NHS worker fined £510 for parking at car park where there was ‘no way to pay’
AN NHS worker has received a fine totalling £510 for visiting a ‘pirate’ car park in Grimsby.
Victoria Hopper, who had lived in Grimsby for over 15 years prior to May of this year, had stopped at Osborne Street Car Park on two separate occasions while finalising a move back home to Durham.
On both occasions, she was no less than an hour.
Like most people who have come to use the car park in recent times, Victoria was baffled by what happened to her.
Shoppers have told your Grimsby Telegraph previously they found it almost impossible to pay for parking.
Now working on the Acute Medical Unit at the University Hospital of North Durham, Victoria said: “I’ve seen so many people who have been affected by this in the paper since.
“When I arrived there was nowhere to pay. The meter wasn’t
working, you couldn’t go online so I thought it was derelict wasteland.
“Not once was there a sign with a car parking ticket on the car so I assumed it was ok to park in there.”
However, on Friday October 8, Victoria received three letters stating she had been fined for not paying for parking at Osborne Street Car Park.
Highview Parking Limited, who own Osborne Street Car Park, issued three separate fines of £170 - meaning she was given a total fine of £510.
The Sunderland-born NHS worker was left speechless.
She said: “I just couldn’t believe it. It was a total shock to open that letter and see this huge fine.
“The letter said that I had not responded to Highview Parking’s correspondence.
“I’d not received any correspondence on the matter prior to this letter. I was furious.
“I’m not prepared to pay this and I can’t afford to pay it either.”
Victoria had placed the car’s address at her mother’s property in Sunderland as she was unsure when she’d be making a return up north from Grimsby.
She had lived in Grimsby for over 15 years before wanting to make a fresh start in Durham and work for the NHS.
She told your Grimsby Telegraph: “I was quite embarrassed that the fines had been sent to my mum’s house. I rung the company up straight away which was disastrous. It took one hour and 30 minutes to get someone to speak to me.
“I explained what had happened and said if I had to, I would be able to pay £20 a month because I simply couldn’t afford it. I told them I’m not to blame and I wanted to challenge them on this because it looked like a derelict wasteland from the time I was there.”
A spokesperson for Highview Parking said there are clear signs and the company claims it has not received a complaint or an appeal from Victoria.
A spokesperson said: “We have very, very clear signage that shows that you need to pay by phone or app because there’s no machine there.
“It’s very clearly signposted.
“In relation to Victoria Hopper, the lady has never appealed, never complained and she’s just ignored everything from us. That’s why it’s got to where it’s got to. There’s no faults, there’s no malpractice, there’s nothing. She parked, she didn’t pay, she didn’t appeal. Had she appealed, she would have had a massively reduced fine. We’ve not had any correspondence from her in any way.”