Are clamping fees recoverable

[JonCris]

Yes it does apply to private companies as long as you can argue that a suitable public body is not protecting your rights & or the company operates in the public arena & private parking companies do

[funkyparott]

Sorry, but to say clamping is out right unlawful is going against several rulings from the higher courts (the ones that set president).

 

There is much case law on clamping, for example :-

 

The Court of Appeal in Arthur v Anker [1996] 3 All ER 783

 

ruled that clamping is in principle lawful, subject to certain conditions:

 

that there is notice of the operation of the clampers

that the release fee is reasonable

that the vehicle is released promptly

that there is an available means of contacting the clamper

 

 

Unfortunatley if your vehicle is clamped and all the conditions above are met, the local County Court does not have the power to over rule the Coury of Appeal !!!!

 

Having said this, how many clamping signs have you seen that meet all the above criteria ?

 

FP

[Almo23]

I have started another thread on what is broadly the same subject, but am keeping a keen eye on this one as I really want to help a friend reclaim a parking charge, from parking in a private car park.

 

From my tiny knowledge store, isn't the imposition of a clamping fee/parking fine/etc a penalty for breaching a contract, in the same way an unauthorised overdraft charge is a penalty for breaching a contract? And if so, could you not challenge the costs of breaching the contract in the same way as you do with a bank? Eg demand a breakdown showing that it cost them £x for you parking in an unauthorised place/way, and if their charges are not a genuine pre-estimate of loss, reclaim them through MCOL?

 

I should add I realise the above does not apply with councils etc, only on private land.

[PhantomReclaimer]

Yes it does apply to private companies as long as you can argue that a suitable public body is not protecting your rights & or the company operates in the public arena & private parking companies do

 

The part about a public body protecting your rights is somewhat akin to state liability, I think. It dosen't mean that the breach of your rights is enforcible against the private company, just that the state has a duty to compensate you. You can't actually do anything your self to stop the company concerned doing what they are doing.

 

I think it goes further than the company merely operating in the public arena. If not an actual state body then it has to be acting as it were a stete body, ie; be performing a function that the state usually reserves for it's self or directly controls in some manner. For instance, a private company that was employed to collect state taxes would be an organ of state (TV Licenseing enforcment?) but a company clamping vehicles on private land would not be.

 

P.

[PhantomReclaimer]

Sorry, but to say clamping is out right unlawful is going against several rulings from the higher courts (the ones that set president).

 

There is much case law on clamping, for example :-

 

The Court of Appeal in Arthur v Anker [1996] 3 All ER 783

 

ruled that clamping is in principle lawful, subject to certain conditions:

 

that there is notice of the operation of the clampers

that the release fee is reasonable

that the vehicle is released promptly

that there is an available means of contacting the clamper

 

 

Unfortunatley if your vehicle is clamped and all the conditions above are met, the local County Court does not have the power to over rule the Coury of Appeal !!!!

 

Having said this, how many clamping signs have you seen that meet all the above criteria ?

 

FP

 

Just had a read through that case and also Vine V Waltham LBC. Both were clamping cases but neither involved contractual disputes but rather were cases involving tresspass. Persons who were trespassers on land, which had been clearly sign posted as to the risk of clamping were Volenti to the risk and so could not complain later if they were clamped. This is because land owners have a right not to incur the damage from your unlawful parking, such as having restricted access or, in Arthur, having his spaces taken up when they are only available for use by certain people.

 

As you say, it also required the release fee to be reasonable - which I take to mean that it may only cover the cost of clamping and de-clamping and should not be designed to operate for profit for the landowner.

 

Clamping in a car park where you have accepted a contract and paid a fee is not lawful (in my view) if it is designed to make you pay a charge which constitutes a penalty. Penalties are unlawful and unenforcible so clamping a vehicle and demanding payment of a sum which exceeds your loss (a penalty) would certainly constitute Blackmail, I would have thought.

 

P.

[ukdangerous]

Hi All

have been reading the thread with much interest and have this query (think I might have gotten myself confused!!), namely: If you park on private property that has say 45 mins free parking but return say after an hour and have been clamped - are you liable for a release fee and if so is it dependant on what if any wording would appear on the clampers notice/signage?

Also I am sure that all clampers have to be licensed and have to display that license clearly on their person at the time of clamping / removing the clamp (much like licensed doorstaff) - its no good saying that its in the car - no display = no legal postion to clamp??

Finally, what would the position be if you returned and found your vehicle clamped and subsequently removed the clamp yourself (say with an angle grinder to the padlock - and then purchasing a new padlock to replace the damaged one?), would this constitute criminal damage if if a replacement was given in place of the damaged one? for the clamper to return to find his / her clamp and padlock there but no vehicle attached to it?

 

Thanks

 

Confused

[Wonkywood]

My brother recently got clamped while he was in the car with the engine running. He was outside the Park Inn hotel at Heathrow where there is a bus lane and a sign saying no stopping or parking. He pulled in (without seeing the sign) to use his mobile and saw a car pull up behind him. Still unaware he was in a no stopping lane, he didn't move because he thought it was a police car. Then a guy knocked on his window to tell him he had been clamped. He was looking at the car from when it pulled up, so the clamper must actually have crept up on his knees and clamped the wheel without giving him a warning to move on.

 

He then demanded £100 and directed my brother to a cashpoint at a service station 100m away. Meanwhile, the clamper's car was also blocking this bus lane, presumably also committing the same offence.

 

He didn't see the sign because it was so high up the pole, you couldn't see it without being out of the car.

 

There was another guy who had done the same thing just in front of him who told my brother not to pay, but then the clamper started talking about towing it and towing fees of £250.

 

He paid the £100 as he needed to get home, but is there anything he can do retrospectively? It alls seems to have been done with a degree of subterfuge and I can't believe that clamping someone who hasn't even got their handbrake on can be an offence.

 

Thanks in advance for any help.

[JonCris]

Clamping a car in a no parking no stopping lane sort of defeats the purpose Whilst they could probably issue a charge what they did was unlawful 1st report them to the police and the Heathrow Management as I doubt they'll be happy at this [problem] & the damage it will do amongst travelers

[JonCris]

Also go photograph the sign as it appears that it's been deliberately placed where it will be difficult to see

[Wonkywood]

Thank you - I'll def try both.

[pin1onu]

Wonky, have a read of the clamping guide in the stickies section - it explains about clamping on private land.