Veteran Thanet entertainer Gordon (Battell) Clarkson has won his battle to have a ‘disingenuous’ parking fine withdrawn.
The 57-year-old, best known as children’s entertainer Simple Simon, has now been notified that Parking Eye Ltd – which controls parking at the site – will not contest his appeal so the fine has been scrapped.
Gordon had driven into the car park with passengers, his late wife’s cousin, Jean, and his granddaughter Rosi, with the intention of showing them the sun terrace, where the theatre and the Jamaica Bar had been.
He said there is no indication that motorists will be charged simply for entering the site and has vowed to continue to campaign for signs to be put up at the entrance.
He added: “I am relieved that my appeal was successful, however this does not mean that I am going to leave it there. I wish to create a public pressure group to insist that the company install appropriate signage warning motorists that even to enter the Lido site in any capacity will incur a parking charge.
“I would like this as well as a barrier to prevent access to allow motorists to be aware and make their own decisions. The fact is that even if you enter the car park and decide that you are not happy to leave your car there you will still be charged for entering.
“As people have pointed out, the site is not well kept and is not secure, with a great deal of uneven surfaces and so most people would choose not to park there on inspection. The company rely on scaring people to pay up and this must be changed.
“My final point is that I believe that it is being run as a revenue gathering operation more than a car park, and the company are disingenuous and their practice is unfair. I intend also to write a complaint based on these points to the British Parking Association.
“On talking to the BBC editor from Watchdog, I found out private parking companies in Britain apply a parking charge for similar occurrences every four seconds so this is a nationwide problem.”
The ‘small print’ on one of the parking signs does state: “By parking, waiting or otherwise remaining in this car park, you agree to comply with the parking contract, including making payment as required.” However, this sign is inside the car park so the charge will already be incurred by the time any motorist reads it.
ParkingEye has yet to respond to our request for comment.
Good for him. The DVLA should stop breaking the data protection act by telling private parking firms the private addresses of drivers.
Quite right Bill. In the meantime, I aim to form a pressure group to request appropriate, clear and large signage on these sites.I will bring the DVLA point up too. Thanks for your positive comment.
The DVLA are not breaking the DPA. This happens to be one of the exceptions.
Well done, these companies are a disgrace
Thanks Cllr Lewis. I hope I am successful in my forthcoming campaign for appropriate signage, and also, the previous point about the DLVA and Data Protection issues.
Count me in on your group please , as lido is in my area, please phone me
Don’t you feel responsible for the dump of an area
Yes, well done Gordon. I was caught out at the Lido car park about a year ago. I was with my daughter and her boyfriend. He paid a nominal amount into the machine, we extracted the ticket. – which showed the time the parking started, not when the ticket would expire – and we displayed the ticket. We were gone for a few hours, just fifteen minutes or so later than we had paid for. I appealed, stating all this, but lost. Good luck with your campaign.
I’m interested to know who employs the parking company. If it’s the landowner why is allowed to let the whole site run down and not be responsible for it as it is bringing the area down.
https://theisleofthanetnews.com/2019/08/29/administration-period-for-company-that-bought-lido-extended-for-another-two-years/
Excellent news, one in the eye for these faceless thieves.
So you enter on someone else’s private land; you know it’s a commercial carpark because the large print signs say so; you spend six minutes in this private commercial carpark; you’re outraged when you get a fine.
And what’s wrong with a commercial organisation using its land to make money? That’s what commercial organisations do.
It seems to me that owning a motor car us more trouble than it’s worth.
Never have I heard such a twatish comment, what an absolute attention seeking mooron you are phylllllis quot
It seems to me,too, that owning a car is more trouble than it’s worth, espacially when you take into account the damage car use causes. The thing to do is lobby for mush improved public transport with reasonable fares.
especially, much
Now the travellers have encamped at the Lido car park can we know if they are paying to be there or are they too protected to fine for illegal parking?