Appeal your fine if the car park does not let you pay in cash
MOTORISTS are being urged to challenge fines issued when using a car park that does not accept their cash, instead insisting on payment by card or phone.
An investigation by The Mail on Sunday has discovered that a third of all car park machines now no longer take coins – and demand that motorists pay using a phone app, debit or credit card.
Experts believe it is wrong to discriminate against motorists wishing to pay using coins or banknotes and that fines should be overturned.
The Mail on Sunday believes passionately that cash should remain an option for consumers when paying for goods and services, despite the desire of banks and international payment companies to turn the country into a cashless society.
It is why we launched a year ago a Keep Our Cash campaign, calling on banks to keep at least one bank branch and cash machine in every town, supported by cashback facilities at retailers and a local post office.
Over the past year, a record nine million car parking fines were issued by local councils, raking in more than £320 million. A third were a result of motorists having no means to pay for parking because the ticket machines were cashless.
According to the RAC Foundation, a further 6.5 million motorists who parked on private land – and received a fine averaging £100 – should also not have to pay if the car parking machine did not take cash and they had no other means on them of paying.
Barrie Segal is a campaigner against unfair car parking fines and has set up website AppealNow to help anyone who wants to challenge tickets. He says: ‘The way that motorists are being treated is unfair. If you are willing to pay but a machine will not accept your money, what are you supposed to do?’
He adds: ‘Private car park operators are always looking for new ways to squeeze more money out of motorists. Anyone fined because they only had cash on them should consider appealing. Those who get fined for the same reason in a council car park should ask the council to reconsider the fine. Be willing to take the case all the way to an independent adjudicator.’
According to research by comparison website Confused, three quarters of t hose who appeal against a public car park fine win their case.
Data f rom private car park ombudsman Parking on Private Land Appeals indicates that last year it overturned 27,000 fines – four in ten – after drivers challenged them.
Meanwhile, the trade body that deals with private car parks, the British Parking Association, believes a cash payment option should always be offered at car parks. Spokeswoman Joanna Audley says: ‘We would expect motorists to be able to pay by cash as an option when parking.’
Philip Gomm, of the RAC Foundation, says: ‘ Paying for parking should not be turned into an excuse for issuing fines. You should be given the choice of how to pay.
‘We would like to see car park machines that reflect what people want. It may be fine for people who are computer savvy to use their smartphone to pay for parking – but similarly a cash option should be provided.’
Last year, The Mail on Sunday revealed how pay-by-phone apps and hotlines for parking charges rake in £18 million per annum in extra fees.
Providers such as RingGo, Paybyphone and Parkmobile typically charge 20p extra for paying by phone on top of the standard car park fee. Councils and private operators take a slice of ‘service fees’.