Car park '˜biggest con going', says driver

Roy Fleet, 79, a designer who lives in Rustington, is just the latest person to contact the Herald and Gazette to express anger over the Montague Centre car park in Worthing.

Roy parked there on March 25, for about an hour and a half. Almost a month later he received a £90 fine from CP Plus, which runs the car park in Liverpool Gardens.

Roy said: “I was absolutely gobsmacked and annoyed as it is not something that I would do.

“I have used car parks like this for years. The letter said I had not made sufficient payment to cover the full duration of my visit.

“I remember I did not have the correct change to pay the required amount of £2.20 so I put in three £1 coins, so an overpayment of 80p.

“The machine accepted this and I thought all was well. It comes up with a picture of your car, too, when you enter your registration number, so you can only pay what it tells you to pay.

“I don’t have a problem with the charges at the car park either, I think they’re quite reasonable.” Roy has since appealed the fine but he said this was turned down by CP Plus.

The fine said he could pay a reduced amount of £50 within 14 days, or he would have to pay the full £90 within 28 days.

He said: “I paid the £50 in the end as I refuse to give them £90.

“I am annoyed I had to pay, if this was an honest mistake of mine I would have owned up. It is a scam and they are getting away with it. It could be the biggest con going. My concerns to them have not been considered seriously in any way and they are happy to just take the money.

“The fine letter is also threatening and I would like a refund. I can afford to pay it – however, I am worried about others who may be struggling. This could make them worry sick.”

A spokesman from CP Plus said: “Our main aim is to make the parking experience as easy and simple as possible for all motorists.

“In this instance, there is no record of any payment or transaction relating to the specific vehicle.

“In addition, we have had no recorded incidents with any of our technology around this time. If the driver can provide proof of payment or some more information we would be very happy to look into this further.”

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