Parking Fines - What To Do When They're Wrong.

I remember returning to where I'd parked in an empty taxi rank and a warden was there and about to about to issue a ticket. I pointed out that taxis found it too far away from the main rank where all their customers waited and where as many taxis were parked on double yellow lines as were in the rank at non-peak times, that the only vehicles using the rank where I was parked were police cars getting take away food from the hotel opposite, and suggested it wouldn't be sensible to start pursuing everybody. I never received a ticket.

 

In my local paper today, mad or what?

Manager of Rat Race in Margate High Street Ryan Bond given a fixed penalty notice after sweeping the front of shop
18 October 2016
by Ellis Stephenson

• [email protected]
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A Margate shopkeeper has been fined for cleaning the street outside the place he has worked for more than a year.

Ryan Bond is a manager at Rat Race in Margate High Street and was carrying out his daily routine of cleaning the outside of the store.

He was being watched by two environment wardens as he was sweeping cigarette ends into the road for a road cleaning machine to pick up when it next came past.


Ryan Bond was fined £80 for sweeping the street outside the shop where he works



The uniformed workers, who were on duty on behalf of Thanet District Council (TDC), then followed Mr Bond into the shop.

They handed him an £80 fixed penalty notice (FPN), saying as he had touched the cigarette ends with his broom he had then taken responsibility for them.

When he asked the team what he should have done with them instead, he was told that he should have picked them up and put them in a bin.


Ryan Bond was fined £80 for sweeping the street outside the shop where he works



Mr Bond said: “It happened on Friday at about 1.30pm.

“It’s put me off tidying the front of the shop because I’m worried I’m going to get fined.

“I’ve written a letter to the council to ask for some advice and I’m going to wait for their reply before I pay it.”

Despite the appeal, a council official has released a statement condemning Mr Bond's decision to sweep the litter away.

Head of operational services Geoff Dunne said: "Whilst we appreciate that Mr Bond was trying to keep his shop entrance clear, it should be noted that had Mr Bond collected up and binned the litter, the outcome would have been different.

"The council can confirm that we have received an appeal, which we will process in line with our guidelines."

Mr Bond, who is 21, has worked at the shop for a year and a half, sweeping the pavement outside every day to smarten up the entrance.

He has now stopped as he is worried he may be hit with another fine.

He added: “I’m being treated like I’ve done something wrong but I haven’t, I was just tidying the front of the shop."

 

Makes me think that maybe just maybe we`d all be better off without those council extra busibodies who create work for themselves that ends up costing the public a fortune. Hiring staff on 200k a year jobs but these same staff end up hiring in consultants to tell them what they need to do.So why have the 200k staff if they cant solve problems themselves.
My council is always hiring staff for important 100k jobs then releasing them after a few years to save us money? They get massive payouts and then we are told the council is skint. All these positions for a rural council where nothing ever gets done.

 

Does make you wonder that if you kick/knock any litter on the footpath as you walk past and as you touched it last, would you be issued with a ticket? I live on the main road surrounded by trees, I have in the past cleared the leaves from my front garden/path outside, so if I left one leaf I could perhaps have to pay a fine if I was seen............Total madness.

 

Living in the countryside where it's offen to have cow poo on the roads, Now, it's an offence to not pick up your dog poo so why isn't it a offence for farmers not to pick up there cow poo and when the muck spreads come out there's can be hell of a mess here and no one cleans it up even when it has fallen off the muck spreader which is agaist the law, insecure load.
then there's all the horse poo which don't get picked up

 

Regarding parking fines etc.
Just who is able to fine you these days??
I was under the impression that only the courts could fine an individual.

But we seem to have schools fining parents, for going on holiday, supermarkets fining shoppers, for parking too long.

How does this work?

Could I fine someone who parked on my property??

 

He should have used one of these



I think it's the same if you return to your car and find a piece of rubbish on the roof/bonnet, if you pick it off and throw it down you're littering, but if you drive off so it falls onto the ground it's OK.

 

Some operators without any connection whatsoever to any of the supermarkets visit their car parks and issue penalty notices for the likes of parking in disabled/'parent and child' spaces without displaying a badge, leaving cars in 'pick up points', parking outside marked bays, etc. It is a scam.

 

I've heard of supermarkets actually pursuing people who have parked in their car parks and not conforming to their rules.
Likewise railway car parks.

I dont think its very clear to people who can fine you and who cant.