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Parking penalty - should we pay it?
A few weeks ago my 17 year old daughter borrowed my wife's car to attend a Sunday evening church service. She parked in a public car park opposite the church without realising that she needed to pay. When she came out there was a parking penalty notice, demanding a £60 penalty charge.
My wife wrote to the parking firm, explaining what had happened but they refuse to withdrew the penalty notice and are now pursuing my daughter for an even larger payment. My daughter is still at school, has no income or assets and is not in any position to pay £60, or anything like it.
It seems wholly unreasonable to pursue a child for an amount like this, which is out of all proportion to the amount that she should have paid originally (probably about £2).
Please could you tell me who is liable for this charge and what will happen if it is not paid? What should we do?
My wife wrote to the parking firm, explaining what had happened but they refuse to withdrew the penalty notice and are now pursuing my daughter for an even larger payment. My daughter is still at school, has no income or assets and is not in any position to pay £60, or anything like it.
It seems wholly unreasonable to pursue a child for an amount like this, which is out of all proportion to the amount that she should have paid originally (probably about £2).
Please could you tell me who is liable for this charge and what will happen if it is not paid? What should we do?
Asked on 21 June 2014 by Ian Statham
Answered by
Honest John
This is a very nasty business that resulted from a sneaky piece of legislation I tried to alert the public to, but was ignored.
This is a 'parking charge', not 'damages' and as such is subject to VAT. If VAT is not itemised on the charge invoice then you should notify HMRC. Explanation of the law here: www.honestjohn.co.uk/faq/private-parking-penalties/
This is a 'parking charge', not 'damages' and as such is subject to VAT. If VAT is not itemised on the charge invoice then you should notify HMRC. Explanation of the law here: www.honestjohn.co.uk/faq/private-parking-penalties/
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