Morrisons - Parking Eye

[Howzit?]

Here's a simple thought:

• private car parks which can hold fifty or more cars MUST have a vehicle barrier which issues a parking ticket after the driver has punched in their car's number plate:
  
• the ticket should show the correct car registration, also show time of entry and any tariffs applicable for the rest of that day.
  
• VERY BOLD print on the ticket should indicate overstay charges and where these are payable for THAT DAY.
  
• The driver MUST hand the parking ticket to the reception desk OR machine OR checkout person when paying for purchases: to be scanned:
  
• If no purchases are made, first 15 mins. parking are free (because doctor's surgery, posting an important biill, leaving parcel nearby, etc., etc. need to be done - there is life beyond a supermarket car park).
  
• A scan will declare "free parking" for purchases over £25 if the car was parked beyond the "free" period - depending on where in a town or city the car park is located
  
• Folk who make purchases in the shop and exit well before their "free parking" period is over, earn the equivalent of nectar points against future shopping -credited on the returned ticket next time they shop.
  

from: Howzit?

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[Surfer01]

And what happens if you overstay in a supermarket car park by 15 minutes but because you spent all your money in the supermarket you have no money to pay their silly charges? If the barrier does not lift it could be unlawful detention which is a criminal offence. How would it cope with Disabled drivers?

[dw190]

And what happens if you overstay in a supermarket car park by 15 minutes but because you spent all your money in the supermarket you have no money to pay their silly charges? If the barrier does not lift it could be unlawful detention which is a criminal offence. How would it cope with Disabled drivers?

 

I remember when our local Morrisons had a barrier and one of the staff manning it. I dropped the wife off to get the weeks shopping and went to leave the car park to take a parcel to the post office. The attendant said as I didn't have a receipt I would have to pay. I said my wife is shopping and I'll be picking her up later and will have a receipt. He wasn't having any of that and insisted on payment. I switched off the engine and started to read a book (bit hard with all the horns blasting from an ever increasing queue behind). He soon got the gist. When I returned to pick up the wife and he saw me approaching the barrier again he raised it without asking for the receipt. I was gutted.

Edited February 22, 2011 by dw190

[sameagle]

"Free parking" for purchases over £25"?

 

How about the case of people like me, a widower, who goes in most days just for a lunch, and whose "Big Shop" each week might only be about twenty quid?

 

Sam

[dw190]

"Free parking" for purchases over £25"?

 

How about the case of people like me, a widower, who goes in most days just for a lunch, and whose "Big Shop" each week might only be about twenty quid?

 

Sam

 

 

Dead easy m8. When shopping pick up a kettle or a toaster and pay at the till (should be over the magic £25.00 now and got the free parking). After the till call at customer services and tell them you changed your mind and want a refund for the kettle.

[sameagle]

Every day - Brain?

[Howzit?]

And what happens if you overstay in a supermarket car park by 15 minutes but because you spent all your money in the supermarket you have no money to pay their silly charges? If the barrier does not lift it could be unlawful detention which is a criminal offence. How would it cope with Disabled drivers?

 

I think the basic premise is that the owner of the car park is providing a parking facility: a potential user makes a choice to park there. There is no obligation to use the car park. Many people use buses and have to manage with that. If a user overstays in the car park, the checkout OR ticket machine OR reception desk will inform them of the overstay: the user can then ask for cash back, or hopefully have kept some cash in case it was needed to pay for the overstay.

[asmodeus]

"Free parking" for purchases over £25"?

 

How about the case of people like me, a widower, who goes in most days just for a lunch, and whose "Big Shop" each week might only be about twenty quid?

 

Sam

 

Yes this is the problem.

 

My local Sainsbury's has its own dedicated car park now managed by Euro Car Parks. First half hour free but must display a ticket but anything over costs and is only refundable if you spend over £10.00 in store.

 

Have been caught with getting the free ticket because I only needed a few items but taking over the half hour due to queues and then having an ignorable invoice however not everyone knows this and get caught by these leeches

 

The Sainsburys manager (along his staff) seem to believe that these are genuine 'fines' (their words)and have to deal with very annoyed customers who have been caught in this way. Where possible people caught have been informed as to the validity of these charges and hopefully have joined the ignore club

[Howzit?]

