The man behind a campaign group supporting those “fined” by a controversial parking firm in Perth has called for them to be kicked out of the regulating body.
Stephen Gorton set up SmartingfromParking after two of his family members and several of his neighbours fell foul of the new system at the Kinnoull Street multi-storey car park.
Cars entering the site, which is run by Smart Parking, are captured on cameras and the machines require motorists to enter their vehicle registration numbers when buying a ticket.
The system has confused scores of motorists, however, some of whom have called for a boycott.
Mr Gorton, who lives in Perth, believes Smart Parking is failing to abide by the British Parking Association’s (BPA) code of practice and wants to see the firm removed from the group. He says signage, which has apparently been updated twice since the new system went live, is confusing, with drivers not made aware it is private ground until after they have committed to entering the site’s one-way system.
Additionally, he says the machines do not tell motorists how much they owe if they need to top up their parking or choose to pay at the end of their stay.
The local businessman added that his family is planning on taking their cases to court rather than paying up.
He said: “We’ve never been to court in our lives but if that’s what it takes, we’ll go because we are thoroughly fed up of it.
“When we found out a number of our neighbours had received tickets, we realised it wasn’t just our family; there must be other people in Perth who Smart Parking is attempting to pursue.
“The easiest thing to do would be to pay up, but it’s not the right thing to do. I think people are paying out of fear and pressure.”
A BPA spokeswoman confirmed it has received a complaint in relation to Smart Parking but declined to comment on the individual case.
Smart Parking failed to comment despite repeated requests from The Courier.