Driver criticises parking officials
Thursday 26th February 2009, 10:45AM GMT.
The protestor, in red, at Telford Town Centre
A woman who parked her car in front of exit barriers at a Telford Shopping Centre car park today described how she launched her protest after losing her ticket.
The woman, who did not want to be named, admitted that she had been wrong to block the barriers and now felt a “little embarrassed” over her actions but criticised the way that parking officials had treated her.
She also claimed the £6 fixed rate for a lost ticket was “extortionate”.
The incident involving the Hyundai driver, who has lived in Telford for six years, happened at the Red Oak car park on Tuesday.
The mother-of-two, who is originally from Chicago, said she had been in the shopping centre for less than an hour.
She said: “I did pay for my parking, I just forgot my ticket at the machine after I paid my £1.10.
“I went back to the machine and I asked a woman at the pay machine if she had found a ticket. She handed me a ticket, which I assumed was mine.
“At the barriers the ticket was rejected. I then informed the parking attendant of what happened.
“I was then told by a female over an intercom that it was not her problem what happened to my ticket and I would have to pay £6.
“I explained to that rude woman that I had already paid. All she could say was it is not her problem.”
She said the matter was resolved when one of the parking attendants agreed she could pay £3.
She said she had got frustrated and angry with the way she felt she was being treated, but added: “I’m not proud of myself. I could have probably handled it better.”
Tracy Hadley, marketing manager at Telford Shopping Centre said: “She was very, very abusive to our staff and that’s why the police were called. There are two sides to this story and our version is very different.
“Our staff can’t afford to be abusive, they go through rigorous training, and we would not gain anything from them being abusive. We pride ourselves on the quality of our customer service staff.”
By Lisa Rowley
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At least this story has raised a debate about the car park in relation to time spent, amount charged,lost tickets and calculations of lost ticket charges.
Maybe it should be reviewed and new technology introduced without the need of tickets. A number plate scanner would be better, where the customer would enter their number at a pay point on departure, sorted….
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Very interesting story shropshire star, well done!!
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well done to the driver for her actions. Maybe next time, it could be coordinated and close off the whole of the Town centre Parking, maybe then they will start to play fair rather than money grabbing.
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good for her we all would like to make a stand,working in the centre, most of my wages go in charges
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Paula, get a bus, park somewhere else, walk, cycle or catch a train.
I used to work in Bath city centre, parking around £25 a day. I did something that you wonderful people clearly havent thought of! I parked about 1 mile away from my office, and walked the last bit every day, it improved my fitness too, as if you know Bath at all you would appriciate that the walk back to my car was up-hill.
Everyone else, stop moaning and shop elsewhere.
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Ok Big Matty park and walk to work were in Telford not Bath and if it was that easy dont you think we’d be doing that already,we can moan all we want some of us are Telfor born and bred you’ve moved here for cheaper housing.
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Lorry, does it matter where I grew up or my motives for moving? In fact house prices had nothing to do with my move from Bath!
Also Lorry, it is that easy! There are many places you can park if you wish to use the Town Centre. OK many of those places are in residential areas, but thats just unfortunate… not prohibitive. I used Bath as just one expample of where I have worked and parked in such a manner. In many places I have been forced to park in residential areas.
So, can you give me a good reason that you cannot park elsewhere?
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Big Matty: Here, here. You can park at Halford for free and walk across the bridge into the town centre.
I take my biclycle on the back of my car, park near the NEC and cycle in to save £8. Not a problem.
By the way, Bath is lovely – I stayed at Pratts Hotel if you know it.
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Dear Tracy Badley marketing manager at Telford Shopping Centre
I tried to explain to your colleague, “I did not lose my ticket” In fact I paid £1.10 for my parking, I just forgot my ticket at the machine. A woman at the machine gave me a ticket she found. I just assumed it was mine.
I still have the ticket if you would to see it!
I would like you to prove the abuse I supposedly toward the staff. While you’re at it take good look at your CCTV to see if I indeed paid for my ticket.
You are only trying to white wash this incident and justify your staff’s actions.
I am willing to bet you have reviewed the CCTV footage and realised I did pay for my parking. The only reason you called the police, because you couldn’t be bother taking the timeout to be HUMAN.
So get off the CROSS someone needs the wood!!!!!
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shouldnt have lost your ticket then.
Maybe paying full price will teach people to be more careful in future.
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I think you can sneak through there. That pick up truck should give it a try
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to the parking lady….
it may not be much to some but if people did nothing no one would ever know how job worth some people can be. i think when they have looked at the cctv they should write and say sorry.
well done……
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silly women , if you do the crime then pay the fine
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This is the right thing to do. These people sit in their cubicles and charge us for nothing. It take an American to make them think. Well done to her.
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Steve: If the woman wasn’t in the cubicle, then muppets who loose their tickets would never get out!
Therefore, they may not do much, but people who require their service should pay the wage of someone sitting there doing nothing all day – not the people who look after their tickets! Honestly *tut*
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Lucy W
I would take a female to judge another female so harshly
“The British have a long tradition of obeying the laws of our land. For exaple you won’t catch us driving with mobile phones, speeding, smoking in our pubs and chaseing little foxes with dogs, all because our Queen has said we mustn’t.
That’s the problem with the States, there’s no absolute power and Americans think they can do what they like as and when it suits them.
Mind do what do you expect from a nation that doesn’t play cricket?”
You seem to talk a big game. Arm chairCommentator !
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