Airport parking lawsuit settled

Park ’ N Fly customers who were frozen out last December when car jockeys couldn’t find their vehicles can plan on getting some satisfaction for Christmas — and a deal on parking.

Lawyers said Friday a settlement has been reached between the valet parking company and customers who suffered delays in getting their cars from the outlet’s Airport Rd. lot near Pearson International Airport late last December. The 129 customers who have come forward to say they experienced delays in having their vehicles retrieved will receive one of two packages from Park ’ N Fly: a letter of apology and a $ 129 coupon for car detailing or a voucher for three days of free parking.

Others who have yet to come forward but had problems at the facility between last Dec. 26 and Dec. 29 are eligible for a one- day parking voucher and reimbursement for any out- of- pocket expenses incurred as a result of the delays as long as they come forward before Dec. 31, according to settlement documents of a class- action lawsuit.

“ It was very fair,” Douglas Kincaid, one of two plaintiffs representing the class action, said of the settlement. When Kincaid and his wife flew into Toronto from Ottawa Dec. 27, Park ’ N Fly staff couldn’t find the couple’s Jetta TDI.

“ There was quite a bit of confusion and I couldn’t get an answer,” he said. Two and a half hours later, he and his wife took a cab ride home that Park ’ N Fly agreed to pay for.

Kincaid was called at 4 p. m. the next day and told that his car had been found. While picking up his car at the Park ’ N Fly office, he met Jordan Solway, the second class action representative. They got chatting and decided to band together.

Kincaid and Solway, who both lost the use of their vehicles for more than a day, will each receive $500 in addition to other compensation. The lawsuit had not been certified by the courts as a class action and the plaintiffs originally asked for $ 11 million in damages for their inconvenience. Some waited hours for their cars and others, like Kincaid, wound up taking expensive taxi rides home. The plaintiffs alleged Park ’ N Fly was obliged to store the vehicles in a secure and identifiable location. They also alleged the company breached a guarantee posted on its web page at the time stating: “ Upon your return, your car will be ready and waiting for you at the front door.”

Last year, company employees at the site told the Star the delays were related to a blizzard that dumped nearly 30 centimetres of snow on the lot, burying entire rows of vehicles and making it impossible to move cars. The company did not return a call for comment. WITH FILES FROM AMY BROWN-BOWERS