Premier Park Ltd, of Exeter, writes.
Charges have been kept low in the car park to encourage people to park off road and it used daily by around 50 - 60 cars, the majority of which seem to be able to park and pay without any problems.
With regards to our enforcement policy, we allowed an initial 3 month period of warnings & Parking Charge Notices to discourage non payment of the low parking charges. Whilst this has worked to some degree, we have been disappointed to note that there have been a number of people still failing to pay & display a ticket and we have therefore introduced vehicle immobilisation to deter this.
We have noted several reasons as to why people do not pay, for example the "machine was broke" and the site is "dark and unwelcoming". There are two machines on site and there has never been a time when they have both been out of order. Both entrances, and parts of the car park, are lit by street lights and ample signs are in place at these entrances. In addition we fail to understand why someone would drive of the public highway into an unlit area they were unsure about and leave their vehicle without question, whilst then walking through the area, past signs, to leave.
We believe it is clear from the low cost of parking in this car park that profiting at the expense of the local population is not our primary aim. However, we would make clear that anyone who does not purchase and display a valid ticket in this car park will face the advertised sanctions and we make no apologies for this.
Finally, we comply fully with the Security Industry Authority (SIA) legislation when immobilising vehicles. We also operate an appeals service whereby anyone who has paid & displayed a valid ticket in the windscreen but faced enforcement action can write in to us. We will then check our photographic evidence from the time and reply fully to their appeal.