Smart Parking telling porkies about the POPLA process
Parking operators don't like you using POPLA, the independent appeals body. It's hardly surprising when you consider that operators routinely turn down practically all appeals, while currently POPLA...
View ArticleHighview Parking 'spurred into immediate further action' after losing at POPLA
The Parking Prankster often double dips car parks - visits them twice in one day. Just in case the parking company tries it on and pretends The Prankster has been there all day, The Prankster always...
View ArticleVictory for the Motorist - Smart Parking back down over sharp practices
The Parking Prankster received an email today from Mike Butler, Data Sharing Manager from the DVLA, confirming that Smart Parking will no longer be claiming that POPLA can only accept appeals if they...
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Prankster on The Register
Woke up this morning to find the blog stats had gone crazy.The Register had picked up the story and published a summary. I made third most-read news item at one point. (I can tell my mum to stop...
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POPLA backdoor appeal process exposed in AOS minutes
One would expect as a motorist that once your case has been upheld by the independent adjudication service POPLA, that that would be the end of the matter. Not so. The Parking Companies have a hotline...
View ArticleGeoffrey, the Parking Warden
Yesterday, as he has many times before, The Parking Prankster had a long chat with Geoffrey, the Parking Warden in his local car park. Geoffrey is a sweet old guy; I guess he is retired and earning...
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Secret reasons you can use in your appeal to POPLA
Another gem from the January 2013 minutes of the AOS.Here are the four reasons that POPLA list as valid for appealing:The grounds under which you can appeal the parking charge notice are as follows:The...
View ArticleParking Companies suck £millions out of the economy
A recent FOI request gives an idea of the scale of the parking industry.The parking companies need to write to you to get you to pay up, and so they ask the DVLA for your address. Between 01/04/12 and...
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Prankster to lose persistent evader status?
The Parking Prankster recently learned that he has been labelled a 'persistent evader' by Smart Parking.The Prankster feels this is a little harsh, especially as the appeal process has not yet...
View ArticleHow much does POPLA cost the Parking Operators?
To answer that question, we should look first at how POPLA, the independent adjudication service for parking on private land, is funded.POPLA receives it's money in two ways. Firstly, it got a chunk of...
View ArticlePOPLA delays increasing
This is an update to The Parking Prankster's earlier post which mentioned POPLA delays. Back in April, The Prankster's last appeal was adjudicated 20 days late. The Prankster's current appeal is...
View ArticleCompany Car Drivers Exempted From Private Parking Charges
It's highly likely that if you are a company car driver the government may have accidently exempted you from paying private parking charges. Here's why.Many company car drivers are not the registered...
View ArticlePOPLA facing 5 month backlog. Still, it's better than 18 months.
Update:The Prankster has now seen the real report here and accepts that this blog post is therefore wildy inaccurate. Like a mad game of Chinese Whispers, this blog proves that a report of a report is...
View ArticlePOPLA facing 4 month backlog. Still, it's better than 7 months.
This is a rewrite of my earlier blog, but using, uh, actual facts this time.According to the POPLA annual report (published strangely after only 6 months) POPLA had received 4,051 appeals by the 31st...
View ArticleHow to claim a parking charge back from Wycombe Hospital
This freedom of information request discloses that Bucks Healthcare Trust and their contractors, UKPC have been overcharging for parking charges issued at Wycombe hospital. They meant to charge £60...
View ArticleHow to claim a parking charge back from Amersham or Stoke Mandeville Hospitals
This freedom of information request discloses that Bucks Healthcare Trust and their contractors, UKPC have been overcharging for parking charges issued at Amersham and Stoke Mandeville hospitals....
View ArticleHow to claim a parking charge back from any hospital where UKPC issued the...
If your hospital was Wycombe, Amersham or Stoke Mandeville then I have already specifically blogged about those. For any other hospital where UKPC issued the parking charge, use these...
View ArticleHow to claim any parking charge back from UKPC
Edited to correct some court costs and procedural details.You need more balls for this one, because it will take some time and effort, plus some costs up front. Because this may end up having to go to...
View ArticleSpartacus has no need for superpowers
Today G24 cancelled a parking charge issued to Spartacus, as reported on the notomob site here.The Parking Prankster admires the ability of Spartacus to get his parking ticket cancelled, without the...
View ArticlePOPLA potentially ignoring Data Processing regulations. Sending unnecessary...
The Parking Prankster first learned of this when he got an email from a parking company out of the blue. WTF! How did they get his email address? A quick check of the actual email contents revealed the...
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