel's signage was deficient in 2010.
In some cases BW Legal have been claiming later signage was in place when it was not. A useful tool in this regard is Google Streetview. This has an archive function which goes back to 2010. The signage is somewhat blurry, but good enough to tell that this signage photo submitted by BW Legal...
...was different to the signage actually in place at the time.
When you receive photos of signage from BW Legal you should therefore check them using Google Streetview and raise a complaint if they are not accurate.
It is also worth remembering that the Peel Centre is divided into 3, so the signage BW Legal submit must be from the area the car was parked, not from the other 2 areas.
The signage is the element which potentially forms a contract with the motorist, so if BW Legal submit wrong information in court claims they are essentially misleading the judge.
Signage coverage
The Peel Centre is the single most complained about carpark in the Prankster's postbag. Excel parking regularly issue tickets due to failures of their own machines to properly record ticket purchases, and when their ANPR fails to record double visits. Additionally, the car park is extremely poorly signed, so many people do not realise it is pay and display. This map shows how most spaces in zone one are too far from the signage. Worryingly, some of the worst-signed areas are for disabled drivers.
Did BW Legal file a witness statement in your claim with inaccurate photographs? If so, contact The Prankster at prankster@parking-prankster.com
Happy Parking
The Parking Prankster
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