British Parking Association launches probe into PRI firm

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An investigation has been launched into the company which monitors parking at Perth Royal Infirmary following criticisms about poor signage.

The British Parking Association (BPA) confirmed it was looking into complaints about worn signs and broken parking meters at the site, which is operated by Town and City Parking.

Visitors and staff at the hospital have been slapped with £60 parking charge notices, despite being unable to read boards displaying the rules at the free-to-use site.

Read the full article here

Separate motorway duty ‘will create two classes of driver’

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MOTORISTS using Britain’s motorways and major trunk roads would pay a separate rate of road tax under a proposal being considered in Whitehall.

Government sources say officials are examining plans for an overhaul of vehicle excise duty (VED), which raises £6 billion a year.

One option would see the tax being split into two tiers. All motorists would pay the first levy, allowing them to drive on local roads and smaller A-roads.

Those wanting to use the country’s trunk-road network — consisting of all motorways and major A-roads — would pay a second flat-rate charge.

Read full article here

Your car might be watched 24 hours in future

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In the future, you just might be charged for driving to the convenience store around the corner to get milk and bread.

The government is now testing new satellite-tracking technology that could develop into the next-generation electronic road pricing (ERP) system.

The System Evaluation Test (SET) began in May and "is a technological trial to help identify a technological solution most suited for Singapore", Channel NewsAsia reported.

So don't be alarmed if you come across four black cantilevers at Woodlands Avenue 12, the site where the SET testing is being carried out. You will also notice a range of surveillance cameras, reflectors and sensors set on the structures hanging over the road.

Read the full article here

Driver’s £80 fine for accepting valid car park ticket

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An angry shopper is warning others not to fall into the trap of sharing car park tickets or it could end up ruining their Christmas.

Lynda Double was faced with an £80 fine after she fell foul of the small print when she took up a stranger’s kind offer of a ticket that was still valid for an hour and a half.

Read the full article here

One in six parking tickets issued by Swindon Council is revoked

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ONE in six parking tickets have wrongly been handed out to drivers since 2011.

Drivers have successfully appealed 6,447 tickets that have been slapped on their cars since the start of 2011, figures obtained under the Freedom Of Information Act have shown.

Out of 43,293 tickets issued by Swindon Council, 15 per cent of them were queried by motorists and revoked for reasons such as a having a parking ticket or Blue Badges that might not have been visible when the car was booked.

Read the full article here

Plymouth man given parking fine 'for an act of courtesy'

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A MOTORIST claims he was unfairly ticketed by the Plymouth camera car for an "act of courtesy".

David Bailey said he was caught on camera when he pulled into a bus bay to let traffic pass. He said he was "horrified and angry" to receive a fixed penalty for stopping at a bus stop in Hyde Park Road.

Read the full article here

CCTV cars net Sutton Council £1m since March 2011

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More than £1m has been taken off motorists by CCTV cars since they were rolled out in the Sutton last year.

The remit of the CCTV cars, initially brought in to enforce parking rules outside schools, was extended in March 2011 to include patrols across the borough looking for cars flouting parking rules.

Read the full article here

Council faces questions over car park confusion

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THE Environment Agency is to hold talks with council bosses after admitting it was unaware that the latter were still collecting parking charges on agency land.

Last week the Herald revealed that pay and display signs remain on Environment Agency property which Shepway District Council used to lease as a car park.

Read the full article here

Conmen behind a parking ticket phishing expedition

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Motorist Peter Whalley of Manchester was rightly suspicious of the email supposedly demanding payment for a parking fine.

The street where the alleged offence took place was in Haringey, North London. Peter says: "I have never been to London in my 74 years, the farthest I drive is Oldham."

Read the full article here

DVLA keeps eye on parking firms

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Published on Thursday 25 October 2012 09:05

EXCEL Parking has been banned from using the DVLA database to send out controversial £60 ‘fines’ - but what’s to stop it channelling requests through its sister company, Vehicle Control Services?

