We was not staying overnight!!! It was a toilet and refreshment break, my daughter has Aspergers Syndrome and at the point of returning to the car she decided she was not ready so as you can maybe imagine we had to let her vent.
I never said I was not paying!!! I was asking for advice!!
IT was dark at 02:44 in the morning!! Yes it is very lit up and I was not looking for any notices or pay machines as it was meant to be a short break stop.
You'll probaly make more progress talking to the company than pressing your point on here. I gave you the link in an earlier post so you could appeal directly to the service operator rather than the company that run the car park. What we all think won't change your situation, and from your posts you admit you stayed for the period you have been charged for, you agreed you didn't pay but also believe you shouldn't have to pay because of your daughter's condition. It does say on their signage and in the detail that I posted that if you had told them you couldn't leave within 2 hours (illness or breakdown) you wouldn't have needed to pay
I don't know what they will say, why don't you try emailing them to sort it out. Please let us all know how you get on
By way of interest I just looked at Taunton services M5,
as you drive in the 1st sign is about 10 feet high and in big letters says "Free parking for 2 hours" underneath it says stays longer than 2 hours and up to 24 hours is £10. It also very clearly sets out what the charges will be if you don't pay, they could have clamped you. It was a £250 release fee. Guess your lucky that didn't happen
Simon
Post last edited on 03/09/2012 23:57:24Street view
Just ignore the letters.
They can't do anything unless they can prove who was driving, & they can't force you to tell them who was. They know this & will send more & more threatening letters, usually swapping to some "collection agency" or other firm probably in the same run-down portacabin, from a car park somewhere.
With the greatest of respect to those adopting the pedantic approach of pointing out the OP's wrong doing, your exactly the type of folk that companies like this make a living from.
If the company offered the chance to pay the original charge many would probably do so, but protected by the laws of this so called government of ours, they simply use legal scare tactics to bully people into paying huge sums. How on earth anyone can defend a £250 fee is beyond me.
Also some very good professional advice here on how to proceed and appeal. They also say the ticket is the responsibility of the registered keeper, not the driver.
Quote: Originally posted by Simontodd on 03/9/2012
You'll probaly make more progress talking to the company than pressing your point on here. I gave you the link in an earlier post so you could appeal directly to the service operator rather than the company that run the car park.
Thats the problem, They dont have an appeals process. They have a standard reply,
YOUR GUILTY PAY UP. Letter
They dont even bother reading your letter.
If they ever did try taking you to court they can claim for their losses. The carpark is free, So no loss there.
You were not taking up a space of someone wanting to park overnight so no loss there.
So the £80 charge is for what? Its an unfair penalty.
They have tried the courts and they lose, They only win where the other party failed to turn up and make any form of defence.
Contract law requires an offer and an acceptance. The landlord or private parking firm offer you parking in accordance with the terms displayed. By reading the terms, the motorists have accepted the offer and must comply. The terms and conditions display the charges for failure to comply, by entering the parking area you have agreed to the terms and conditions including the excess charges for failure to comply with them.
From the other side of the fence, In those 'Free' two hours how many use the facilities parking,toilet, etc for free without paying anything, they have to be paid for somehow and they're giving you plenty of time to use their facilities without paying anything. There'd be a uproar if the toilets weren't free and everyone had to pay regardless of time stayed.
------------- Doing as little as possible for as much as possible...
Quote: Originally posted by DaveCoaches on 04/9/2012
Their losses are a) you didn't pay. B) they had to pay staff to man their equipment. C) They had to contact you. D) court fees. E) Legal costs.
Could run into a few hundreds quid without being deemed excessive.
Its a free car park so no loss. The landowner can claim for loss not the parking company, Unless they take over the land. But what landowner is going to be mad enough to do that?
Sign it over and they turn it into a pay and display and make you pay or clank you lol.
Quote: Originally posted by saxo1 on 04/9/2012
<SPAN lang=EN-GB>
Contract law requires an offer and an acceptance. The landlord or private parking firm offer you parking in accordance with the terms displayed. By reading the terms, the motorists have accepted the offer and must comply.
The terms and conditions display the charges for failure to comply, by entering the parking area you have agreed to the terms and conditions including the excess charges for failure to comply with them.
Saxo1
</SPAN>
Unenforeable contract. Its not a fair one and they lose in court so that proves its not worth the signs they write them on.