Why are parking charges necessary?

When it comes to parking, without order, there is chaos. In an ideal world, everybody follows the rules established for parking, things run smoothly, and parking charges are no longer necessary.

Sadly, this isn’t always the case; that is why there needs to be a system in place; to ensure that people follow the rules so that services and facilities that people rely on to make their lives easier are protected and readily available.

How do they work?

Parking charges are the result of a parking infringement. They can also serve as a deterrent, making someone think twice about where they choose to park when they arrive on a site.

Parking charges are designed to be fair, they are put in place to only affect those that do not follow the rules on a site. Before we issue a parking charge it goes through a thorough 21-point check, by our internal team to ensure it’s valid. Once received, if a motorist feels that they have been charged unfairly, they have the option to appeal the charge. If this appeal is rejected, they are then able to appeal to the industry ombudsman.

Parking charges are not just handed out for the sake of handing them out. They are intended to protect the businesses and services that rely on the car parks they are in effect on. By enforcing rules on sites, you help to eliminate behaviours and conditions that can have an impact on people’s safety, by cutting congestion and the fight for limited spaces you make a car park a safer space.

Protecting services

One example of a site where it is essential to support a steady flow of traffic is a hospital. Congestion on a site like this can be a genuine problem as it can make it difficult for not only visitors to the hospital but also for patients and even emergency service vehicles to get to where they need to be.

By making sure drivers do not overstay on site, park in the wrong areas, or block vital routes, it is possible to reduce congestion. Not only is this beneficial on the car park but in the surrounding area itself as staff, customers and visitors no longer need to park further afield, creating issues with pavement parking that frustrate local residents. These solutions help make it easier to get around an area and remove any potential congestion for ambulances, allowing them a clear path to and from the hospital.

Protecting businesses

If you were driving to a business and were unable to park on their car park because it was overcrowded, would you assume they were busy and go elsewhere?

Unauthorised vehicles on a car park can seriously damage a business by preventing legitimate paying customers from being able to park, causing them a potential loss of revenue and the customers a loss of service.

Having a deterrent in place can ensure that only authorised users have access to a car park, helping protect businesses by making life easier for themselves and their customers.

Protecting accessibility

Many motorists will have seen someone parking in a space they shouldn’t be parking in, whether that’s a drop off point, blue badge space, EV charging station or even an ambulance bay.

Parking irresponsibly makes life increasingly difficult for the people those dedicated spaces are designed to help. For example, if you park in an accessible bay when you don’t need to, someone who might need that extra room to manoeuvre a wheelchair or benefit from the extra space to get in and out of their vehicle is suddenly:

Spaces with less room
In a space with less room around it, struggling to do something that would be more straightforward in an accessible space
Pushing people to further spaces
More likely to be much further away from the entrance than they should be, meaning more time, effort and stress involved in them accessing a service

This misuse can be prevented by taking steps, to make sure those dedicated spaces are kept free for the people who need them.

Remember, parking charges aren’t intended to penalise the people with a legitimate need to be on a car park. Parking charges are there to reduce abuse and ensure when you need to park somewhere or access a service the right bay is available.

To understand more about your parking charge letter and how to pay, click below

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