Company I worked for used to pay tickets.
Threw a warden off the job when he came over to me one day chest inflated in a raised voice stating loudly ‘You can’t park here, move or I will give you a ticket.’
To which I replied. ‘Firstly, I’m not parked, secondly there is the windscreen. Carry on.’
He stood around for the next 30 minutes making the gestures, but never bothered.
Another occasion, I had to deliver here. Cars parked in loading bay, so I double parked blocking road. Had to handball 4 pallets into the shop that now says ‘the interior specialist’. Traffic built up, loads of beeping. But I carried on. Police man appeared, asked what was going on, I pointed out the blocked bays, and he told me to take my time as he issued tickets to the cars in the loading bays. Traffic hated me though.
I agree with what emmerson said, a traffic warden in Lytham St Annes told me not to move and take my time. The irate BMW driver was actually drinking coffee at the cafe next door and could see me parked up yet the ignorant prat didn’t come and move. That ignorance cost him £60 and “made him late for an important meeting”.
The warden even backed up my bs story that I couldn’t move the lorry until I’d finished the delivery as the load was now insecure because I’d started stripping the pallet.
I’ve blocked in cantankerous grannies with blue badges because they were too ignorant to move back 6feet into the empty disabled bays, again a “community warden” told me I was within my rights to do so as the loading bay was clearly signed.
I never had to do it in London and I would think twice as I don’t trust the wardens there (although one should’ve ticketed us because we were there longer than 20 minutes, but ignored us because of the size of the load).
My advice is check the road and sign markings in future, it’s much cheaper.
Just a heads up for anyone who might find themselves in a similar situation to mine a year ago…
One day last year, I had to park up here overnight as I had arrived to tip (at the firm on the left) just as the guys were going home (around 5pm). I was parked in exactly the same place as the truck in the picture. There are no yellow lines on the road or kerbs and there are no parking restriction signs anywhere either, so didn’t forsee any problems. I didn’t get any ticket and nobody knocked on my door to ask me to move on.
However, a few weeks later my boss produced this parking ticket off Bexley Heath Council demanding £110 to be paid within so many days or the fine will be increased (to something like £180 if I remember correctly). The time on the parking ticket was 21:20 and if anyone had knocked on my door at that time I could’ve spoke with them as I was still up watching tv until around 11pm. So they obviously just make a note of the date, time and vehicle reg and make no attempt to move anybody on. This proves they are simply out to generate money (at the drivers expense).
I emailed the council explaining that I’m the permanent driver of this vehicle and can they please send any proof they have of me breaking any laws by parking where I did. I never got any reply. About a week later my boss said he had received a form from Bexley Heath Council. It was just an appeal form with no letter in with it, no instructions and it was still addressed to his business, not to me personally, despite me declaring that I was the driver at the time and it had nothing to do with my boss. He just owns the truck.
Anyway, I completed the form and it was sent off to this independent appeals place (somewhere in Croyden if I remember rightly) along with a letter from myself explaining how I hadn’t broken any laws and the council haven’t given me any proof to contradict me, and I think they were out of order doing what they did and in the manner they did it.
The appeals place wrote back to me with the news that the council have backed out of the claim. So it just goes to show you.
I wonder how much money that council have made off drivers who have simply paid up?
Company I’m about to leave put a clause in my contract saying they would pay my fines, but charge me if I could have parked legally.
I used to get some really crap drops in London, tickets all the while. Told TM if he ever charged me for a single one, I’d either refuse to go into London, or ring in sick if I got the run. Never got charged once.
No way was I working for free, doing a couple of tonne here and there with a sack truck down a few flights of stairs.
