Flat-Living.co.uk Workshop
Are you totally parking mad?
There has been a lot of noise recently about the Government’s proposal to ban clamping and towing away on private land. Many motorists have welcomed the news and various organisations have declared that the ‘war’ on the driver is finally over, writes Patrick Troy of the BPA.
who use clamping as a way to deter people from parking on their land or as a last resort when faced with persistent offenders. The problem is that there are a small
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but noticeable number of rogue clamping companies who treat motorists unfairly.
The intention of the ban is to drive out these rogue traders but in reality, it will simply push them into other methods of enforcement. The ‘cowboys’ have been able to get away with it because the
Government has let them. The private parking sector - including clamping - is largely unregulated, with minimal qualifications for getting a clamping licence and even fewer conditions for keeping it. The Government failed to set a limit on acceptable release fees and in many cases, the public have been exploited. There is not even a proper appeals’ service. But an outright clamping ban on private land is not the answer.
Without the risk of clamping, there is little incentive to follow the rules. Under the new guidelines, there will be no way of dealing with someone parking on your land or even blocking you in. This could be for an hour, a day or even longer. The only way to challenge it would be to cite trespass and obtain a court order for the keeper to remove the vehicle. This could take months. If you touch the car, you could be liable for damaging private property. If you call the Police, their response will be that it is a civil matter and they cannot get involved. The Government is hoping that ticketing will replace wheel clamping
as a deterrent. The idea being that if a driver does not abide by a car park’s terms and conditions, a ticket can be issued. Currently, the only method of enforcing tickets is by way of citing contract law. When a driver enters the site, the signs form the basis of the contract (as long as the signage clearly states the risks of contravening the conditions of parking.) However, contract law is notoriously complex and clouded in ambiguity, thus the system is flawed and tickets are regularly ignored or destroyed. Although prosecution has been successful, it can be costly, inconvenient and unsatisfactory for all parties involved. Therefore before clamping and towing on private land is banned,
legislation must be changed to make tickets in private car parks enforceable, providing they are issued by members who are operating
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ittle consideration is be- ing given to the impact that this proposal could have on leaseholders and residents management companies,
under the scrutiny of an Accredited Trade Association (ATA). Currently, the BPA - and its Approved Operator Scheme - is the only ATA for the industry. We launched the AOS in October 2007 and it is backed by a robust
Code of Practice. This includes recommendations for levels of charges, behavior of enforcement staff and clarity of signage. The scheme is open to all sizes of operators and members include landowners, national and local companies, hospitals, railways and universities. AOS members must adhere to a strict Code of Practice, ensuring consistently high standards. Until such time that there is tighter regulation of porking on private land, we would encourage landowners and leaseholders to actively seek out and employ Approved Operators, thus making it more and more difficult for the rogue operators to get new business.
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