The two firms are based at 2 Europa Court, Sheffield Business Park and both are members of the British Parking Association

Read the full article here

Cowboy parking firm making Hampshire motorists lives a misery

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TODAY the Daily Echo can lift the lid on a cowboy parking firm operating in Hampshire charging sky high fines and misleading drivers into coughing up cash.

Shoal Enforcement Ltd, which once clamped a police car guarding the Queen and an AA rescue vehicle, is still making life a misery for motorists.

Clamping on private land has been banned since October 1, but the Hampshire-based firm is now slapping tickets on vehicles demanding up to £180, and threatening to track down drivers using debt collectors.

Read the full article here

Parking ticket adds to handbrake horror for Stortford worker

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WHEN a Stortford worker returned to her parked car and found a runaway vehicle had careered into the motor, there was worse to come.

An East Herts District Council parking enforcement officer had ticketed both cars for being outside a marked bay on Friday, October 19.



Read full article here

Don't get conned by parking fine scam

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MOTORISTS in Worcestershire are being warned to stay alert to a car parking fine con.

Drivers are being sent bogus parking tickets from the email address cctv.enforcement@penaltychargenotice.co.uk.

Read full article here

Call for 'tax transparency'

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THE National Motorist Action Group (NMAG) and FairFuelUK are calling on MPs to back a campaign to ensure motorists can see how much of their cash is going on fuel duty – at the point of purchase.

NMAG spokesman Rupert Lipton said: "We want to see the amount of Fuel Duty and VAT taken by the Government displayed on every fuel receipt.

Read the full article here

DVLA bans Excel from database

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MOTORISTS can park without fear for three months after the DVLA banned Excel Parking from using its database.

The Sheffield company will be unable to send £60 ‘fines’ to drivers who uses any of its camera-controlled car parks.

It was suspended for breaching the British Parking Association’s code of practice.

Excel makes about 20,000 requests for addresses every three months. The ban will cost it tens of thousands of pounds in lost income. It issues tickets for staying too long or failing to input number plate details correctly.

Read the full article here

Firm wins big payout in court fight with store

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A Chorley-based parking company has been awarded £350,000 damages from a supermarket giant following a court ruling.

Buckshaw Village-based ParkingEye Ltd sued Somerfield for terminating a contract to monitor its car parks.

ParkingEye Ltd put in automated systems at 17 Somerfield stores to record vehicle registration numbers and catch out over-stayers.

Read the full article here

For Whom the Road Tolls? Looks like the motorist is set to become the target yet again. If ever there was a time for a gathering of the clans this is it.

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Road tolling backed by Britain's employers

Motorists could see the cost of driving rise under proposals to privatise motorways and A-roads and introduce tolling, drawn up by the Confederation of British Industry.

The CBI has called for a major overhaul of how the roads are paid for which would see part of existing road taxes converted into a “user charge” which in the long term would be supplemented by pay as you drive tolls. Read the full article here

 

Elderly drivers voted most irritating

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Elderly motorists wind other road users up the most according to new research by car insurance firm Admiral. Is this an unfair slight against older drivers?

Admiral, the car insurance firm, asked more than 3,000 people to tell them which road users they find most irritating as part of its annual survey of road users.

Read the full article here

Council Leader opposed to MEVs Equita wishing to provide a vehicle!

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NMAG supports Tendering District Council Leader’s position of resisting revenue-raising CCTV cars.  There are more effective ways of ensuring that parents do not park wrongly outside schools and that involves road safety initiatives with schools and parents and providing a visible Civil Enforcement Officer deterrent … a bit like when Bobbies used to walk the beat and prevent crime.

The involvement of a bailiff company in the provision of such enforcement vehicles, that being only for profitable purposes, should be alarming to any responsible member of a local authority.

Essex: Council leader Neil Stock speaks out over CCTV car proposals

A COUNCIL leader has spoken out about proposals to introduce patrolling CCTV cars outside schools.

Outgoing Tendring District Council leader Neil Stock has called for evidence to prove that CCTV cars will solve parking problems.

Read the full article here

Fuel tax stands at forecourts across the country show the true cost of taxes on petrol and diesel

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Great work by the Taxpayer's Alliance. Check out their article below ...