Maybe some supermarkets would offer widow(er)s special passes if they are frequent users and can prove they have spent money in the shop on those days, irrespective of the amount. It would be a good PR thing and may result in increased sales from other "would-be" frequent users.

[Howzit?]

there will always car park organisations who are ignorant of what makes for good customer relations - to the detriment of the store's reputation and the customers' opinions of that store. Car park organisations have a vested interest in making money and to ashow how efficient they are in generating that income. They have no interest in the individual customers of a store. It wouldn't come as a surprise to find out that store managers regret entering into contracts/agreements with these car park organisations because their store's reputation has suffered.

[Howzit?]

Every parking facility has it limits, especially if it is a popular store or very close to other shops. You have to pay. Full stop - or if within the "free time", you conclude your business and can prove you spent money there.

 

Already supermarkets provide parking bays for disabled drivers: I would hope that supermarkets would further encourage disabled drivers to use their store by offering them the parking ticket with all the info. on it as that customer enters the supermarket. The rest would follow on payment of the shopping biill.

[honeybee13]

Hello Howzit and welcome to CAG. I'm not sure which side of this debate you're on, forgive me. I would be interested to know.

 

My best, HB

[dx100uk]

all very good 'offering ' disabled spaces etc, but don't forget, just like the speculative invoices they produce, any road markings within a private carpark are purely grafitti and have no basis in law.

 

dx

[crem]

Here's a simple thought:

 

• private car parks which can hold fifty or more cars MUST have a vehicle barrier which issues a parking ticket after the driver has punched in their car's number plate:
  
• the ticket should show the correct car registration, also show time of entry and any tariffs applicable for the rest of that day.
  
• VERY BOLD print on the ticket should indicate overstay charges and where these are payable for THAT DAY.
  
• The driver MUST hand the parking ticket to the reception desk OR machine OR checkout person when paying for purchases: to be scanned:
  
• If no purchases are made, first 15 mins. parking are free (because doctor's surgery, posting an important biill, leaving parcel nearby, etc., etc. need to be done - there is life beyond a supermarket car park).
  
• A scan will declare "free parking" for purchases over £25 if the car was parked beyond the "free" period - depending on where in a town or city the car park is located
  
• Folk who make purchases in the shop and exit well before their "free parking" period is over, earn the equivalent of nectar points against future shopping -credited on the returned ticket next time they shop.
  

from: Howzit?

 

• 
  

 

 

This post was a joke. Right?

[Surfer01]

I think the basic premise is that the owner of the car park is providing a parking facility: a potential user makes a choice to park there. There is no obligation to use the car park. Many people use buses and have to manage with that. If a user overstays in the car park, the checkout OR ticket machine OR reception desk will inform them of the overstay: the user can then ask for cash back, or hopefully have kept some cash in case it was needed to pay for the overstay.

I am beginning to suspect that youare one of Perky's associates as you seem to agree with everything the PPC's do!

[Howzit?]

Hi, HB

 

• I am all for fairplay: most car users want or need to use a car parking facility and when that facility's t & c's are clearly established (e.g. as printed on the parking ticket on admission to the car park), we can choose to park there or head for the exit gate and feed the ticket in (still within the "free" 15 min. period).
  
• Any charge for overstaying is either waived by a store bill over a pre-established amount OR the car park user pays a parking fee equivalent to the rate set by local pay-as-you-exit car parks: if the store car park user overstays during what the local pay-as-you-exit car parks charge for 'peak rate' parking, then that's the rate the user will have to pay on exit.
  

Does that make sense?

• We quibble about lots of things and no system is perfect, but if the intention of the system is to provide a fair and just system, then people will buy into it.
  
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[Howzit?]

Actually, I am not. I have a 'fine' for £70 from one of the PPC's and which I have no intention of paying: I gather this one has had very little if any success when taking a non-payer to court or similar (law?) enforcing agent.

 

Please see my response ro Honeybee.

