Hi Fellow Clarets ,

My wife received a parking 'fine' charge after taking our grandson to Macdonald's located in Asda Burnley car park.

She treated him to his tea and then he made friends with another little boy similar age about 7. They played on the climbing frame outside Macdonald's while both my wife and the boys mother had a friendly conversation.

They were both unaware of the time as both boys were having fun.

The parking charge states a £70 charge but reduced to £40 if paid within 14 days of charge issue date.

A blooming expensive Macdonald's trip out.
Not paid anything yet, as just received.

Anyone else fallen foul of these camera 'fines'charges?


And of course, any advise.

Thanks for any helpful advice.

Take your receipt or proof of purchase off the card you used, to the store and explain.

I get McDonalds and eat in whilst parked on the Asda car park quite frequently.

Never been charged.

Sounds silly but make sure it’s genuine, why can’t you park there ?

Parking charge won’t be issued by the store. Private companies run the scam.

bobinho wrote: ↑

Wed May 31, 2023 10:05 pm

Parking charge won’t be issued by the store. Private companies run the scam.

Private companies are contracted by the firm. They are doing the job Asda ask them to do.

I’m guessing it’s because the allowed time in the car park was exceeded ?
Not sure what that is in in Asda - 2 hours ?

It’s done by cameras at the entrance and exit so there’s nothing to stop you going in McDonalds rather than Asda as far as I’m aware - it’s just going over the time (which they will say is advertised all over the car park)

But still worth trying to explain to them

You must have been there ages

You can pay to park in asda if over 2 hrs

Sounds strange if youve only been mcdonalds
That car park is heavily enforced tho due to uni students

Check the signage and see what the terms are, how long you're allowed to park etc
Due to football, most carparks in the area have time allowed restricted to 2hrs or less, so Match attendees can't use it for free parking.

See if the mcds car park has the same signage or different.

This site cold be worth a read

https://moneynerd.co.uk/asda-parking-ru ... ringements.

Hi again fellow clarets,

Apologies missed some details off original post.

Wife parked in the Macdonald's car park.

Yes, she did stay over the allocated time.

Yes private company issued charge.

Thanks

ClaretWot4 wrote: ↑

Wed May 31, 2023 10:14 pm

Hi again fellow clarets,

Apologies missed some details off original post.

Wife parked in the Macdonald's car park.

Yes, she did stay over the allocated time.

Yes private company issued charge.

Thanks

Might be worth having a word with McDonalds although it’s not their car park.

Do not enter into any dialogue with them. They have no way in collecting the money from you. As soon as you contact them they have you over a barrel and can then get bail thief's in to collect any monies they think they are owed. Ignore any communications sent to you. They have no lawful power.

When I worked for a famous German discounter we could request a parking ticket be overturned if it was obvious/there was proof they had been shopping in store. Speak to McDonalds and see if they have a similar system!

ClaretWot4 wrote: ↑

Wed May 31, 2023 10:14 pm

Hi again fellow clarets,

Apologies missed some details off original post.

Wife parked in the Macdonald's car park.

Yes, she did stay over the allocated time.

Yes private company issued charge.

Thanks

Money owed
Ignore any letters
Cant do jack

Couldn’t pay me to park there. The Asda is filthy and the car park is full of tramps. Most car parks now have cameras and are run by private parking companies. Prefer to use car parks that aren’t.

I’ve challenged supermarket parking before and lost - despite the fact that I couldn’t leave the car park because of traffic congestion. They produced 150 pages of images and documents showing I was in breach of the regulations shown on the signs. You can’t win

Clowbridge89 wrote: ↑

Wed May 31, 2023 10:24 pm

When I worked for a famous German discounter we could request a parking ticket be overturned if it was obvious/there was proof they had been shopping in store. Speak to McDonalds and see if they have a similar system!

This is a good point
My local mcds has something similar I think, especially considering the number of delivery drivers going in and out

Some useful information on here.

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/recla ... g-tickets/

I have challenged a ticket issued by a private firm at a McDonald's and won. I'll see if I still have the emails, it was quite good fun telling them I wasn't going to pay and they had no power to make me.

GodIsADeeJay81 wrote: ↑

Wed May 31, 2023 10:45 pm

This is a good point
My local mcds has something similar I think, especially considering the number of delivery drivers going in and out

It was as embarrassingly simple as putting a few details on a spreadsheet and it was job done. Whether the McDonald’s staff have the authorisation to do that is another matter

TheFamilyCat wrote: ↑

Wed May 31, 2023 10:53 pm

Some useful information on here.

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/recla ... g-tickets/

I have challenged a ticket issued by a private firm at a McDonald's and won. I'll see if I still have the emails, it was quite good fun telling them I wasn't going to pay and they had no power to make me.

