The Press and Journal (Inverness, Highlands, and Islands)
Driver charged £120 for 15 mins ‘parking’
Law: Councillor says fines ‘disproportionate’
A driver has claimed he was fined more than £100 for using an Inverness car park to turn his vehicle around.
Tom Pendreigh, chairman of Inverness Ice Centre, said he was contesting the case with the private operators of the Strothers Lane facility.
He is among a number of drivers who have complained about the car park to councillor Carolyn Caddick, who also recently fell foul of the rules governing the automated facility. It can cost as little as 50p to use the car park. But Mr Pendreigh, 60, faces a £100 bill after “unintentionally” flouting the rules. He said he drove in to turn round but was then apparently hemmed in by a truck trying to manoeuvre its way out. “I’m told I was there for about 15 minutes,” he said. “My engine was never switched off, I was never parked in a space. I was hit with an initial fine, then a second, for £180. I took legal advice and refused to pay the fine.
“Recently, two reductions have been offered. If I pay up now it’ll be back down to £120.”
Customers are obliged to tap in their registration number. A sign erected by Smart Parking informs drivers they are “entering a contract” for which they will be charged after 10 minutes.
A separate sign states that data captured by ANPR (automatic number plate recognition) cameras “may be used to request registered keepers’ details from the DVLA”.
Councillor Caddick received a penalty notice after failing to find an alternative pay machine after the main one, she said, failed to work.
She claimed that, according to cases involving numerous constituents, off enders were being punished “disproportionately”.
A spokesman for Smart Parking said: “Mr Pendreigh arrived at 12.33 and left at 12.48. He paid no fee for his 15- minute stay which was a breach of his contract. There are 26 large signs on the site and 58 spaces. The cameras do not show any blockages and no other drivers reported any problems on the site that day.”
He said the level of charges was approved by the British Parking Association and that drivers issued with a penalty notice have 28 days to appeal.
“I took legal advice and refused to pay the fine”