Have a good day!

[Howzit?]

Actually, crem, it isn't.

If you use any service or facility you will have to pay for it in some form or other - either point of contact or tthrough higher prices. What is in dispute (from earlier threads) is the appalling practice of 'fining' folk as well as the level of some 'fines' payable - some in excess of £70. There should be NO 'fine' payable - only a reasonable fee payable if one overstays OR a minimum store biill waives the fee. Already Waitrose in Worthing do this. Please see my response to Honeybee.

[Howzit?]

Hi, dx100uk

 

True, the markings have no basis in law: but if I was disabled, I would welcome having an area near the store where I could park, and I would hope that able-bodied users would respect those markings as I think most folk do.

Admission to that store's car park, the prevailing t & c's regarding the use of the car park would still apply to any vehicle using it - not based in law but on the fact that we all want life to flow fairly easily: i.e. to have somewhere to park and to get on with our business there - without any punitive costs for overstaying - only a reasonable (cf: other local car parks) parking fee.

[crem]

OK, I had given you the benefit of the doubt about it being a joke post, but as you claim it isn't I'll just skip through a few of the nonsenses;

 

Here's a simple thought:

 

• private car parks which can hold fifty or more cars MUST have a vehicle barrier which issues a parking ticket
  At our town centre car park there is already ridiculous queues to get into it simply because they put a roundabout in. Now you're suggesting every single car has to stop at a barrier to obtain a ticket as well as negociate the roundabout system!
   
  after the driver has punched in their car's number plate:
  Do you realise how many people don't even know their own number plate? I guess you want them to get out of the car to read it and hold everyone up even more!
  
• the ticket should show the correct car registration
  if they keyed it in right
   
  , also show time of entry and any tariffs applicable for the rest of that day.
  
• VERY BOLD print on the ticket should indicate overstay charges and where these are payable for THAT DAY.
  New equipment to be installed all over the many car parks then! (Our town centre has 10 seperate sections to the car park, some of these are so large they would need multiple machines to be "local" enough for the parkers)
  
• The driver MUST hand the parking ticket to the reception desk
  what reception desk?
  
• 
  OR machine
  exit machine? More queues then!
  
• 
  
• OR checkout person when paying for purchases: to be scanned:
  urmm, not every store has scanners and even the ones that have can't just "read" any old ticket that some PPC chooses to invent. So new equipment to be bought and installed in every store then (Not forgetting our Asda and Sainsburys have about 40 tills each)
  
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• If no purchases are made, first 15 mins. parking are free
  it would take longer than that to simply walk around our shopping centre whether you went in any stores or not
  
• 
  (because doctor's surgery, posting an important biill, leaving parcel nearby, etc., etc. need to be done - there is life beyond a supermarket car park).
  who you kidding! doctors surgery's usually run far more than 15 minutes late on appointment times, never mind having time to park the car, walk into the health centre, wait for your (late) appointment then get back to the car, all in under 15 minutes,
  
• 
  
  
• A scan will declare "free parking" for purchases over £25 if the car was parked beyond the "free" period - depending on where in a town or city the car park is located
  £25 is a very large spend for many people. Or maybe if I find I have only spent £24.15 I will leave all my shoppping on the till, holding up everyone behind me while I go and find something for 85p that I may need to make up my "free" parking value.
  A haircut at one of the several barbers in the shopping centre costs about 8quid and takes anything from 30 minutes to an hour depending on the queue. Can I not have free parking to get my hair cut anymore? The same is true if going to MaccyDs for a hamburger and chips, or queuing at Subway for a sarny at the rush hour lunch etc etc etc
  
• 
  
  
• Folk who make purchases in the shop and exit well before their "free parking" period is over..... must have been wearing running shoes and be able to put Lindford Cristie to shame at the 100mtr sprint!
   
  , earn the equivalent of nectar points against future shopping -credited on the returned ticket next time they shop.
  Nectar points! Who the hell still wastes their time worrying about collecting what has become a worthless "loyalty" bonus?
  
  

from: Howzit?

