Kentish Express Ashford & District
I know parking fees have gone up – but this is daft!
Company says sorry after sending out bill for
A motorist was left stunned after receiving a car parking bill for £1.4 million – enough to park continuously for 743 years!
James Adams left his vehicle in the Park Mall Shopping Centre car park in Edinburgh Road, Ashford, earlier this summer for his regular shopping trip.
He used the mobile phone app Parkmobile to pay for parking charges on three visits in July, and logged on to pay the bill at the end of the month.
But when the invoice finally arrived for July, he was surprised to count five more zeros than he expected, with an overall invoice for more than £1.41 million.
The car park, run by NCP, charges £5.20 for up to 24 hours of parking, which means that if he were to have the money, he could park there for 271,154 days in a row, or nearly 743 years.
Mr Adams said: “I was quite shocked, but I knew it had been an error. I dread to think that it might have frightened the life out of some other people. I logged into my account to the car park and saw there were too many zeros.
“I spoke to the company and they said there had been a cock-up at their end and I saw the funny side of it.”
Parkmobile has apologised for the error, which should have in fact been a bill for £14.10.
The company also provides the mobile charges for council run car parks such as Edinburgh Road and Dover Place, and on street parking in places such as the High Street.
‘I knew it had been an error. I dread to think that it might have frightened the life out of some other people’