Professional Recovery 354

POSTBAG
NO PARKING!
We recently received an email from David Williams one of the
directors of Wrexham based operators HK Motors (Wales):
“I recently had a fine for attending a broken down vehicle in
Wrexham Shopping Centre, in a car park operated under Euro Car
Parks. I was in a service van and unfortunately the broken down car
needed a recovery to home address; so I had to wait for recovery
truck to assist in loading of vehicle”
“Although we appealed it at the time, due to above circumstances,
they declined the appeal, basically stating that the signage is clear and
that a valid pay and display ticket must be purchased for full duration
of stay on the car park.”
“To avoid the charge rising from £50 to £90, I have paid the fine,
however, I would like to enquire if you are aware of this being an issue
for recovery garages, i.e. how do we stand with regard to fighting
matter. I am also writing to Wrexham Council to get their comments.”
This is one of a few emails we’ve had on this matter, with a growing
concern that recovering a vehicle in a monitored car park could result
in a hefty fine.
At the time of going to press, Euro Car Parks had failed to respond
to requests for their vehicle recovery policy, however, we have been
able to talk to the British Parking Association.
The BPA represent the UK parking and traffic management
profession, with over 750 members, taking in the majority of car
parks through the country. A spokesman for the BPA was shocked
and surprised at the treatment that HK Motors had experienced and
confirmed that any recovery operator assisting a vehicle should not
be facing the possibility of fines, under any circumstances.
The majority of issues revolve around ANPR (automatic number
plate recognition) systems, which both monitor and issue parking
penalties autonomously. Although there is no practical way of
avoiding this system, according to the BPA appealing the penalty
should result in the cancelation of the fine. The key to the appeal is
providing evidence of the job, through whatever system you are using.
If you are unsuccessful with your claim, you can make a complaint
directly to the BPA through their website, though the operator does
need to be a BPA member. Alternatively, the Independent Parking
Community also run a similar system.
We are planning a more in depth feature on this issue in the future.
If you have had a parking penalty whilst working on a job, we would
like to hear your experiences. Send your information to the editor
paul.gregory@ppmedia.co.uk
● British Parking Association - https://www.britishparking.co.uk/
● Independent Parking Community - https://theipc.info/
38 PROFESSIONAL RECOVERY MAGAZINE
38 Parking.indd 1 18/01/2022 06:54