Private Clamping Firm

[Maestroboy]

I left my car parked in the evening on a side street. There were no double yellow lines or signposts explaining there were parking restrictions. On returning I discovered my car had been clamped and towed away. Looking closer at the walls of the block of private apartments next to where I parked my car I noticed to my horror several yellow notices explaining that any vehicles causing an obstruction would be clamped or towed away as I was parked on private land.

I phoned the number on the notices to be informed I would have to pay £395 to collect my car the following day and if I didn't I would have to pay a further £50 per day for it left in "storage".

I have paid the charge to release my car and have been informed that as the Security firm (Safety-Net Security) have a licence to do this and signs were displayed prominently I did not have any choice but to cough up. There was no security industry licence number anywhere on the signs.

I am going to write a letter of appeal to the firm but is there much chance of me appealing successfully and is there any other action I can take against them?

[perky88]

There does not need to be SIA number on the signage, but the receipt they gave you should have a number on it.

As for appealing ... I would have thought it VERY unlikely you will win an appeal, after all they already have your cash.

I would advise going back to the site and taking photographs, if your argument is lack of signage then photogrpahs will show the court definately.

Your only chance is (when they reject your appeal) is to issue proceedings in the small claims court again them for the charges you have paid - you will then have to let the judge decide if the signage is sufficient etc..

The charges do seem very excessive £395 ... you may have a claim here for excessive charges - I would even say if it said £395 on the signage it is high .. (£100-£150 maybe for towing away ... but £395 !!)

Why did they tow your vehicle and not just clamp it ??? were you causing an obstruction of any kind ???

So in answer to your question, I dont think you have any chance of them giving you back your money ... so I would start thinking about legal action.

[Howard0181]

You should take photos of the signs and the where you parked so we can see the situation.

From what you wrote it does not seem that you were obstructing anything and the signs were not clear.

You need to get the name of the company that own the land. Will be the freeholder of the apartment block. You should write to the clamping company and the owner of the landlord requesting that they give your money back within 14 days failing which you will issue a county court summons. There is substantial case law on your side.

If I was you I would sue the owner of the land. Reason is a win in court will get you your money back. The clamper may not defend case and close company down (change name) etc.

Post the photos and read the private parking thread and on PePiPoo: Helping the motorist to get justice

[perky88]

Maestroboy ...

The clamping company will use the ARTHUR-v-ANKER as their basis for clamping you ... and this is pretty watertight and 100% relevant to your case.

Where they will fail is down to the charges they have made to you ... That case was very clear they can charge a realistic commercial figure to cover their costs + a profit element.

The deciding factor will be the signage ... adequate and will the court deem that you saw it ... (the court in ARTHUR-v-ANKER accepted the signage would have been seen, originally the clampee refused to accept it but later did)

£395 is high and I think a judge will agree with this, what is a realistic figure .. well thats subjective and down to the evidence you can provide + the court will have to take into account their real costs etc...

Unsure if you could sue the freeholder initially, your issue is with the clamping company - you could put the freeholder as the second defendant .. but I think your original claim would lie with the clamping company.

[Maestroboy]

Thanks very much for the replies. The release charge of £395 was made up of £115 clamping fee plus £230 towing fee plus £50 for keeping it in storage overnight (which incidentally was not my choice - I was informed I had to call back the following day as the site was now closed!).

Why did they have to tow it away? As far as I was aware I wasn't causing an obstruction. The only crime I may have been guilty of was not seeing the signs although in my defence it was dark and I was unaware I was on private land as it was parked on a side street although there is secure parking for residents behind gates with a secure entry system in place. I was informed by the Security guard on duty when I returned that I wasn't entitled to park there as I wasn't entitled to be there unless I was visiting a resident.

How do I go about putting in a claim and how much will it cost me?

[Sidewinder]

You will need to ask the Clamping company for a copy of their complaints procedure, and then go through the process of making an appeal on the grounds that you did not see the signs. This will inevitably fail. and you will then need to send a Letter Before Action giving them a period in which to give your money back or you will issue Court proceedings. Send everything by recorded delivery and keep meticulous records as in the event of issuing a claim you will need to demonstrate that you have exhausted all other avenues. Have a look here for an outline of what you would need to do to proceed.

Perky quotes Arthur vs Anker as absolute justification for the clamper's actions, but that you would have grounds to argue that the fee was unreasonable. Whilst this is true, for that case ruled that the release fee must be 'reasonable', it also ruled that arrangements should be in place for the prompt release of the vehicle once you had agreed to pay. Depriving you of the use of your car until the following day would in most circumstances be contrary to this ruling.

A far better defence would be the case of Vine vs London Borough of Waltham Forest, where the Appeal Court ruled that the person clamping a vehicle must prove that the driver consented to the wheel clamping through not only seeing warning signs but fully accepting the risk of parking there. From what you have said, you did not accept the risk as it was not explained adequately to you - position of signs, dark street etc. Read up on the relevant case history and make an assessment of how far you are willing to go to recover your money.

[perky88]

I agree with sidewinder - the fees are totally unacceptable and even if the court agreed with the signage being adequate and that you would have to see them ... the fees are still OTT.

I would also ask why the felt the need to clamp/remove your vehicle .. and why you had to pay for both (if a vehicle is removed why have it clamped ??)

I would also ask why they removed the vehicle (from what you say it wasnt causing an ostruction, didnt appear dumped, wasnt there for a massive amount of time).