I've found the emails. The parking firm rejected my appeal initially but I referred it to POPLA who upheld it. It was 10 years ago so I'm not sure if the process is the same but this was their reasoning:

St Austell Claret wrote: ↑

Wed May 31, 2023 10:21 pm

Do not enter into any dialogue with them. They have no way of collecting the money from you. As soon as you contact them they have you over a barrel and can then get bail thief's in to collect any monies they think they are owed. Ignore any communications sent to you. They have no lawful power.

Don't do this.

I overstayed at Accrington Multistory, they sent pictures, timestamps and everything and I did the above ‘for science’

I was told that after 6 years they can't chase you anymore.

Got the ‘£60 if you pay now’, then the full price letter then a reminder, then another reminder, then another, then a stroppy one. I just kept getting them. Then another came informing me I can pay less. Then I got another one, but from another debt collection company, and then another.

This went on for five years.

Months would go by with nothing. Then a letter would drop through the post. The charges would vary, with different companies on the letterheads. I just simply chucked it in with the rest of them.

Then I got an official letter from the court. I bottled it at that point and ended up paying nearly £300 I think to make it go away.

If you are brave enough, try it... But if you are like me who sometimes lays awake at night, worrying about all the negative **** going on in your life, either argue it, or just pay the £40. It's better for your mental health. You might be up for the battle now, but what if you're going through some stuff in three or four years time... do you need it? Because it doesn't stop.

TheFamilyCat wrote: ↑

Wed May 31, 2023 11:10 pm

I've found the emails. The parking firm rejected my appeal initially but I referred it to POPLA who upheld it. It was 10 years ago so I'm not sure if the process is the same but this was their reasoning:


Screenshot_2023-05-31-23-05-53-67_4a24d271e133915ae237d4bec6ffe368.jpg

I believe the law has changed several times in the last 10 years, and one of the changes is that ignoring it is no longer a viable option. Contact McDonald's first, because the stores aren't generally anxious to put customers off.

I think as long as you appeal within 14 days the fine can't be jumped up from £40 to £70. That is tantamount to blackmailing people out of their rights and surely can't be legit. If you don't contact them, the bump up in price would be legit if the principle of the fine is won.

claptrappers_union wrote: ↑

Wed May 31, 2023 11:13 pm

Don't do this.

I overstayed at Accrington Multistory, they sent pictures, timestamps and everything and I did the above ‘for science’

I was told that after 6 years they can't chase you anymore.

Got the ‘£60 if you pay now’, then the full price letter then a reminder, then another reminder, then another, then a stroppy one. I just kept getting them. Then another came informing me I can pay less. Then I got another one, but from another debt collection company, and then another.

This went on for five years.

Months would go by with nothing. Then a letter would drop through the post. The charges would vary, with different companies on the letterheads. I just simply chucked it in with the rest of them.

Then I got an official letter from the court. I bottled it at that point and ended up paying nearly £300 I think to make it go away.

If you are brave enough, try it... But if you are like me who sometimes lays awake at night, worrying about all the negative **** going on in your life, either argue it, or just pay the £40. It's better for your mental health. You might be up for the battle now, but what if you're going through some stuff in three or four years time... do you need it? Because it doesn't stop.

I am not saying do it however they have no legal right to claim money from you. I did what I said above and they stopped even though their company said (as seen on can't pay we'll take it away tripe) after a quick £ these fookers. F@@k them all. Scammers

If it's a privately owned company, it's an invoice, not a fine as issued by the council. And you're quite right.

When I got the letter from the courts, I had a lot of other stuff going on. My argument would be been that it was a free car park and they had no loss of income etc etc... But I didn't have the time to go through with it all... I'm not risking CCJs and so on just for an experiment.

They are fookers though, but persistent ones.

Join the facebook group "Fight your private Parking Invoice #1 appeals forums". Post, asking for help and experts will you what you should do. Do not ignore, that old and incorrect advise.

Pay it and move on provided it is a legitimate company. These things happen, Anosying but forgotten about quickly

I got one for parking in Tesco for 14 hours! 2 visits but cameras didn't pick up I left and returned later 14 hours apart. Store contacted parking company who admitted the tech is flawed and sometimes your reg plate is obscured by weather/vehicles.
If you did breech the terms though, pay up, it's your own fault.

Thatch & thistle in barrowford tried stinging me & I actually was a customer, it's owned by Britannia private parking, it's all signposted but you just automatically assume if it's a pub/restaurant it's owned by them for the convenience of the customers but not the case, when you go inside you are supposed to log your details with the bar staff, I won my appeal.by attaching the purchase details of the transaction by email screenshotting my bank statement, I guess the lesson learnt is keep your eyes peeled & never assume the carpark belongs to wherever you are visiting however big the business.