[Surfer01]

Well said Crem. Quite often we pop into a supermarket just to buy bread and milk. As for nectar points what the hell are they? Agree about queues because if cars start queueing up and stopping traffic on a main road, the local police will not be too happy as it will be an accident waiting to happen. I have a lease car and cannot always remember the registration number. What would happen with tickets at a self checkout till? Will they have to re-write the software to accept and validate the ticket?

All the above is why we now shop at a store 14 miles from our residence instead of one a lot closer. If I had done my monthly shopping and then found a Parking ticket on my windscreen, I would walk back into the shop and get a refund on all my groceries etc and go elsewhere as it was the shop that employed the PPC!

[Howzit?]

OK, I had given you the benefit of the doubt about it being a joke post, but as you claim it isn't I'll just skip through a few of the nonsenses;

 

Hello, Crem

 

Anyone who wants to park within reasonable walking distance of a certain facility will be prepared to queue and will accept t & c's that apply as in local authority, NCP, etc. car parks. Most people will wait to park for many different reasons.

• Sometimes multi-storey car parks have long queues to get in and you still have to get a ticket to make the barrrier go up. A few more seconds to punch in your car reg....?
  
• Maybe many drivers do not know their car reg. no. but they still have to check when they re-insure, apply for a tax disc as well as get their MOT's each year.
  
• Most supermarkets have a customer desk which also fulfills the 'reception' role.
  
• When you exit, as you do from airports, you have already been 'cleared' by a machine: I'm including the checkout 'til as well as reception as purchases other than parking may have come into play for some car park users. How long does it take to scan a credit card? Same sort of time for a parking ticket.
  
• Because there have been so many complaints from the public about parking facilities managed by PPC's, there needs to be some real changes which benefit the users in the first instance: they bring in the revenue to the stores. Wouldn't you rather speak to a store manager or on-site parking attendant about a faulty ticket dispenser than receive a letter in the post demanding you pay £70 or more?
  
• Sainsbury's tills already reads nectar cards, credit cards and can handle purchases for toppping up mobile phones. THey are happy to - each machine generates income - so could a parking facility.
  
• You're absolutely right about going to the surgery, barber's, etc., - it always takes longer than one thinks. No easy, 'free' answer available here. What does the rest of the population do?
  
• Sadly, there are more cars on the road than ever before and most of them want to park at some time near shops, etc.. If they could all park free of charge, say in your area, would there be enough spaces? Do you have any answers for them?
  
• We use our nectar card: if we spend £72, we get £12 off. Not bad.
  
• If you have had a "free" parking period, say 15 mins (maybe much more in some areas), I think it is reasonable for the owner of the parking facility to ask you to pay after that UNLESS you have made some in-store purchases or you have to pay a pre-set fee (ref: your parrking ticket). No-one can expect to park free of charge for as long as they like in ANY car parking facility that wants to attract shoppers. Generally, only out of town centres have very large expanses of free parking.
  
• Finally, unless we as consumers can agree t & c's with the stores providing the parking facilities, we will have third parties like PPC's behaving like bullies. What would most folk like?
  

[honeybee13]

Are you for real, howzit? From where I sit or stand, you read like a troll.

 

HB

[crem]

Are you for real, howzit? From where I sit or stand, you read like a troll.

 

HB

 

Quite right honeybee.

 

I spent enough time ripping through the first Howzit post (well OK, it didn't take that long coz it was pretty easy to do) I'm not going to waste time on the second rambling, someone else can have a go at that if they want.

 

The only bit I will comment on is where on earth do you spend £72 and get £12 off with nectar points? Nectar points are normally awarded at the rate of 1 point for each £1 spend. To cash in points takes 200 points to give a £1 discount. Therefore a spend of £72 earns 72 points which is worth 36p is discount terms. It seems howzit may be getting better rates on planet perky for his nectar points.

[Howzit?]

OK, HB, I'm a troll.

We've earned the nectar points and got the discount. Ask how it works in any branch of Sainsbury's. We have also been able to earn double nectar points at Sainsbury's petrol satations. The point being that if that facility was extended to car parking, more folk would would to take part.