We’ve today launched a major new campaign with the Petrol Retailers Association (PRA) to highlight the burden that excessive fuel taxes are placing on motorists and retailers alike. Our latest campaign against high taxes is targeted where they hurt the most, at the pumps. Working with the PRA, over 5,000 Fuel Tax Stands have gone to independent forecourts across the UK so that customers can see exactly how much of their cash is going straight to the Treasury.
Read more ...

 

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NMAG supports the excellent work of the FairFuel Campaign – please support by visiting their site

  FairFuelUK's Key Objectives

 

	Stop any Fuel Duty Rises – Fight to scrap the January & August 3p deferrals that are now planned for implementation in January 2013
	Go even further and fight to Cut Fuel Duty for the benefit of economic growth and what the whole nation wants – Convince the Govt to recognise that by sensibly controlling fuel duty, it is a growth stimulus not just a Treasury cash cow
	Bring UK petrol and diesel to European Parity in terms of fuel pricing and taxation
	Set up a mechanism that is the fairest way to price petrol and diesel for business, the economy and hard pressed motorists
	Actively support the inquiries into fuel pricing transparency and oil price speculation. Do you have information to help?
	http://www.fairfueluk.com/

NMAG says – ‘Support the Petrol Promise’

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PetrolPromise.com is an independent campaign for cheaper petrol and diesel. They are asking the Government to cut fuel duty, and urging big energy firms to reduce prices at the pump.

NMAG supports PetrolPromise.com and encourages everyone to share the link and sign their petition here

Labour chief nicked in car with no MoT

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Ed Miliband's pal facing ban 

LABOUR bigwig Jon Cruddas — the party’s policy chief — has been nicked for driving with no insurance or MoT.

The MP — at the wheel of a Land Rover Freelander pulled over by cops in central London last night insisted his lapse was an “honest mistake”.

Read the article here

Drivers face new surprise 'repair' motorway fees

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Drivers are being hit with expensive bills from Highways Agency contractors for emergency repairs. Motorists claim the prices are over-inflated and in some cases they question whether the repairs ever took place.

Sheila Kaur-Patel, who works as a BBC production manager, was shocked when she received an invoice for £3,000 for damage she had allegedly caused during a motorway incident.

Read the full article here

 

Major threat to routes in England

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  Great work by Brian and the ABD team. Spread the word.

  Major threat to routes in England

 Friday, October 05, 2012

 The Bristol Post

 IN 2007, the Government backed down after 1.8 million people signed a petition against road pricing. Wary of that, the newly-elected coalition government promised not to bring in road pricing (other than for lorries) or even prepare for it.

Although the Government would consider levying tolls on totally new roads like motorways, we were assured that our existing roads would not be tolled.

There is now the threat of major routes in England effectively being sold off, and the public being charged to use existing roads. The government has quietly started engaging with local authorities with a view to softening up public opinion.

The driving public has paid something like £500 billion into the roads since 1997, with only a fraction spent back. To charge us even more for driving on inadequate roads would be adding insult to injury.

The government should get its priorities right instead of reaching into our pockets. I encourage readers to write to their MP c/o House of Commons, London SW1A 0AA to say "Can't pay, won't pay".

Brian Gregory, chairman

Association of British Drivers

The Association of British Drivers is a voluntary and non-profit-making organisation whose aim is to provide an active, responsible voice to lobby for Britain's beleaguered drivers.

To support the ABD click here

To contact ABD click here

To contact your MP click here

Man not paying £80 parking fine

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NMAG will be investigating this matter detailed below. It appears as though the NMAG forum has a number of posts already here and here and they are mentioned here If you have received a ticket or been clamped by Armtrac Security Services then please post on the NMAG Forum.

This is Cornwall

4^th October 2012

A DRIVER is disputing a hefty parking fine in Truro over claims the security firm imposed the penalty illegitimately.

The motorist complained to the car park owner and discovered the security business had no authority to issue the fines within the area.

