Wilson/Parking Enforcement Services - worth taking a disputed parking breach notice to the DT?

Forums › Transport (cars, bikes and boats) › Wilson/Parking Enforcement Services - worth taking a disputed parking breach notice to the DT?

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Lizard1977

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#2751080 28-Jul-2021 10:18

It's now been more than six weeks since I wrote back to Wilsons/PES, and haven't heard a peep back. I hope I'm not courting fate here, but previously they have responded within a month, so I'm cautiously treating it as closed and have been moving on. But I'm not using their parking places anymore, partly on principle, and partly to avoid any prospect that they try and clamp me for unpaid "fines" (which is pretty unlikely, but like I said I'm being cautious). It's funny, but if they hadn't been so pigheaded about their insistence on payment of their "fine" I would have continued to use their facility. Over the long run they will lose more than the $65 they were claiming.

Dratsab

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#2751123 28-Jul-2021 11:52

I found Carepark (a WCC entity) had put an "invoice" on my car when I parked in one of their carparks a couple of months ago. I won't go into details but I instantly sent them an email explaining why there had been a 'breach' and pointed out three things:
- they weren't entitled to be punitive under contract law
- under said law they could only claim actual losses and enforcement costs are an operating cost, not a loss
- as the matter is now in dispute they weren't entitled to pass it on to debt collectors

I offered to pay whatever they calculated my actual parking costs to have been. An automated reply advised "Your Application for review has been received and your Payment Notice placed on hold so as to not incur any further charges while this process takes place. Please be aware you do not need to do anything until you hear back from us. We will review your application and respond within 30 days." I've not heard anything yet and well more than 30 days have passed, even if you say business days.

It'd be an interesting exercise (for someone who's good at this sort of thing) to try and calculate how much businesses such as Parking Enforcement Services (Wilson's) are invoicing on a daily/weekly/monthly/yearly basis and what their earnings are likely to be, based on various percentages of payment. To my mind it's a scam and something the Commerce Commission should be taking seriously and quite possibly the Serious Fraud Office should be taking an interest as well.

Fred99

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#2751129 28-Jul-2021 11:57

Lizard1977:

But I'm not using their parking places anymore, partly on principle, and partly to avoid any prospect that they try and clamp me for unpaid "fines" (which is pretty unlikely, but like I said I'm being cautious).

That's the way! I avoid them too. Councils need parking money far more than the guys in Hong Kong who own that business.

As for the "clamping for unpaid fines", you can add a layer of protection by "opting out" of allowing these parking companies to bulk-harvest the NZTA register. In theory they could still access the information of who the vehicle is registered to, but individually on a "by request" basis.

Site at NZTA to "opt out" is here:

https://transact.nzta.govt.nz/transactions/PersonalInfoAccess/entry

Councils, police, and government departments etc can still freely access the records, as can car companies etc sending recall/safety notices.

There's a couple of notes about some small possible drawbacks that have never caused me any problem. You'll need your driver's license to do the opt-out thing on line.

Fred99

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#2751145 28-Jul-2021 12:29

Well that was quick. Got a reply back, they've noped out of trying to recover their "fine".

They've come back at me asking payment of a $5 parking fee and a $10 admin fee. I've told them to provide proof the $5 fee hadn't been paid (I truly don't know the answer to that - wasn't me using the car) and that I am not paying any "admin" fee to them. Admin is a normal operating cost of the business model they operate.

I won't mention the company's name unless or until Comm Comm prosecutes them.

Lemming

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#2796186 16-Oct-2021 11:36

My Wife has been "wilsoned"..

Was at a medical centre in PN, and came out too find a $65 fine on her car. Was apparently in staff carpark designated area. Luckily she took some photo's which clearly indicate there is no signage in the area restricting parking. Been back today and found is now marked on the ground as staff only.

Have appealed the "fine"with the photo's attached and recieved the response still need to pay.. and threatened an increase of fine and debt collectors.

This company deals in extortion..!

michaelmurfy

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#2796200 16-Oct-2021 12:12

@lemming Read the first page. You don't need to pay this and it isn't a fine.

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Bung

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#2796203 16-Oct-2021 12:41

Dratsab:
I found Carepark (a WCC entity) had put an "invoice" on my car when I parked in one of their carparks

Better late than never. I don't think Care Park is part of the Wellington council. I don't recognise any of the Wellington Care Park sites as being on WCC property.

"Care Park is a leading, major parking management group, operating in excess of 300 car parks in capital cities and many provincial centres in Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia and growing into other Asian markets."

Lemming

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#2796210 16-Oct-2021 13:49

michaelmurfy:

@lemming2 Read the first page. You don't need to pay this and it isn't a fine.

Thanks will follow the advice. Think our situation worse than over staying the allocated time as was no fee to begin with lol.

Just ranting..

MikeB4

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#2796231 16-Oct-2021 15:48

@Bung looking at the accounts for our business Care Park has the same GST number as WCC

Here is a crazy notion, lets give peace a chance.

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