Driver fined £100 for an hour’s parking vows to ‘bring down system’ and get tickets issued by ALL number plate cams axed
A MOTORIST who was fined £100 for an hour’s parking wants to “bring down the system” that he says is “unfair” and “cruel”.
Lawrence Carnie, 58, has been battling with parking company Nexus, after being hit with a fine last June – and although he has now had the fine cancelled, he still wants to see ANPR in car parks scrapped.
Mr Carnie visited Tower Retail Park in Crayford, Kent two days in a row, for 30 minutes each time, but was fined for parking 23 hours.
After a “nine-month crusade” he finally managed to get his £100 cancelled, but is not satisfied and says he wants to see “ANPR (Automatic Number Plate Recognition) in car parks scrapped until the data is of a standard that would hold up in court.”
Speaking to Mailonline, he said: “So many people that have come forward over incorrectly issued PCNs and said “I had to pay the fine” because they had no other choice.
“If people don’t pay them debt collectors can come for them, or they can have CCJs issued against them, which is worse.”
Mr Carnie previously appealed the fine with independent adjudicator Parking On Private Land Appeals (POPLA) but was rejected.
He also contacted the British Parking Association (BPA) who Nexus are represented by, but they also came to the same conclusion.
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However, in a surprising u-turn parking firm, GroupNexus have now offered to cancel the charge “as a gesture of goodwill”.
In response to the fine being cancelled Mr Carnie said: “There’s no goodwill here and I believe they’re cancelling the charge because they know the data is wrong.
“If they are doing it on goodwill are they saying that they believe my car was there?
“I am not just fighting my ticket, I am questioning their whole operation.”
The dad-of-two offered advice for others who might be dealing with an unfair PCN, he said: “Appeal and demand the data from the parking company.
“Report them to the BPA.
“Make it known that you are not another victim.”
Mr Carnie added: “The underlying goal for me is to expose this company for what they’re doing to people.
“They know they’re operating on bad data and yet they’re issuing PCNs knowing that people will be intimidated into paying them.
“I have no issues with a legitimate parking company issuing legitimate PCNs and having a fair appeals process.
“But they know they don’t have a reliable ANPR system.”
Mr Carnie was happy to see his case go to court and was prepared to spend thousands fighting it.
When the 58-year-old appealed against the original decision made by the parking company he claims he found a number of anomalies in the data they provided.
According to the document 135 visitors were seen either arriving or leaving twice, 799 cars were spotted either entering or leaving once and one car was recorded to have left three times without entering.
He said he found 28 “impossible scenarios” of cars visiting or leaving the car park twice.
Speaking at the time, Mr Carnie said: “I know they have lost two of my photos which I know I can’t prove in isolation but there are so many entries that can’t be explained or have not been explained.
“They are using this poor data to give out fines.
“There are people out there who can’t afford the fine let alone the legal process for it and so to be giving out fines on this data is wrong.”
However, Group Nexus claimed Mr Carnie’s analysis was inaccurate.
A spokesperson said: “Mr Carnie has clearly gone to great length with his analysis of the data that was provided to POPLA.
“However, for GDPR reasons the data provided to POPLA was significantly redacted (nearly 50%).
“Hence, the analysis is incomplete and inaccurate.”
Mr Carnie’s legal advisor Luke Memory, a paralegal and director of firm CCJ Removals, said the revelations over poorly logged parking camera data could ‘bring down the system’.
He said: “If you get caught speeding by a police officer at the side of the road, you can ask if that equipment has been calibrated properly,’ but you can’t ask the same of private parking firms.
“He said incorrect parking charges are often issued at car parks or drive-thrus if ‘someone else obstructs the camera’.
“If the camera can’t see you leaving and you come back the next day it will think you stayed overnight – which is improbable.”
Mr Carnie added: “It’s a scandal that’s a big issue that’s never been dealt with on anything more than an individual level, they should be properly regulated but they’re not.
“The data is of poor quality and not of a standard that would hold up in a court – and they know it.
“They must know that they’re doing this to many people and it’s unfair to the point of being cruel, especially for those who really can’t afford it.
“It’s just so wrong.”
Group Nexus said: “There are no issues related to the use of ANPR or the quality of the data produced.
“The Parking (Code of Practice) Act recognises ANPR as a method of enforcement and that operators are obliged to show that their equipment and systems are fit for purpose.
“Also, we are audited by the DVLA and the BPA annually where they interrogate our data to ensure its accuracy.
“In addition, our experience in reading the data over the last 20 years has established a clear process for enforcing parking restrictions or not, at all our locations.
“For example, we do not issue any PCNs if a car’s details are picked up on entry and not on exit for some reason, usually because tailgating has obscured the number plate.
A spokesman added: “It is incredibly rare for a vehicle to be registered upon entry, missed at exit and re-entry, and then picked up again on the second exit.
“In such instances, we would enforce the parking restrictions unless proven otherwise through our, or POPLA’s PCN challenge process.
“Mr Carnie has clearly gone to great length with his analysis of the data that was provided to POPLA.
“However, for GDPR reasons the data provided to POPLA was significantly redacted (nearly 50%).
“Hence, the analysis is incomplete and inaccurate.
“Based on the data, we stick by our original findings, however as a good will gesture towards Mr Carnie, and in this instance alone, we have decided to cancel the PCN.”