A GRANDAD vowed he would rather go to jail than pay a £160 fine for parking his Land Rover “just over the line” in a car park. Roger Murrary, 89, from Cheshire, was initially lumped with a £50 penalty in May for his parking error at the Macclesfield centre. He made an appeal, insisting he […]
A GRANDAD vowed he would rather go to jail than pay a £160 fine for parking his Land Rover “just over the line” in a car park.
Roger Murrary, 89, from Cheshire, was initially lumped with a £50 penalty in May for his parking error at the Macclesfield centre.
He made an appeal, insisting he parked as close to the wall as possible, while allowing his passenger access to leave the vehicle.
But Cheshire East Council rejected his claim that the space was too small for his jeep.
Officials said he Mr Murray could have parked at other spaces that were large enough for his vehicle.
Mr Murray refused to pay the fine so it has now increased to £158, and bailiffs are threatening to come and seize his possessions.
The latest fine charge includes any costs bailiffs’ incurred on their visit.
Roger, who has two daughters and two grandchildren, told Cheshire Live: “I dare not leave home now as they could turn up at any time it’s frightening.
“I probably should have paid the fine but for a trivial offence of untidy parking this is over the top.
“I am so incensed, the council should show more compassion. I’ll get the barricades up and wait for them, I’d rather go to prison than pay the fine, it’s totally wrong.”
A spokesman for Cheshire East Council said: “Every penalty charge notice (PCN) issued is supported by a range of evidence, including a photographic record.
“In this case, the PCN was issued correctly.
“Regulations state that a vehicle must be parked within the marked bays.
“In this case, the vehicle was positioned in a way that prevented other drivers from using the neighbouring parking space.
“The car park in question has some bays that are noticeably smaller and are marked up to warn drivers of this fact. It also has areas on certain floors that can accommodate the wider vehicle.
“When any PCN is issued we offer a number of opportunities for the driver to pay and the driver is given very clear notice of the consequences and timeline of what happens if they do not pay.
“We only engage debt recovery enforcement agents following continued requests for payments being refused or ignored. We pursue PCNs to protect the public purse. We do not seek to intimidate residents or service users.
“The debt recovery enforcement agents wear body cameras when carrying out their duties and are governed by a very strict code of conduct when working on our behalf.”
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