Smart Parking – parking charge notice – appeal guide

Smart Parking Ltd PCN

Have you received a PCN or Parking Charge notice from Smart Parking Ltd?  This website will explain how to successfully appeal to Smart Parking and/or POPLA.

Smart Parking – My Story

Paul Smith

Paul Smith took his five year old son shopping at Sainbury’s Cumberland Street store, and parked in “parent and child” parking bay.  On his return to his car with his son he noticed a £60 parking fine for parking in a parent and child bay, even though he was with his 5 year old son.  The ticket was from private firm Town and City Parking Ltd (now trading as “Smart Parking”).  Mr Smith, says he spends about £150 every week at the Cumberland Street store.  Mr Smith, went straight back to the store to speak with the manager.  “I asked why they couldn’t have announced on the public address system they were considering giving me a ticket or just checked the CCTV to see me with my son. Mr Smith said his van has a child booster seat in the passenger seat. When I spoke to the manager later on the phone he said there was nothing Sainsbury’s could do.  Bernie Dickson, managing director of Town and Parking Ltd (now trading as Smart Parking), said the attendant claimed he had seen Mr Smith, and a dog, but no child.  Not so Smart Parking.

Lynne James

Lyne James received a £70 fine for at the Portland Retail Park.  The ticket claimed she arrived at the car park at 2.30pm and that she was still there 4.35pm, thus exceeding her free 2 hour limit.  However, Ms James says she didn’t arrive at the car park until well after 2.30pm.  And she has a receipt from Tesco in her home town of Hucknall, timed at 2.28pm to prove her case. She tried unsuccessfully to phone Town and City Parking Ltd (now trading as “Smart Parking”).  “There’s no way we could have gone 10 miles in two minutes, we have a BMW, not a rocket!  She said: “My husband and I were fuming because they are trying to con us out of this money”.  A case of not so Smart Parking.

Karen Walker

Karen Walker bought a ticket at the George Street car park and placed it on his dashboard.  And yet when she returned to his car within the alloted time, she still found a parking charge notice on his windscreen.  Parking attendants are placing pcn’s on cars which are displaying their pay and display tickets — because the tickets have been bought from the wrong machine.  The problem arises because  may drivers mistakenly buy their pay and display tickets from machines linked to the adjacent Angouleme Retail Park car park, also in George Street.  One car park is run by Smart Parking (formerly Town and City Parking) while the Bury Council car park is run by NCP.  If you obtain  your ticket from the wrong machine, you get fined.  Mrs Walker, appealed against her fine but was told she had to pay the £25 — or risk being charged double.    She said: “It is very confusing. I am now just very angry and upset at the whole experience.  But the confusion on George Street car park, in the town centre, does not stop there. When angry shoppers complain about the “unfair” system some are let off while enforcement action is being taken against others.  Pensioner Ken O’Brien was in a similar situation to Mrs Walker, but said his fine was withdrawn.  He said: “It is ridiculous. You try to do the right thing by paying for your parking but you still get fined”.  Another case of not so Smart Parking.