Elderly Man Fined £170 for Broken Parking Machine Incident in London
A pensioner faces a £170 fine after a broken parking machine prevented him from paying a £1 ticket in East London
Hornchurch, East London, Parking Fine, Berkeley Bathurst, One Park Solution
Hornchurch: So, there’s this 75-year-old guy named Berkeley Bathurst who’s really upset. He got hit with a £170 parking fine because the machine was broken when he tried to buy a ticket for just a pound. Can you believe that?
He parked his car and went to the Post Office, thinking he’d be back in a jiffy. But when he checked the machine, it was out of order. And guess what? He didn’t have his phone to pay another way. Talk about bad luck!
A few weeks later, he gets a £100 fine in the mail, which quickly jumped to £170 with threats of legal action. Mr. Bathurst, a retired gardener, is furious and calls the parking company “gangsters.” He’s not about to let them get away with this.
He said, “How could I pay if the machine wasn’t working? I tried to appeal, but they rejected it. I’m not paying because I refuse to be ripped off. That’s a lot of money for me!”
It’s really stressing him out. He feels it’s not his job to fix their machines. They told him he should’ve found another way to pay, which he thinks is ridiculous. “We won’t put up with this nonsense,” he added.
On October 16, he parked at Elm Park car park, hoping to grab a quick ticket. But the machine just flashed “Not in use.” After running his errand, he was shocked to find a fine waiting for him weeks later.
At first, he ignored it, but then debt collectors got involved, adding a £70 fee and threatening court action. They even warned him about more charges if he didn’t pay up.
As Christmas approached, the stress only grew. He received a letter demanding £170 just days before the holiday. “How awful to send that to an old pensioner!” he exclaimed. They worried about bailiffs showing up at their door.
But Mr. Bathurst is standing his ground. “I’m not paying it. We’ll fight this until the end. It was just a pound! It feels like a scam to me. They’re like the mafia, demanding payment or else.”
His wife, Angela, 73, joined in, calling the parking company’s actions “tyrannical.” She thinks they only care about money, especially since he was barely parked for ten minutes.
The couple, who have lived in Hornchurch for 30 years, are warning others to be careful when using that car park. They want to make sure no one else gets stuck with a hefty fine like this. So far, One Park Solution hasn’t commented on the situation.