Read the full article here

 

BBC Rip Off Britain reports on the new law change making clamping on private car parks illegal

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BBC Rip Off Britain reveals how confusion over road signs in just one spot has earned one council hundreds of thousands of pounds

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Will Westminster's parking sensors set a new trend?

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Parking in Westminster is difficult at the best of times.

The council estimates that half a million vehicles travel in and out of central London a day.

Of course this puts a huge strain on the number of available parking bays. Now the council is trialing a new technology to make it easier to find a space. 

It's early days but the technology seems to work, albeit a very small trial.

New technology

What's interesting about Westminster City Council is it sets the trends for parking across the country.

Read the full article here

Cars parked on private land can no longer be clamped

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New laws were put in place on Monday to stop cars from being clamped or towed on most private properties in England and Wales.

Parking tickets will still be issued and those who do not pay can be traced through the DVLA.

5 liveMorning Reports spoke to Tony Glackin, from Worcester, who had his car clamped while parked in his own space and to the British Parking Association's Kelvin Reynolds who said the new legislation did not go far enough.






http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-19785727

Wheel clamping banned on private land

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New parking laws that make it illegal for private companies to clamp cars come into force in October, although most motorists know nothing about them.

Wheel clamping on private land becomes illegal in England and Wales today as new parking laws are introduced, although most drivers are unaware that the changes are taking place.

Read the full article here

Police in Haworth back change in wheelclamping law

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A Worth Valley police officer said he “wholeheartedly welcomed” the fact that clamping vehicles on private land is now an offence in almost any situation.

Sergeant Chris Watson, of the Worth Valley Neighbourhood Policing Team (NPT) was commenting on one of the latest provisions of an act of parliament, which came into force today.

His patch includes the Changegate Car Park, in Haworth, where hundreds of people’s vehicles have been clamped over the course of more than a decade.

Read the full article here

 

Most motorists unaware of new parking laws

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Ninety-one per cent of people are unaware that from today they are required, by law, to provide details of the driver of any vehicle wrongfully parked on private land, according to a poll conducted by road safety charity the IAM.

Half of motorists are uninformed that consumer rights are different depending on whether a parking ticket is issued by a private company or by a local council.

Read the full article here

 

Drivers caught by aggressive private parking firms handed lifeline

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Motorists hit with penalties when parking on private land – including outside shops and hospitals – can fight back from tomorrow.

The Parking on Private Land Appeals scheme will at last give independent adjudication on disputes involving companies signed up to the British Parking Association. 

About 700 of the UK’s 2,000 private parking firms, including major names such as NCP, belong to the association. However, it will not stop others that do not belong from ignoring the guidelines.

Read the full article here

 

AT LAST! COWBOY CLAMPERS ARE GIVEN THE BOOT

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ROGUE car clamping firms will be banned from operating on private land from tomorrow, saving British motorists £108million in fines.

A new law, introduced as part of the Protection of Freedoms Act, means it will be a criminal offence to clamp or tow a car away on private land – with fines of up to £5,000 for offenders. The ban will mean private parking firms will be hard-pressed to enforce tickets without the use of a clamp.

Read the full article here

 

 

Victory for Mail campaign as cowboy clampers banned from all private land and facing criminal charges

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Wheel clamping on private land becomes a criminal offence from tomorrow following a seven-year campaign by The Mail on Sunday.

The new law bans immobilising and towing away vehicles at retail parks, blocks of flats, council housing estates and hospitals. 

It affects both unscrupulous operators who set out to trap motorists, and companies that have legitimate contracts with landowners to patrol off-street sites.

The move is expected to save motorists £55 million a year in release fees.

Read the full article here 

£240,000 still owed in unpaid parking fines to North Lincolnshire Council

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More than £240,000 is still owed to North Lincolnshire Council in unpaid parking fines over the past three years, according to recent figures.

The Telegraph used the Freedom of Information Act to find out the amount owed in unpaid penalty charge notices to the local authority.

Since 2010 there is £241,000 outstanding, roughly 20 per cent of the total value of notices issued.

Read the full article here