Caution: Airport parking may ruin your classic’s health…
British Parking Association defends company that won’t fix damaged classics
Airport car parks are discriminating against classic owners when it comes to mechanical damage incurred during storage – simply because the cars are ‘old’.
CCW has discovered that several car parking companies at major airports, including ones offering valet parking, will not rectify mechanical problems caused by their employees on cars older than 20 years. They say these are ‘wear and tear items’.
One reader, who wishes to remain anonymous, got in touch with us to say that his 20-year-old car was damaged at an Empark parking facility at Gatwick airport. He says there was an ‘unhelpful and nonsensical’ clause in the company’s Ts & Cs, which means the company is not responsible for mechanical damage incurred while the car was in its care.
Tom Stacey, service delivery manager for Empark at Gatwick, says: ‘In general, we don’t fix mechanical issues on old cars – cars more than 20 years old.’
A source working for the parking facilities at Gatwick tells CCW: ‘As far as I’m aware, there shouldn’t be different terms and conditions based on the car’s age.’
The British Parking Association (BPA), of which Empark is a member, is quick to pass on responsibility, stating that it is up to individual companies to make their own rules and regulations. Joanna Audley, media officer says: ‘The inclusion of the rule regarding age is nothing to do with BPA and is a term solely down to the parking company.’
Owners of cars with hard-to-source parts are among those most affected by blanket policies like this. Gavin Bushby, chairman of the Fiat Motor Club of Great Britain says: ‘It can be very difficult to get parts for some older cars, and sometimes they are impossible to source at all. It is not a simple case of phoning and getting a replacement, and I think a third party needs to understand that and act accordingly.’
The wider issue is rejecting culpability according to the FBHVC. Geoff Lancaster, communications director says: ‘It’s damned unfair, and discriminatory to classic owners. The only question that should be answered is if the car has been damaged by the staff or not.’
www.britishparking.co.uk