Knaresborough MP Andrew Jones has succeeding in bringing about a change in policy for car parking at St James’s Retail Park in Knaresborough.
Customers were angry at having been given fines for parking in what they thought were spaces on St James Retail Park in Knaresborough. The spaces were actually unmarked trolley bays without any of the usual barriers, markings or shelter. Customers had been using them for parking for years but new arrangements for enforcement by car park managers HX Car Park Management Ltd meant that fines were unexpectedly issued.
Following complaints from constituents Mr Jones contacted HX Car Park Management and won a change in policy. The company have now promised to write off all parking fines for these spaces and will not issue any more until the trolley bays are clearly marked as ‘no parking’.
In their letter to Mr Jones they say:
As we only recently began issuing tickets through a self-ticketer, our client received a high volume of complaints due to drivers parking here previously and not being issues a Penalty Charge Notice. Consequently, our client requested that all appeals be accepted and no further tickets issued until marking have been put in place to state ‘no parking’.
Mr Jones commented:
I was pleased to help several constituents with their appeals. Thanks to parking management company for being sympathetic to the appeals that were made. They could simply have ignored them and implemented the fines but they properly considered the evidence we put before them and chose a fair way or resolving the problem. Credit where credit is due.
The letter does end with the warning though that when the bays are marked up then fines will start again so I would urge everyone to make sure they are parking legally to avoid a nasty shock when they get back to their car.
Too bad that the nonsense of the Mcdonalds drive through grid locks isn’t addressed. Volume of traffic is ridiculous – another planning coup.
I do wish the media would report correctly. A private car parking company cannot issue a “fine”. Only public authorities can issue fines. A private car parking company can only issue an invoice in the form of a Penalty Charge Notice. In this case, given that the bays had been used for years for car parking, the company is likely to have lost any court case anyway.
3 hrs parking absolutely ridiculous I’ll be avoiding from now on
St James is about midway between my daughter and I and we dicided to meet to do some shopping and have lunch. Three hours parking is just ridiculous not enough time to do both! No wonder people shop on line I will never return.
Just received a parking fine, for doing what the shops are there for- shopping!!
Has anyone had any luck contacting the company and getting and appealing the fine?
We won’t be coming back!
I took my terminally ill mum shopping and received a fine for exceeding her fine. She has mobility issues due to cancer and we have tried to explain this but still fined. Absolutely shocking treatment.
My vehicle broke down /overheated. They claim this is not a good enough excuse. I had to wait for it to cool down before I could do a temporary repair to get me home. I told them it was a safe place to park. Its now heading to court as mediation didn’t work. How can this be justified just because signs are up. Who reads signs when a vehicle is having issues or check time of breakdown so you make sure your not broken down for longer than allocated time