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Seems perfectly reasonable to me. Twenty minutes in a petrol station! That's taking the mickey and using the place for free parking.
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Strictly speaking this thread should be called (Parking fine for buying petrol and snacks and taking more than 20 minutes to do it!) Seems pretty fair to me although there is some implication that the garage has a sit-down cafe inside, in which can see that 20 minutes could easily not be enough!
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BP seem to want it both ways - attract people into their petrol stations/mini-supermarkets/cafes and yet not park to use them! No problem fining people if they're parking there and leaving the premises but excessive otherwise.
Our local BP has added a safeways supermarket (all on the land the original BP service station used to be on). Not surprising they're running short of parking space!
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Our local BP has added a safeways supermarket (all on the land the original BP service station used to be on). Not surprising they're running short of parking space!
Ours has too, so I refuse to use it now. I want to buy petrol from a petrol station and my emergency groceries from the 'corner' shop.
However I'm sure everything else will soon close and only the BP/Safeways facility will remain.
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I want to buy petrol from a petrol station and my emergency groceries from the 'corner' shop.
Hear hear.
Theres a Tesco filling station/ shop near us where people fill up, obviously leave their car at the pump, then spend 10 minutes shopping for groceries. At rush hour they often get cars queuing onto the main A610 trying to get onto the forecourt, blocking traffic. They added a few more parking spaces when they added the shop, but most people are too bone idle to use the additional rear car park. Theres another Tesco station half a mile away which has similar problems despite a bigger forecourt and more parking.
Whoever gave them planning permission needs to have a rethink. Down with Tesco!
;o)
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Most of the civilian "fines" are unenforceable and can be safely ignored. In fact, it's not a fine because no offence has been committed.
The more daring recipient of one of these meaningless letters should invite Civil Enforcement Ltd to initiate prosecution.
See pepipoo for further info.
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Yes it is a Civil Penalty, whatever that is!
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My understanding is that the unknowing driver enters into a contract when he (or she) drives past the signage, there is lots of interesting stuff on pepipoo about the contractual issues. The contract usually refers to the driver, DVLA will scandalously release details of the registered keeper, who may not be the driver. Why should the registered keeper respond to any communication from the enforcement company? The enforcement company has no powers to force the registered keeper to identify the driver.
But why do people drink the unspeakable gruel that masquerades as coffee in a BP station anyway? Perhaps such people deserve a good "fine" for that "offence" ?
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So, the DVLA have the authority to pass on my personal details to a private company?
I don't recall giving them permission under the data protection act!
I could have told my wife I was in Birmingham and this arrives on the mat!
Bit scary this.
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Along with their stupid pump colouring this is yet another reason to avoid BP stations.
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No they don't but they have 'discretion' to give them out for a good reason. If your car was damaged in a hit-and-run and you got the perps number you could request the details and you would probably get them. Same for BP garages wanting to harrass their customers!
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The whole point about this is that the petrol stations facilities at the North and South Terminals were being abused by taxis , coaches and anybody else picking up someone as they closest free parking to the airport , actually within the airport precincts.
I do not agree with the sneaky way that it was brought in but I can understand why they did it as their business was affected by parkers blocking the forecourt to genuine customers .
I work not a million miles from the airport and there are plenty of spots within a mile or so where you can sit and wait outside the airport and you can be there within a couple of minutes . Go north on A23 and A217 to the giant Tescos at Hookwood and park there.
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The whole point about this is that the petrol stations facilities at the North and South Terminals were being abused by taxis ,
This all rather evades the point that 20 minutes is NOT long enough to buy fuel, buy coffee, buy croissants, oh! lets gets some sweets, oh! and a magazines, pay for everything, use the loos and then wander back to the car.
The signs inviting drivers to use The Wildbean Cafe are MUCH larger than the signs warning of a 20 minute time limit.
As a driver usung Gatwick Airport once or twice every day, I now refuse to use the filling stations at Gatwick for ANY purchase.
I believe that BP have shot themselves in the foot with this one.
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Get real drbe.... :0), you don't get anything , particularly parking for free at Gatwick.
As a local as you apparently are,why would you want to use the Gatwick petrol stations for anything other than waiting around to collect someone anyway ?
If you are using Gatwick a couple of times a day you are surely aware that the petrol / diesel , food , cafe etc is all much cheaper just up the road at Tescos as well as having a huge free car park .
BP are in business to make money and of course are not going to be happy if loads of taxi drvers and coach drivers are spending a couple of quid on a coffee / sarnie and hanging around for hours , blocking access to their forecourt to people spending £30 or £40 on fuel.
I'm sure that , as HJ says, if the person who overstays the 20 minutes also filled their tank and spent a bit of money then they would not be fined.
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">they would not be fined.<"
It's not a fine, it's a contractual arrangement. BP (or their agent) attempt to claim that a contract was entered into when a person drives into the car park, the contract states something like "By parking here for more than 20 minutes you agree to pay me the sum of £xxxx " Or similar.
I wonder if I can operate something similar on my front path. "By walking on this path, you agree to pay me the sum of etc..."
It's a nonsense because (generally) the other party (the driver or the postman) is not aware that a contract has been entered into.
Perhaps BP et al should stick to selling fuel, that might help.
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>>. Go north on A23 and A217 to the giant Tescos at Hookwood and park there.
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As I have posted several times recently ( and catch up on the motoring scene at the bookstall while awaiting the " I have mu bags call")
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What annoys me is when someone stops in the pump access area when there is plenty more space beyond the pumps and doesn't buy any fuel.
--
L\'escargot.
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What annoys me is when someone stops in the pump access area when there is plenty more space beyond the pumps and doesn't buy any fuel. -- L\'escargot.
Yes it annoys me,also when someone decides to do there weekly shopping and pay in front of me at the till then decide that they need to pop back to the shelves for something they forgot. The Sainsburys in Bracknell have a separate till for petrol only-very sensible
--
rustbucket (the original)
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Where are you based Henry?
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Where are you based Henry?
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Esher as in Eesher just a few miles from HJ & TVM
Sorry for the delay in posting , just back from Gatwick Tescos where there was as usual,. plenty of parking.
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Can't help but remark that if BAA or whoever didn't charge such a vicious amount of money for the short-term parking at Gatwick this wouldn't be so much of an issue. Isn't the minimum charge getting on for £3 these days? (And that for a villainously small space, too.)
Gatwick used to be a very handy kind of park and ride for business trips to London, for those of us based in offices in the Crawley/Gatwick area, and even if this wasn't actively encouraged then certainly it wasn't discouraged - but no longer. From our offices it is now no more expensive to take taxis to and from Three Bridges, and a lot less aggravation.
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