I was fined £70 for being SECONDS late in the car park – it wasn’t my fault

A WOMAN fined £70 for being seconds late in a car park said it was not her fault.

Pip Olliver, 54, was on her way home when she stopped by Asda’s Minworth store in Birmingham at 6.15pm to use the cash machine.

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But after getting her money, she returned to her Honda Civic and found that it wouldn’t start with a dead battery.

The nurse quickly called her husband, who arrived and helped her start the engine.

Pip and her partner left the store seconds after 6.45pm, just over 30 minutes after they arrived.

But she was shocked when she received a £70 parking fee from Parking Eye – the company that manages the car park for Asda.

The shocked nurse told Birmingham Live: “I only needed the ATM to get some money out on a Sunday. My battery had been playing but I didn’t expect it to not work.

“I went to Asda outside of opening hours. It was flat and I called my husband who came from home and we got my car started. I wasn’t aware of the parking restrictions and about a week later I was given the £70 parking fee (which says it’s reduced to £40 if you pay within 14 days).

She continued: “I reached out to Parkingeye – went to their website and they ticked a box to appeal. I said if you check your cameras you will see my husband walked in a few minutes later and both of our cars drove away together. But I got an email back saying my appeal was rejected.

“We went back and saw the little signs with very small writing saying you really shouldn’t use the ATMs as you are not allowed to park outside of hours at all for minutes.”

A sign above the ATM says “Cash 24 Hours”. But the signs in the car park say: “Maximum stay 3 hours. NO AFTER HOURS PARKING.”

Further details were found in very small print.

A discouraged Pip complained on social media before deciding to go to Asda who canceled her ticket.

She said: “Last Friday (10 March) I went to Asda’s customer service and explained the situation and they said we could cancel it but ‘just this once’.

“And said, ‘Next time you break down, you have to come and tell us’. But the place was closed at the time.”

Pip added: “I could have given up the ticket and the anxiety of how to pay the £70.”

Asda said the restrictions were introduced because of problems with “anti-social behavior” in the area – believed to be groups of car enthusiasts meeting and using the nearby A38 for car journeys.

An Asda spokesman said: “The purpose of the parking restrictions at this store is well known and we are pleased to see that there has been a significant reduction in the number of complaints of anti-social behavior since they were introduced.

“We are aware that ATMs are still being used regularly outside of our branches’ opening hours, which is why there is a short grace period, and having spoken to this customer we are pleased that the parking notice she received has been lifted .”

While a Parkingeye spokesman said: “The car park at Asda Minworth will have conspicuous and highly visible signs throughout, providing information on how to use the car park responsibly.

“Asda customers have a maximum stay of three hours and the signage clearly states that there is no off-hours parking.

“The motorist received a parking notice for parking for more than 30 minutes when the store was closed. However, after examining the case, we canceled it out of goodwill.

“Parkingeye operates a BPA (British Parking Association) audited appeals process which motorists can use to appeal their parking charge notices. If someone has extenuating circumstances, we would encourage them to highlight it by appealing. All motorists are also entitled to a further appeal through the independent complaints body POPLA (Parking on Private Land Appeals).”