Janice Bailey wants to warn others of the situation (Picture: PlymouthLive/ BPM Media)
A woman has hit out at being fined despite leaving a ‘friendly note’ on the bonnet of her car.
Janice Bailey, who works as a tour guide, had popped into Plymouth over lunchtime on January 11.
She claims a nearby parking metre was covered up with an ‘out of order’ sign.
Janice only had coins so was unable to pay via any other method, so quickly wrote a note to make any passing parking attendant aware of the situation.
But her red Citroen was still slapped with a fine and, despite numerous appeal attempts, has been unable to overturn it.
Janice, who lives in Dousland, says she has now ‘given up’ and handed over £25 to the council.
She told Plymouth Live: ‘I just feel very cross and inflamed.
‘Apparently I should have scanned a barcode but I didn’t have my phone on me, and I don’t have internet on my phone anyway.
Janice claims a nearby parking metre was out of order (Picture: Getty Images/iStockphoto)
‘People older than myself in their 70s and 80s must not know what to do; I wouldn’t have a bloody clue even if I did have my phone.’
Janice had parked at Derrys Cross, near The Athenaeum, on January 11 at 12.05pm.
She’d only been away from her car for 30 minutes before returning to discover the fine.
Janice added: ‘The car parking department have told me that their cameras showed the meter was working. But if it was working, why was it covered? Please be careful motorists in Plymouth: if a meter isn’t working, park elsewhere.
‘I should have taken a photograph on my iPad really, I wish I did. I’m not going to get my money back but I can warn other people.’
A Plymouth City Council spokesperson said they could not comment on an individual case.
But a spokesperson added: ‘If a parking machine is out of order people should use an alternative method of payment (for example phone call, text or the RingGo app or website), use another machine nearby (where available) or move to an alternative location with a working machine.
‘As we announced in November, we will be soon be removing cash payments and upgrading all on-street machines to accept payments by phone, credit and debit cards and mobile apps.
‘This will offer more payment options for drivers while also removing the need for cash to be collected, stored and processed, reducing the city’s carbon footprint.’
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at [email protected].
For more stories like this, check our news page.
Janice Bailey wants to warn others of the situation (Picture: PlymouthLive/ BPM Media)
A woman has hit out at being fined despite leaving a ‘friendly note’ on the bonnet of her car.
Janice Bailey, who works as a tour guide, had popped into Plymouth over lunchtime on January 11.
She claims a nearby parking metre was covered up with an ‘out of order’ sign.
Janice only had coins so was unable to pay via any other method, so quickly wrote a note to make any passing parking attendant aware of the situation.
But her red Citroen was still slapped with a fine and, despite numerous appeal attempts, has been unable to overturn it.
Janice, who lives in Dousland, says she has now ‘given up’ and handed over £25 to the council.
She told Plymouth Live: ‘I just feel very cross and inflamed.
‘Apparently I should have scanned a barcode but I didn’t have my phone on me, and I don’t have internet on my phone anyway.
Janice claims a nearby parking metre was out of order (Picture: Getty Images/iStockphoto)
‘People older than myself in their 70s and 80s must not know what to do; I wouldn’t have a bloody clue even if I did have my phone.’
Janice had parked at Derrys Cross, near The Athenaeum, on January 11 at 12.05pm.
She’d only been away from her car for 30 minutes before returning to discover the fine.
Janice added: ‘The car parking department have told me that their cameras showed the meter was working. But if it was working, why was it covered? Please be careful motorists in Plymouth: if a meter isn’t working, park elsewhere.
‘I should have taken a photograph on my iPad really, I wish I did. I’m not going to get my money back but I can warn other people.’
A Plymouth City Council spokesperson said they could not comment on an individual case.
But a spokesperson added: ‘If a parking machine is out of order people should use an alternative method of payment (for example phone call, text or the RingGo app or website), use another machine nearby (where available) or move to an alternative location with a working machine.
‘As we announced in November, we will be soon be removing cash payments and upgrading all on-street machines to accept payments by phone, credit and debit cards and mobile apps.
‘This will offer more payment options for drivers while also removing the need for cash to be collected, stored and processed, reducing the city’s carbon footprint.’
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at [email protected].
For more stories like this, check our news page.
