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Can I be charged £130 by PPS for parking in my son's private parking space?
My son owns one of a block of flats, each with its own parking space requiring a displayed permit and administered by PPS (a member of BPA). I parked in his space while he was at work in order to carry out house maintenance for him. I left a clearly written and displayed note on the dashboard stating where I was, a buzzer just a few yards away would have contacted me. On leaving the property I discovered, on a side window, notice of a £70 parking charge. My son sent an email explaining who the car belonged to and that I was there at his request. The only response from PPS was a request for relevant postcodes. This all occurred on 10 November and nothing more was heard until 5 Jan when I received a demand for £130. Is PPS legally entitled to do this?
Asked on 24 December 2010 by CE, Saltash, Cornwall
Answered by
Honest John
By your own admission you did not conform to the contractual terms of the parking controls. You should have first made an arrangement with PPS to park your car there. See: www.honestjohn.co.uk/faq/parking-fines.
However, this does raise the question as to how anyone living in a flat with controlled parking can ever get any work done on the flat by tradesmen who have to park their vehicles outside. It seems to have reached the point where normal life as we know it is impossible simply for the sake of the profit of members of the British Parking Association. This is why any attempt by the BPA to extend its powers against keepers of cars needs to be countered by careful regulation of its penalty procedures, an ombudsman appointed to deal with disputes, and the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 heavily enforced against BPA members. So far, the proposed bill only limits fines to £150 with a 50 per cent discount for prompt payment. That kind of penalty will impose great hardship on many pensioners.
However, this does raise the question as to how anyone living in a flat with controlled parking can ever get any work done on the flat by tradesmen who have to park their vehicles outside. It seems to have reached the point where normal life as we know it is impossible simply for the sake of the profit of members of the British Parking Association. This is why any attempt by the BPA to extend its powers against keepers of cars needs to be countered by careful regulation of its penalty procedures, an ombudsman appointed to deal with disputes, and the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 heavily enforced against BPA members. So far, the proposed bill only limits fines to £150 with a 50 per cent discount for prompt payment. That kind of penalty will impose great hardship on many pensioners.
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