Smart ANPR PCN - 14mins stay - old Co-Op parking lot in Corby, Northants

[Adyboy3]

Hello,

 

I have received a Parking Charge Notice from Smart Parking Ltd stating that my car was parked at the old Co-Op parking lot in Corby, Northants and overstayed by 14 minutes, 

 

There is no mention of the time that the ticket was purchased or for what duration, just that there was unauthorised parking of the vehicle on the land.

 

The date of alleged unauthorised parking was the 20th July and the notice was sent on the 26th, received on the 30th. I have until the 9th to Pay £60 or 28 days to pay £100. I believe they are a member of BPA although I am not sure as their letter states no trade body affiliation.

 

There is no mention of a ticket being purchased and no time given for the duration that should have been adhered to, only timestamped CCTV images of the car entering and leaving.

Any help would be appreciated,

Thanks 

 

[ericsbrother]

I would bet that Smart dont actually have a contract with the Co_op as they booted all of the parking c's out when CEL tried to screw then after they were caught out diddling their customers and staff.

 

you mention ticket machine so you will need to tell us more about the event and what it is they say you have done wrong.

 

Post up ther NTK if possible with your personal details removed along with their ref numbers, any QR codes, barcodes etc. leave the dates and times legible though.

 

lastly can you get piccies of the entrance to the land and any signs etc that are there? Smart really arent so bound to be somehting wrong we can use against them

 

where exactly is the car park/store as there are/were several in Corby

 

[Adyboy3]

Thanks for your response, It is the Co-op that has closed in the town center, Alexander Road, 

 

I was there to do some shopping in the town center and visited the leisure center,

I drove into the car park & had to wait for a parking car before parking myself,

then walked over to pay at the machine where I purchased 2 hours parking,

 

Upon my return I got in my car, used my phone to select music on my bluetooth speaker and then went to leave,

they have closed one exit off and so I had driven down this route before I realised it was a dead end and had to reverse and drive out the other exit, at this point is when the timestamp shows.

 

They are claiming that I overstayed because I was there for 2hrs 14 mins 16 seconds but that is from entrance to exit not from the purchase of the ticket and leaving the space etc.

 

I thought there was something about a grace time (I may be wrong and it may not apply, I just want to be sure before I pay if I can appeal)

 

I have yet to return but I shall go within a day or two and take photos. 

 

 

[dx100uk]

bothsides NTK please

one pdf file only

read upload

 

[lookinforinfo]

Oh that old trick. They time you from when you arrive till when you leave forgetting that you  weren't actually parked for that time. In any event the BPA say you should be allowed a minimum of 20 minutes.

[dx100uk]

10 mins

[lookinforinfo]

It;s more than that according to Kevin Reynolds a BPA Director.

 

There should be an observation period of 10 minutes on arrival to find a place to park, read the parking signs and decide whether to stay. And then a grace period at the end of parking  to allow the motorist time to leave.

No time is mentioned but the grace period is usually reckoned to be 10 minutes..

https://www.britishparking.co.uk/News/good-car-parking-practice-includes-grace-periods

[ericsbrother]

Now on google noseyneighbour the sign at the entrance is badly obscured by tree growth and the ladn has changed hands a couple of time since the co-op shut down so it makes me wonder who Smart have a contract with.

 

Ask the council who owns the land and whether planning permission was granted to the parking meters etc

 

Also consier the wording, "unauthorised". Now to us caggers that menas that you werent offered a contract to park so you cnat eb in breach of that contract. The POFA makes to distinction between trespass and lawful entry but contract law does.

 

we will need to see the signage at the site and also what is written on the ticket machine as theactual contract you ahve is formed when you accept the terms offered and feed the meter. if there is blurb on the meter then that is the contract, not the signs spread around the car park

[dx100uk]

can you please not put images up directly into a post.

it slows the server and also allows everyone to see everything in the open without having to log in , inc them...

put everything in ONE multipage PDf file

read upload

 

dx

 

[brassnecked]

Has anyone else taken over the plot?  Might be worth finding out who is the owner and who as in what Company gave the Contract to the Cowboy.

[ericsbrother]

I found an estate agents page that says it was sold but not when. Now I think that there have beenn different plans for the site since 2016, some of which made the local paper so that is why it is important to find out who owns the place and how long the meter and signage have been in place at it is likley that the contract the parking co had is now dead and buried but no-one has stopped the from rooking people

[brassnecked]

Ericsbrother picked up on that one, Smart Parking's Contract might now be void but being the greedy  lot they are they will carry on until they are booted off by any new owner.

[Adyboy3]

Who and How do I contact the council to find out the ownership?

Sorry, never had to do anything like that before,

Many thanks

[dx100uk]

most council websites have a planning portal 

[ericsbrother]

Ketterin Borough Council planning dept. Look online first though but it may be worth ringing them to ask about the applicatiosn for building houses there as well so you can see if they will tell you  a bit more about it all. The business rates peopel may well have some answers to land ownership as well. be nice to them both and they are usually quite helpful but Kettering does have one of those stupid customer contact depts that just fields calls so you will ahve to try and get past that

 

Now in the maenwhile we still want pictures of the siganeg , parking meter etc and that is more important in the short term so come on, get down there with your camera

Edited August 5, 2019 by ericsbrother