Supermarket car parks are owned by private entities whether that's the supermarket itself or a car park firm.

If the land was public, a Penalty Charge Notice would be levied, rather than a Parking Charge Notice

Supermarket car parks are usually run by private firms, which issue 'Parking Charge Notices' if they deem a rule to have been broken.

Local councils issue Penalty Charge Notices penalty Charge Notices issued by councils should be paid, while Parking Charge Notices from supermarket market firmd are not a fine it's an invitation to pay

It's a private matter not a civil one so unlike the council or police they can only fine the car driver not the car registered owner, don't refuse to pay it just ask them to prove who was the driver at the time and when they do issue the invertation to pay to them the car owner has no obligation to say who the driver was at the time if more than one person is insured for the car.

I can only speak through my own experience.

I've been "" fined "" on 17 occasions now by various parking agencies and have always done exactly as advised by a barrister friend.

Enter into no communication verbal or written. Bin everything.

They won't take you to court as they wouldn't have a hope in hell of proving that you have welshed on a contract that you willingly and knowingly entered into.

16 went away eventually, and one bunch of glorified debt collectors from Truro are still wasting their time sending me pretend solicitors letters for my bin.

My advice, pay it and learn from it.

Harsh perhaps but for the sake of £40 it’s not worth the worry and hassle

Burnley1989 wrote: ↑

Thu Jun 01, 2023 7:23 am

My advice, pay it and learn from it.

Harsh perhaps but for the sake of £40 it’s not worth the worry and hassle

And that advice, along with the people who follow it, is exactly why these parasites thrive.

fatboy47 wrote: ↑

Thu Jun 01, 2023 7:27 am

And that advice, along with the people who follow it, is exactly why these parasites thrive.

If they've got you bang to rights it's sensible to pay up.

Jakubclaret wrote: ↑

Thu Jun 01, 2023 7:42 am

If they've got you bang to rights it's sensible to pay up.

Tough choice I guess. Follow the advice of UTC or that of a barrister with 25 years experience.

You do it your way.

As annoying and upsetting as these charges are, if they are advertised clearly then surely you /we have to accept a rule was breached and pay up.

If not advertised clearly then you have grounds to appeal.

I've only ever had one, at a train station when i parked on a kerb as there was not enough spaces and my train was arriving, I accepted I broke the rules and duly paid. If 100 people had parked on the kerb then chaos would have ensued. My error, guilt accepted. Sometimes in life we just have to accept our errors and move on. Life is too short.

St Austell Claret wrote: ↑

Wed May 31, 2023 10:21 pm

Do not enter into any dialogue with them. They have no way in collecting the money from you. As soon as you contact them they have you over a barrel and can then get bail thief's in to collect any monies they think they are owed. Ignore any communications sent to you. They have no lawful power.

Yes they do, don’t give legal advise.

fatboy47 wrote: ↑

Thu Jun 01, 2023 7:46 am

Tough choice I guess. Follow the advice of UTC or that of a barrister with 25 years experience.

You do it your way.

You can probably get away with it I think Martin Lewis said just ignore them it's not cost effective for them to take you to court, an old poster on here advised me once (tim noon) to just pay up that was from Tescos at clitheroe, it's not really about the money, it's just liberating when you are escaping problems that are landing on your doorstep a sense of accomplishment in a trivial way.

TheFamilyCat wrote: ↑

Wed May 31, 2023 10:53 pm

Some useful information on here.

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/recla ... g-tickets/

I have challenged a ticket issued by a private firm at a McDonald's and won. I'll see if I still have the emails, it was quite good fun telling them I wasn't going to pay and they had no power to make me.

You e posted a link to a page about fighting UNFAIR Parking charges. In this case the penalty is for overstaying the agreed time.

fatboy47 wrote: ↑

Thu Jun 01, 2023 7:46 am

Tough choice I guess. Follow the advice of UTC or that of a barrister with 25 years experience.

You do it your way.

Are you a barrister with 25 years experience? Have you considered Private Eye Parking v Barry Beavis https://www.supremecourt.uk/cases/uksc-2015-0116.html

Burnley Ace wrote: ↑

Wed May 31, 2023 10:07 pm

Private companies are contracted by the firm. They are doing the job Asda ask them to do.

Correct. It’s still nothing to do with Asda though, and they will confirm that as soon as you go into the store to attempt to solve the issue. Asda don’t want any of the “ill will” this generates, hence engaging a third party to manage it on their behalf.

