Well...if you can't win - then rant
08 November 2004, 12:12 AM
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Well...if you can't win - then rant
As you guys may recall I mentioned that recently I got a parking ticket because I parked on a street where the ONLY nearby and visible machine was jammed. I wrote a very clear and polite letter explaining the circumstances of my case and got the standard, 'shut up and pay' response back. So, rather than try and argue the facts of the case I thought I'd just be a b@stard and dig my heels in. This is the letter I sent them back 
Dear Sir/Madam,
Penalty Charge Notice - EH*****64
I write in response to your letter of the 29th October 2004.
As an officer of a local authority council I deal with unreasonable members of
the public every day that will happily lie through their back teeth to achieve
their objective or protect their own, 'rights' or worse yet their 'human
rights'. It was for this reason that I carefully worded my letter of the 21st
October 2004 to clearly and succinctly put my case to you. However, it appears
that once again (see press over last few years) Edinburgh City Council is being
totally unreasonable when it comes to parking contravention and is looking to
make another fast buck. Consequently I shall no longer be the reserved
reasonable officer but rather will put my 'disgruntled member of the public' hat
on!
My car was parked on Crichton Street without a pay and display ticket displayed,
I do not deny this. However, irrespective of what your records show the machine
was jammed. I took a picture of this on my friends camera phone although given
it only shows the 'slot' and is grainy in quality I doubt you'd consider it as
evidence. Moreover, it is not inconceivable that another member of the public
was more successful at poking the jammed bit of plastic through thereby
explaining your lack of a fault record. I looked around for another machine to
use but there was none in sight. I would argue that where no other machine is
in view the machine should include directions to the nearest other machine. At
the time I also approached a traffic warden and explained the machine was jammed
and asked what I should do. He said that he had not issued the ticket but that
I should write to your offices explaining the circumstances. Given no log has
been made of a fault it seems that said officer was too busy meeting his 'ticket
targets' for the day to bother confirming the machines was jammed and reporting
it back to base.
You state in your letter that, 'Based on the evidence available it is considered
that the Parking Attendant was acting correctly in issuing the Penalty Charge
Notice and I therefore regret that I am unable to intervene in the matter.'
Fine, you'll get no argument from me here. The parking attendant was correct to
issue the ticket as the car was parking without displaying one and clearly he
does not have the time to check all the parking meters. This is not the debate
though!!! The debate is over whether I would be correct in paying the Penalty
Charge Notice and the simple answer to that is no. I have stated that I am a
reasonable person and if you check your records you will see that over the years
I have paid all previous Penalty Charge Notices promptly. Moreover, I am more
than willing to pay however much it would have cost me to park for the 45
minutes that I did, just tell me the amount and the cheque is in the post.
However, I have to take a stand and say that if you want £30/£60 from me to pay
for a Penalty Charge Notice under the above explained circumstances then frankly
you will have to prise it from my cold dead hands.
Kind Regards,
Kenny MacLeod
Dear Sir/Madam,
Penalty Charge Notice - EH*****64
I write in response to your letter of the 29th October 2004.
As an officer of a local authority council I deal with unreasonable members of
the public every day that will happily lie through their back teeth to achieve
their objective or protect their own, 'rights' or worse yet their 'human
rights'. It was for this reason that I carefully worded my letter of the 21st
October 2004 to clearly and succinctly put my case to you. However, it appears
that once again (see press over last few years) Edinburgh City Council is being
totally unreasonable when it comes to parking contravention and is looking to
make another fast buck. Consequently I shall no longer be the reserved
reasonable officer but rather will put my 'disgruntled member of the public' hat
on!
My car was parked on Crichton Street without a pay and display ticket displayed,
I do not deny this. However, irrespective of what your records show the machine
was jammed. I took a picture of this on my friends camera phone although given
it only shows the 'slot' and is grainy in quality I doubt you'd consider it as
evidence. Moreover, it is not inconceivable that another member of the public
was more successful at poking the jammed bit of plastic through thereby
explaining your lack of a fault record. I looked around for another machine to
use but there was none in sight. I would argue that where no other machine is
in view the machine should include directions to the nearest other machine. At
the time I also approached a traffic warden and explained the machine was jammed
and asked what I should do. He said that he had not issued the ticket but that
I should write to your offices explaining the circumstances. Given no log has
been made of a fault it seems that said officer was too busy meeting his 'ticket
targets' for the day to bother confirming the machines was jammed and reporting
it back to base.
You state in your letter that, 'Based on the evidence available it is considered
that the Parking Attendant was acting correctly in issuing the Penalty Charge
Notice and I therefore regret that I am unable to intervene in the matter.'
Fine, you'll get no argument from me here. The parking attendant was correct to
issue the ticket as the car was parking without displaying one and clearly he
does not have the time to check all the parking meters. This is not the debate
though!!! The debate is over whether I would be correct in paying the Penalty
Charge Notice and the simple answer to that is no. I have stated that I am a
reasonable person and if you check your records you will see that over the years
I have paid all previous Penalty Charge Notices promptly. Moreover, I am more
than willing to pay however much it would have cost me to park for the 45
minutes that I did, just tell me the amount and the cheque is in the post.
However, I have to take a stand and say that if you want £30/£60 from me to pay
for a Penalty Charge Notice under the above explained circumstances then frankly
you will have to prise it from my cold dead hands.
