Parking fine was sent to dead dad ALEX SCAPENS
AGRIEVING daughter has been further upset by a parking firm chasing her late father for a fine issued after he died.
Emma MacDonald, 36, of Reddish, parked at the Peel Centre on a trip to register her dad’s death using his Skoda Fabia for the journey.
She says she paid at the machine - entering the car’s registration as instructed - but the ticket came out with only ‘SN’ where the numberplate should be printed.
This meant machine records of who had paid for parking did not match footage of Emma driving into the Peel Centre, in central Stockport.
And two weeks later a letter addressed to her dad, James MacDonald, was sent by parking enforcers Excel demanding the payment of a fine.
Emma appealed, explaining the machine’s error and that her dad had passed away, but Excel rejected the plea and sent another demand - still addressed to her dad.
But after the Stockport Express contacted Excel, the company has apologised and cancelled the fine.
Although it does say the fine itself was correctly issued because ‘an incomplete registration number’ was input.
Emma said: “They were not even chasing me, they were chasing my dad so would have need a time machine. Given the circumstances it wasn’t very fair.
“I am stubborn so was not going to pay it. I’d heard things about Excel but thought it was an urban legend.”
Mr MacDonald died on June 6 following a nine year battle with cancer.
Emma, an accountant who had moved back to her parents home to care for her father, visited the Peel Centre the next day.
A spokesman for Excel said: “While the parking charge was issued correctly, due to an incomplete registration number being input, we acknowledge there was an administrative oversight when processing Miss MacDonald’s appeal.
“The appeal should have been escalated to a senior manager to consider mitigating circumstances and our response should have been sent to Miss MacDonald.
“We are addressing the training and processing issues arising from this.
“The parking charge has been cancelled and we will write to Miss MacDonald and her mother to convey our condolences, along with our most sincere apologies.”