Confusion over car parking payment at Royal Preston Hospital lands angry woman with a fine

The woman, who wished to remain anonymous, told the Post after visiting Preston Hospital on November 4 with her one-year-old daughter she had paid the £2.50 parking charge at a kiosk for the one hour period before leaving the carpark. However, a couple of days later she was issued with a charge letter from parking company Parking Eye who take the payments claiming she had left without paying. The charge was for £70, which stated it would be discounted to £42 if paid within 14 days.

The woman appealed the letter with screenshots of her bank payments which showed the money had been withdrawn from a paybyphone company which she claims Parkingeye rejected on the basis that they did not associate with this company and that she had entered the wrong details. After appealing to POPLA - the independent appeals service for parking charge notices, the woman has now had her charge which was lowered to £20 overturned by Parkingeye as a 'gesture of goodwill'.

Clearing up the confusion, a spokesperson for Royal Preston Hospital added that from December 2018 they had introduced a new parking management and payment system at Royal Preston and Chorley and South Ribble Hospitals that replaced old barriers and pay and display machines with an automated number plate recognition system called ANPR and that if you use a debit or credit card to pay your statement will show the payment and the reference as “paybyphone”.

The woman said: "In this day and age, with the rising costs of everything, I feel they are purposely making things difficult so that people can't complain and give up and have to pay the fines. I stayed at Royal Preston Hospital (RPH) for just under an hour. I went to the car parking kiosk in the main entrance to pay for my parking. The kiosk did not recognise my registration plate. I put in that I arrived at 9am and the machine requested a payment of £2.50 which I paid by debit card. I received a parking charge from Parkingeye and instantly appealed it with a screen shot of my bank statement. My appeal was then declined with the reason ‘payment service that is not associated to Parkingeye. As such, our records confirm that no parking was purchased to allow your vehicle to remain within the site for the duration of the stay.’"

She then made an appeal to POPLA with proof of payment and screen shot.

She added: "Even if this had not have been overturned, I would not have been paying this charge notice. It's bonkers. I paid using the physical machine via debit card. I have done what I was meant to do but now I am being punished because a business is run extremely badly. They don't know who is taking their payments. Something is not right with the whole thing."

What did Parkingeye have to say on the matter?

A Parkingeye spokesperson said: “Parkingeye has partnered with Royal Preston Hospital for four years to significantly improve how its car parks operate. During this time there has been investment in modern consumer-facing systems which has enhanced accessibility and made parking at the hospital easier and safer for staff, patients and visitors. The system is designed to ensure the efficiency and smooth operation of the hospital by ensuring that patients, visitors and staff park in their allocated car parks. Those using the car park have the option to pay by the user-friendly kiosks or through Good2Go.

“Upon receiving further information relating to this Parking Charge Notice it appears the motorist entered the wrong registration details. We have since reviewed all evidence and have cancelled the PCN as a gesture of goodwill.

“Parkingeye operates a BPA (British Parking Association) audited appeals process, which motorists can use to appeal their Parking Charge Notice. If anyone has mitigating circumstances, we would encourage them to highlight this by appealing.”

What did Royal Preston Hospital add?

A spokesperson for Royal Preston Hospital added: "If you use a debit or credit card to pay for parking, your statement will show the payment and the reference “paybyphone”. Everyone gets this “paybyphone” on their statement if a major debit/credit is their chosen method of payment. (The actual card processing system is called parkgood2go and is owned, managed and controlled by Parking Eye).

"From December 21st, 2018, we introduced a new parking management and payment system at Royal Preston and Chorley and South Ribble Hospitals. This replaced our old barriers and pay and display machines with an automated number plate recognition system called ANPR. Cameras read your vehicle registration number (VRN) when you enter the car park, so you don't need to put a ticket on your windscreen.

"This new system means that you do not need to ‘pay and display’ a parking ticket. Instead, anybody using our car parks should pay at one of the payment kiosks before leaving. To pay for your parking, you will need to know your registration number as you pay before departure. (If you don’t know it, please write it down and keep it with you.)

"Our payment kiosks which are at our reception areas and around the car parks accept cash (both coins and notes) and give change. You can also make payment by all major credit/debit cards.

"There is also a facility which enables you to pay online via the parkgood2go system. Should you sign up to this online system your first car parking charge is free.

"Additionally and if you have left the hospital without paying for whatever reason, you can use parkgood2go to pay for your parking time up to midnight on the day after your visit.

"Very rarely due to dirt on a camera lens or weather conditions, when you come to pay, there is no time of arrival stamp for when you arrived at our car parks as the ANPR camera has failed to record your entry.

"If anyone has a query or complaint about the car park system, or believes that they have been overcharged, or wish to discuss an appeal against a Parking Charge Notice please visit www.parkingeye.co.uk/appeal