Kind Regards,
Kenny MacLeod
08 November 2004, 07:49 AM
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Originally Posted by Saxo Boy
However, I have to take a stand and say that if you want £30/£60 from me to pay for a Penalty Charge Notice under the above explained circumstances then frankly you will have to prise it from my cold dead hands.
Darren
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08 November 2004, 12:14 PM
#10
From my limited experience of dealing with local authorities (albeit in The Netherlands) the chances are they just won't bother to reply.
Good luck anyway - loved that cold dead hands bit
Suresh
Good luck anyway - loved that cold dead hands bit
Suresh
08 November 2004, 12:48 PM
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Good Effort, SB. I'm a bit disappointed that no-one has mentioned fuel surge yet.
I once got off a parking ticket by writing back saying "I was not on or near that street at that time and date". I subsequently remembered that I was, but I didn't get a ticket stuck to my window. In any case, I heard no more about it.
I once got off a parking ticket by writing back saying "I was not on or near that street at that time and date". I subsequently remembered that I was, but I didn't get a ticket stuck to my window. In any case, I heard no more about it.
08 November 2004, 01:02 PM
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A very well thought out and considered response.
Bit worried about the potential 'conflict' in terms of your job at the council though... could this get through the channels and come back to you in your professional dealings? Is it this council you work for?
I recall a similar issue where an employee of the same company as me deliberately rammed the back of my car at a petrol station. I didn't know at the time he worked for the company.
Had the police at the employers door, and interviews were conducted at the business. Needless to say, the HR director had me in his office 15 mins after the police had gone, and made it clear in no uncertain terms that this type of 'activity' (although I was the victim and the idiot was taken to court for criminal damage) was potentially damanging to the company and I had in effect a 'black mark' on my sheet for bring the issue to the workplace (even though they were only connected by coincidence).
If you do work for the same council, I suggest that you amend the part with reference to the fact you are an officer of the council, and state that you are familiar with the nature of their work in a professional capacity. If they then add 2+2, you would be ok.
Good luck.
C
Bit worried about the potential 'conflict' in terms of your job at the council though... could this get through the channels and come back to you in your professional dealings? Is it this council you work for?
I recall a similar issue where an employee of the same company as me deliberately rammed the back of my car at a petrol station. I didn't know at the time he worked for the company.
Had the police at the employers door, and interviews were conducted at the business. Needless to say, the HR director had me in his office 15 mins after the police had gone, and made it clear in no uncertain terms that this type of 'activity' (although I was the victim and the idiot was taken to court for criminal damage) was potentially damanging to the company and I had in effect a 'black mark' on my sheet for bring the issue to the workplace (even though they were only connected by coincidence).
If you do work for the same council, I suggest that you amend the part with reference to the fact you are an officer of the council, and state that you are familiar with the nature of their work in a professional capacity. If they then add 2+2, you would be ok.
Good luck.
C
08 November 2004, 01:12 PM
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Big C - reminds me of when I worked for a council. I was called out to look at a potentially dangerous tree, and in the process got a parking ticket. I explained to my boss that there was nowhere I could have legally parked (The whole borough was CPZ) and asked him to get the ticket scrubbed off.
He writes a memo to the parking warden section explaining the same.
They write back saying that council staff are not exempt from parking regulations.
He writes back saying that he is aware of that, but please consider the exceptional circmstances.
They write back saying that they do not make exceptions in *any* circumstances, and that if he feels that his officer was justified in parking illegally, he should pay the fne from his section's budget.
He writes back saying that he bellieves that the parking section are being deliberately unhelpful, and he is going to write to the director of the service.
They write back saying that they are merely following the coucil's procedures, and it won't make any difference who he writes to.
By the end of the fiasco, there was a whole box file of corespondence about the £40.00 fine. Eventually my boss's boss intervened and paid the £40.00 from *his* budget.
Local Authority efficiency - you gotta love it.
He writes a memo to the parking warden section explaining the same.
They write back saying that council staff are not exempt from parking regulations.
He writes back saying that he is aware of that, but please consider the exceptional circmstances.
They write back saying that they do not make exceptions in *any* circumstances, and that if he feels that his officer was justified in parking illegally, he should pay the fne from his section's budget.
He writes back saying that he bellieves that the parking section are being deliberately unhelpful, and he is going to write to the director of the service.
They write back saying that they are merely following the coucil's procedures, and it won't make any difference who he writes to.
By the end of the fiasco, there was a whole box file of corespondence about the £40.00 fine. Eventually my boss's boss intervened and paid the £40.00 from *his* budget.
Local Authority efficiency - you gotta love it.
08 November 2004, 04:47 PM
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Different Council so no fear of backlash! I don't expect them to write back saying they will let me off on the basis of my letter. I'm basically just setting my stall out.....if they want that money they they will have to drag me to court over it cause I'm certainly not writing out a cheque. It's just not happening and it's about time someone in Edinburgh stood up to them. The storys I've heard and seen reported about Edinburgh's Traffic Wardens in the last few years are beyond belief!
08 November 2004, 05:01 PM
#20
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The storys I've heard and seen reported about Edinburgh's Traffic Wardens in the last few years are beyond belief!
Commission chasing w@nkers the lot of them
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