[petejh]

To be fair to Trump Fiend, haranguing him for idling his vehicle on a website that celebrates the pursuit of climbing does seem a little morally short-sighted. Some of the people we celebrate spend their lives flying around the globe in pursuit of pointless pleasure.

[crzylgs]

Slightly longer version:

I went down the recommended route from MSE of putting in a complaint/appeal on the last day or so possible, using the nicely worded (key part of this is replying as 'the registered keeper' and not disclosing who was driving the car, then they have to make a request to DVLA within a given time frame or something similar) template they provide. I'm pretty sure using this template alone is enough for the peeps involved to be like 'eughh another one from MSE no point trying our usual shenanigans'. FWIW the law is stacked HUGELY in your favour, the onus is on them to be able to prove everything, that signage was present and correct, even things like being able to audit their timekeeping system to prove that they were running accurately on the day.

I also sent an email to my MP enlightening him about the predatory practices of these private parking firms. A similar email to the shops my mother had visited - pointing out to them in the age of online shopping, allowing a company to act on their behalf in such a manor is a sure way to continue the demise of the high street retail industry. A final email went to some chap (possibly director) of the organisation of predatory parking company wankers plc or whatever it was.

Yes I had far too much time on my hands. Yes a part of me did find their grovelling replies and ultimate backing down and dropping of all proceedings rather amusing.

Good luck

[Paul B]

I also sent an email to my MP enlightening him about the predatory practices of these private parking firms.
Good luck

I'm a bit surprised that in Clitheroe which is already struggling with traffic (it's ripe for pedestrianisation IMO) that a new Cinema was given planning permission but just before opening they installed a Parking Eye system in their car park (which also caters for a bar, restaurant and very expensive food shop and isn't overly large) with a maximum stay that, with trailers etc. means you can't really use it.

[Fiend]

Thanks for the further information crzylgs and Nails, I will take this into account.

Sorry Will for a very slight and mild overreaction, which is probably even less helpful and less relevant than everyone jumping on the "insult the person for idling in a car" bandwagon.

For what little it's worth I suspect the amount of carbon produced is relatively little compared to the vast other amounts from general first world lifestyles, and compared to the amount I save all the time by being a typical Audi driver and sitting meekly at 70mph on cruise control to save fuel even when I want to get to the crag quicker.

IF that's wrong then I very much suggest the information is better inserted into a general "Carbon footprint awareness and saving thread" rather than yet another "person idling is a dick hur hur polish halo" post on here.

[reeve]

Sorry Will for a very slight and mild overreaction, which is probably even less helpful and less relevant than everyone jumping on the "insult the person for idling in a car" bandwagon.

I imagine that if you had showed a little humility there would have been far fewer people joining in to support Duma's point.

For what little it's worth I suspect the amount of carbon produced is relatively little compared to the vast other amounts from general first world lifestyles...

However much it was, it was avoidable with only a small impact on your lifestyle.

[petejh]

  It's a laughably small amount that doesn't justify anybody being given shit for by carbon virtue-signallers.

[virtue signal]Then again I'm an avid collector of other people's plastic to put in my household recycling.[/virtue signal] So who am I to argue about actions that are vanishingly tiny and inconsequential in the grand scheme of things.

[reeve]

It's a laughably small amount that doesn't justify anybody being given shit for by carbon virtue-signallers.

[virtue signal]Then again I'm an avid collector of other people's plastic to put in my household recycling.[/virtue signal] So who am I to argue about actions that are vanishingly tiny and inconsequential in the grand scheme of things.

[virtue signal]The amount of money I give to amnesty international is - in the scheme of the gross annual donations received by them - also vanishingly tiny [/virtue signal]. By your logical, I should cancel my direct debt.

Keep up the plastic collection! 

[andy_e]

Every individual action has a vanishingly small impact. Thing is, they're cumulative, and before you know it, 181 people a year in Manchester die of air quality issues, largely contributed to by stationary vehicles accumulating emissions around key areas of populace such as schools and shops.

[petejh]

The obvious reply to you both is, you don't give people shit on forums for choosing not to make a vanishingly tiny Amnesty donation. Why would you?
By my logic you should try to do good things and not give other people shit for stuff you are probably no more or less good at.

[SA Chris]

Have you used the internet before, you know that's not how it works!

[petejh]

Oh yeah, apologies I forgot there for a minute. You bellend Fiend.

[tomtom]

Nothing like having a baby/small child that you push around in a pram to make you appreciate the fucking crazy levels of air pollution.

Thats why you should switch your car off when you are stationary.

[petejh]

I agree TT, and with the issue of particulate matter around schools especially I think parking should be banned from roads outside schools by making them clearways during school hours. All those parents dropping off their kids at school are helping to a. pollute their lungs and b. contribute to their physical inactivity. Disruptive as fuck no doubt.

[SA Chris]

c. Gridlock the local roads and piss off people living round the school.

Be nice if the council would put in some proper crossings to make walking / cycling safer though (localised rant)

[Fiend]

Bumping this - to actually be useful (TL, DR: Private parking company attempted PCN via NTK served outside the time limit, sent appeal and had to jump through hoops, but got it cancelled)

I got a completely spurious cash-grabbing Penalty Charge Notice from Smart Parking served via a Notice To Keeper, in the following situation: Silk Road Retail Park, Macclesfield, overstayed the 2 hour free parking limit by 10 minutes, mostly because the driver was a customer of a large fast food establishment as they were meeting a friend there to chat and give some moral support for her dad who had just been hospitalised with heart issues (the driver didn't see the parking limit signs as they were relatively small and the entrance to the parking is at a very busy junction where any driver's focus is on all sorts of traffic).

I looked into it further, this MSE page was invaluable:
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/4816822/newbies-private-parking-ticket-old-or-new-read-these-faqs-first-thankyou
And referencing this government POFA page:
https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2012/9/schedule/4

The NTK had been served 18 days after the alleged offence, outside of the necessary 14 day period, so was invalid and I was under no obligation to provide the driver's details. I made an appeal on this basis, quoting the revelant POFA sections, but also mentioning the lack of timestamp on the ANPR image, the lack of any grace period, the timescale indicating the driver was a customer of the retail park and not abusing it for all day parking, etc and was also prepared to complain to the fast food establishment about the predatory practises of the parking company they employed.

I got an acknowledgement of the appeal immediately, however I got no reply within the British Parking Association's Code Of Conduct guidelines of 35 days. After about 60 days I received a threatening letter from Debt Recovery Plus.

I then sent a complaint to Smart Parking about the lack of response and their breach of the BPA Code Of Conduct, which needed to be done twice as they first time they rejected the complaint thinking it was just the appeal, a complaint to BPA about Smart Parking, and a complaint to DRP. To be extra sure I printed out a copy of my complaint AND appeal and posted it to Smart Parking.

Within a few days I got an email, and later a letter from Smart Parking confirming the PCN had been cancelled. In short they're complete fucking cunts and can go fuck themselves so far up their collective company arse that their leprotic choad comes out of their mouth, BUT the important thing was to not accept their thieving horseshit and put the effort in to following that MSE thread and any relevant links from it. HTH.

[SamT]

Chapeau! 

[Paul B]

Nat just got one yesterday at Connonley Station which has been free until early December it seems.