On 3 May 2015 at 12:33pm JS wrote:
Hello everyone,
Seeing quite a lot of posts regarding these sharks, if only I had seen them before I parked there. Pulled up for 2m 30s on a Saturday afternoon, had a look around for a sign and couldn't see anything immediately obvious so stopped and sat in the car whilst I waited for my brother to finish work.
Over a month later I've received a letter saying I owe £100 to them blah blah blah, the site is managed by Parking-Enforcement from Brighton but I don't know who the land owner is. They are a private company and this parking spot seems to literally serve just to trap people, I can't imagine many people have purchased permits with Parking-Enforcement.
I sent an appeal stating that I could not have cost them any business because there were several other spaces free, I never left the vehicle and I was only there for a short duration, and they denied the appeal saying that none of this matters and they are trying to make me believe that they have the power to pass my 'debt' on to a debt collection agency if I don't pay up in four weeks.
Anyone else had a similar experience, if so what did you do? I feel inclined to ignore their threats, the letter they sent was so poorly worded and they have intentionally worded it to make it seem like they have powers they don't have. But ultimately I am tempted to just pay to stop having to hear from them - my concern is that they will take this and just ask for more (as someone else on here claims to have experienced).
Cheers,
JS
On 3 May 2015 at 1:19pm Mavis wrote:
I think your posting is basically floored from the onset. With the title, Laura Ashley Car Park. Laura Ashley does NOT have a car park. Signs are everywhere on the site too.
On 3 May 2015 at 1:48pm convenient wrote:
I think Mavis sums it up , but can I ask how did they prove you were there ? Surely they would have needed someone to photograph it and note that you didn't have relevant permission . Did you notice an official / warden ? . It is as you suggest probably a profitable piece of land to own as are most car parks . They should put meters there even with astronomical charges at least that way people could weigh up the risks of running the gauntlet . Ps I suspect they will refer you to a debt recovery agency and they will be much harder shake off ... I speak from experience .
On 3 May 2015 at 2:01pm Boxer wrote:
I was floored, your remarks are flawed
On 3 May 2015 at 2:51pm trooper wrote:
Please note that the signs with all the rules for parking in that area are approx 10 feet from ground level, furthermore the printing is so small that it is, to say the least difficult to read.
I have had dealings with this company,who are a very very difficult outfit to deal with, it was only after my threat to sue them and used a a very high powered legal firm that they backed off.THIS area is a money trap, this company has people watching all the time to check on "illegal parkers". Do not pay challenge them head on.
On 3 May 2015 at 3:36pm High Dudgeon wrote:
They have CCTV cameras there. Caught me the same way at the back of Waitrose when I waited there to pick up a friend who was finishing work. I'd be interested to know if they needed planning or other permission for those cameras and if they actually got it.
On 3 May 2015 at 4:24pm xplorer1 wrote:
Write to them offering a competitive rate for the time you were there - whatever the minimum stay is in the adjacent NCP, and enclose a cheque for that amount. Do some googling on private parking enforcement and you'll find lots of helpful sites. They're sharks - until clamping was made illegal (and thank Norman Baker for that) that was their preferred MO.
On 3 May 2015 at 6:43pm Belladonna wrote:
I would ask to see the proof you were parked there. They need date and time stamped photogrPhic evidence. If they don't have the proof then threaten to counter sue for harassment.
On 3 May 2015 at 6:49pm JS wrote:
As High says, they have a CCTV cameras there. They sent me timestamped snapshots of me sitting in the car waiting for my brother to finish work. Was literally there for 2m30s in total and they want me to pay £60 now, or £100 if not paid in 2 weeks. I did look for any signs about parking but the only sign they have as suggested by trooper is really high up and uses small writing so I didn't think it would be anything important considering I was only there for 2mins or so and there wasn't any big signs saying 'here are the rates, etc'. I would imagine they have found out the minimum requirement for legal 'adequate signage' and just done that.
I'm just looking to hear how other people dealt with this same situation, the thought of paying these crooks a penny is riling me up.
On 3 May 2015 at 7:47pm Anarchist wrote:
Who will join me in covering our number plates then parking ? I intend to do the same in Seaford . That should stir them up LOL.
On 3 May 2015 at 9:08pm help 4 u wrote:
Go to money saving expert dot com and look for their proforma letters that you send to private car parking firms to tell them to sod off and that they have no legal way to enforce their fines. I used ths when parking erroneously in an Aldi car park and over staying by 2 mins. The letters stopped immediately. They have no legal method of enforcing their so-called fines. Only the council can do that!
On 3 May 2015 at 9:11pm Mavis wrote:
I'm sure it will be this first thing our new councils will look at next week, as the old one didn't do anything about it.