If I was you, I'd ignore much of the advice on this thread, especially the people who say ignore it.

Jakubclaret wrote: ↑

Thu Jun 01, 2023 7:51 am

You can probably get away with it I think Martin Lewis said just ignore them it's not cost effective for them to take you to court

Did he really say this? I'm sure his website says nothing of the sort. He says you should appeal the penality if you feel it was issued unfairly, and gives info on how to do so.

Ignoring it used to be the thing to do but the rules were changed a few years ago to make it easier and cheaper to get a court judgment for these parasites, they can and do use the courts.

Clovius Boofus wrote: ↑

Thu Jun 01, 2023 8:42 am

Did he really say this? I'm sure his website says nothing of the sort. He says you should appeal the penality if you feel it was issued unfairly, and gives info on how to do so.

https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/m ... t-17278639
Ignoring & saying you don't have to pay aren't that far apart.

Jakubclaret wrote: ↑

Thu Jun 01, 2023 8:51 am

https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/m ... t-17278639
Ignoring & saying you don't have to pay aren't that far apart.

Here we go again. I bet pick up more supermarket parking penalties than anyone in the whole of England - by wasting your time quibbling over the price of milk at checkout.

Clovius Boofus wrote: ↑

Thu Jun 01, 2023 8:57 am

Here we go again. I bet pick up more supermarket parking penalties than anyone in the whole of England - by wasting your time quibbling over the price of milk at checkout.

I've had 1 in my life at Tesco's in clitheroe which I promptly paid, I don't usually go over the time just that 1 off supermarket wise & another at a pub/restaurant I didn't see the signage I wasn't looking I'd parked there before without problems so didn't expect 1.

There might be a loophole here.
The cameras are at the gates of the ASDA car park , and I guess are correctly enforced to prevent all the students, staff and visitors to the College using the facility.
HOWEVER, you have to pass through the ASDA car park to access the McDonalds car park,and the cameras don't discriminate.
So if (e.g.) you had a Birthday Party at McDonalds then you might quite reasonably expect to park on their car park for more than 2 hours, and you would (IMO) be entitled to remain on the McDonald's section of the car park. (Obviously if you can also provide a hefty receipt for your meals at McD's then that would help you to challenge it.)
I have highlighted (below) the crucial bit that explains that you cannot go to McDonald's by car without passing through the ASDA cameras.
Might be worth challenging on these grounds??

"My wife received a parking 'fine' charge after taking our grandson to Macdonald's located in Asda Burnley car park."

The way these parking companies act is not great in terms of the communication, threats, the ease of registering CCJs, the scale fines increase etc. I think the regulations around this and what they can do and how they do it all need changing. From that point of view I get the “parasites” description.

But if we put to one side the sh-itty processes which happen after a parking breach we need to bear in mind that it’s the big companies like the supermarkets and McDonalds who employ these companies and who agree to the parking restrictions for the public. Their rationale for the restrictions are pretty sensible and logical too - ie so their customers can use their parking facilities. If they stay longer than they should this can prevent other customers using their parking and they can lose their custom as a result. Not sure many people would disagree that this is pretty reasonable.

In the case of the OP unfortunately they made a genuine mistake and the best advice would be to just pay the initial fine and save themselves the stress and hassle of going down the road of appeal or trying to fight their case and ending up in the sh-itty processes that exist. If the signage is clear in the car park (I’m pretty sure it is) the only argument you have is that you forgot / made a mistake. If this was a valid reason for letting people off then there would be no point having car park restrictions in place.

By using the private firm's car park, you're agreeing to abide by their rules (which are clearly stated on signs), essentially agreeing to pay their charge if you stay too long. Refusing to pay the fee afterward is essentially the same as refusing to pay a hotel charge if you check out too late.

If you don't want to play by their rules, don't use their car park.

Fretters wrote: ↑

Thu Jun 01, 2023 9:37 am

By using the private firm's car park, you're agreeing to abide by their rules (which are clearly stated on signs), essentially agreeing to pay their charge if you stay too long. Refusing to pay the fee afterward is essentially the same as refusing to pay a hotel charge if you check out too late.

If you don't want to play by their rules, don't use their car park.

Yes, but As I understand it, the cameras are for ASDA. The OP says that it was on The McDonald's section and they ate there. It must be questionable??

St Austell Claret wrote: ↑

Wed May 31, 2023 11:22 pm

I am not saying do it however they have no legal right to claim money from you. I did what I said above and they stopped even though their company said (as seen on can't pay we'll take it away tripe) after a quick £ these fookers. F@@k them all. Scammers

Why is it a scam?

Signage makes it quite clear that free parking is limited to two hours and if you stay longer then you must pay extra or face a possible fine.