I‘D like to add my name to previous readers voicing annoyance with the parking situation in and around St Helens.


Last week I got a Parking Charge Notice from ParkingEye for £100 stating my car had been parked at Euro Garages, Starbucks St Helens for more than 22 hours.

Their timed /dated photographic evidence proved this. My daughter – the main driver of the car frequents there to buy a coffee.

I doubted the notice due to the 22hrs parking duration. Other than at home the car has never been parked for this long. A check of home CCTV showed the car on our drive throughout almost the entire relevant time.


I had to lodge an appeal (against what exactly? – we hadn’t actually done anything other than going about our daily lives).

It is impossible to appeal by phone, you have to e-mail or write a letter. Not very handy if you don’t have access to a computer, or your letter goes missing in the system.


However, I sent an e-mail and a week later got a response – the charge had been cancelled, no apology or explanation.

I eventually managed to contact ParkingEye customer services to express my annoyance and seek an explanation. The operator displayed a complete lack of interest and customer service.

I was told there had been a glitch in the system and the charge had been cancelled.


Wonder how many other drivers have fallen foul to a glitch in ParkingEye systems? Luckily I easily proved my innocence.

It makes me wonder though how I would have done so if I hadn’t had CCTV evidence and if the alleged parking duration hadn’t been so ridiculous.

Overall it took me more than two hours to sort out this fiasco – my time is valuable and I don’t like wasting it proving my innocence because of a glitch in a system

Don’t get me going on mobile parking wardens seen peering round corners and through hedges before slapping on tickets and scarpering.

Parking tyranny or am I just suffering from parking paranoia?


Name and address submitted