On 4 May 2015 at 11:38am Oldbutintouch wrote:
The Forum Kippers are always asking "what has Norman done for us?" If nothing else, (and he has done considerably more) he ensured that private clamping was outlawed. Had he not brought this local problem to Westminster, JS would have had to hang about for hours and pay £100plus to some thug to release him. Think about this on Thursday! PS Moneysavingexpert offers good advice.
On 4 May 2015 at 12:16pm archie dougal wrote:
Better than covering your plates up, get a set made up to match the car of someone you don't like . Then sit back and enjoy the fun.
On 4 May 2015 at 3:12pm The Twister wrote:
This is legally only a civil dispute and they would have to take you to County Court to enforce it- and it would require a judge to rule in their favour. They try it on and probably 70% + of people pay up. They won't be arsed to take you to court when they can collect vast sums of money so easily without having to. Just ignore them and they WILL go away.....
On 4 May 2015 at 7:36pm JS wrote:
Thanks guys, some really useful stuff in here
On 5 May 2015 at 2:33pm Parker Permit wrote:
Here is the link to the section on MSE
Check it out here »
On 6 May 2015 at 4:02pm Another JS wrote:
Just ignore all their post JS. They will keep sending you meaningless threats, and then give up. Be strong!
On 6 May 2015 at 4:02pm Another JS wrote:
Just ignore all their post JS. They will keep sending you meaningless threats, and then give up. Be strong!
On 27 May 2015 at 12:44pm JS wrote:
Just to add to this - I have filed an appeal with the parking organisation that manages this parking area which was rejected, I then launched an appeal with the independent appeals agency for private car parking, this was also rejected and they have deemed that £100 is a fair and reasonable amount to charge me for stopping there for 3 minutes, in addition to this they have warned of likely court action if not paid.
Be careful out there folks!
On 27 Jan 2016 at 8:13pm G wrote:
What did you do in the end?
What was the outcome?
I've just had the same letter, I was there 8mins, literally left the driving seat momenterily to retrieve a bag from my boot!
On 17 Feb 2016 at 2:28pm C wrote:
Hi, any update on this - I just got a letter too. Was there with my disabled mum and went into Laura Ashley for about 3 minutes (she was sat in the car!) Didn't realise the car park wasn't LA's to be honest...!
On 18 Feb 2016 at 10:02am adele ferguson wrote:
I just got a ticket as II did not realise it was a private car park, what is the general consensus here, pay or not?
On 30 Apr 2016 at 3:08pm Lou wrote:
My 18 year old daughter, who has just started driving stopped for a few minutes as she was picking her friend up after work and her friend didn't turn up so she had to run to the shop. She didn't see the signs as they are so high up the wall, looking at the photo of her they must be 10 feet up the wall. The car park is right outside Laura Ashley and I am sure it used to be used for their shop. I think there are 7 marked out car parking spaces and it looks enticing for a few minutes waiting for someone. I have used it in the past to wait for people. The signs are so high up they can't be seen clearly and if sitting in the car the signs appear above the top of the windscreen especially if you are tall. Its hard enough in this world to get by and now with her being a student I know who will end up paying the extortionate price for parking for a few minutes. Its like the Lewes college car park, their signs are so high up I didn't notice them and ended up with a £120 fine for watching my daughter at college. She was photographed by a cctv camera on the wall of a building, so if you are watching for wardens you are stuffed. I think the only way of appeal is that the notices are too high and therefore looking up at that angle you can't get close up to them to read them without binoculars. Its an outrage and I am a very angry Mum.
On 30 Apr 2016 at 3:18pm A Person wrote:
This is one of the most familiar recurring themes on this forum. Even if you don't see the signs (they're pretty obvious) then you should be automatically suspicious of anywhere which appears to be unregulated parking right in the commercial centre of a busy town. The same is true of the college car park: the signs are several and easy to spot.
I know it seems mean, but it is a bit of a rite of passage, getting fined for parking in the wrong place: new drivers need to be suspicious of "free parking". Someone else was complaining about being fined stopping to drop someone off, and yes that's extortion. However, if your daughter parked up and left her car in a space where the signs really are pretty clear even if they are high up, then I'm not sure I feel quite so sympathetic.
On 6 Nov 2016 at 10:25pm Beabea wrote:
I have also received a 'notice to keeper' from these scammers. I've read differing opinions as to whether to pay the invoice as I understand that's what it is, not a fine. I wanted to hear from anyone with experience of appealing or ignoring. The photographic evidence shows that the signs are way above eye level so how anyone is expected to read them is a joke.
On 1 Jul 2017 at 3:41pm Charmina wrote:
Hi,
What happened to this case? Did you pay the invoice? I am dreading I may get one as I did not realised this a camera operated car park. Park for 5 minutes to run to chip shop 2 fridays now