UK Northampton Supercharger - reassign as Destination Charger?

[SeanG]

I think you are looking at the wrong solution here. What this really needs is a chat with the hotel management to come up with a solution to avoid Tesla drivers having to register or at least a simple way of getting their charges revoked. Maybe that could be as simple as instructing their parking contractor to refrain from sending parking notices to any car showing up as a Tesla on their database. Perhaps that instruction could even be linked to those specific charging bays?

Having the site re-classified simply because you got a parking charge by not reading the signs doesn't necessarily solve the issue and creates confusion for those people looking for a Supercharger on one of our major motorway networks. It doesn't bother me personally because I know they are there, but what about other non-locals who may end up driving straight past this site while looking for a Supercharger? You would probably end up creating queues at the next Supercharger along the road. Then there's an even worse scenario, where the hotel says f*** all this hassle and gets the chargers removed from their site altogether. Then they create 6 more parking spaces and don't have any more hassle from Tesla owners complaining about the simple registration!

I completely agree - but the "chat" approach hasn't produced a result. Meanwhile ParkingEye are deliberately targeting Tesla drivers who either don't see or don't understand the warning signs, and Tesla have simply put a mention of fines at the bottom of the info page on the map - you need to scroll down to see it.

As I see it we have two options:

1. We use this forum put pressure on Tesla, who in turn lean on the Campanile, who in turn demand that ParkingEye simply stop issuing penalties to Teslas that stay less than an hour. (btw - the registration process is redundant, the ANPR system does everyting automatically)
OR
2. We leave things as they are because as half the people in this thread have confirmed - registration isn't really a big burden, (and by inference it is ok for a few newbie Tesla drivers , tourists and foreigners to be fined).

When the Model 3 wave arrives, and quite a few of them end up being fined too, they might come to read this page, and realise that this problem existed long before they came along, but the Model S and X drivers thought it didn't matter enough to make a stand.

 

[MP3Mike]

Meanwhile ParkingEye are deliberately targeting Tesla drivers

Really? How do you know that? Are they not just enforcing the rules for all drivers?

 

[SeanG]

Really? How do you know that? Are they not just enforcing the rules for all drivers?

OK I'll put it another way - ParkingEye send penalty notices to Tesla drivers, in the full knowledge that it is a Tesla vehicle that was charging (the penalty notice shows this) and despite the fact that they also cancel these penalty notices once a protest is lodged by Tesla. In other words they know that they shouldn't be sending these bills but they send them anyway, in the knowledge that some Tesla drivers won't realise that after a lot of effort they can get the fine cancelled.

They could just not bother sending penalties at all to Tesla drivers who are using the Supercharger, but they choose instead to send the penalties, refuse to cancel them on appeal, and then eventually cancel them if (and only if) Tesla customer services have been dragged into it.

The ParkingEye service was most likely contracted by the Campanile to deter local workers from parking all day long, but instead it is making money from inattentive and unsuspecting Tesla drivers - who are simply following their nav system to yet another supercharger for a quick charge. Lets be charitable and imagine that they were never supposed to be the target, but whatever you might like to think, they are now a source of revenue that ParkingEye do not seem willing to voluntarily forego.

I have a challenge for you - given how the ANPR system works, can you explain to me what the logic is behind asking drivers to register within 10 minutes of arrival?

 

[MP3Mike]

OK I'll put it another way - ParkingEye send penalty notices to Tesla drivers, in the full knowledge that it is a Tesla vehicle that was charging (the penalty notice shows this) and despite the fact that they also cancel these penalty notices once a protest is lodged by Tesla. In other words they know that they shouldn't be sending these bills but they send them anyway, in the knowledge that some Tesla drivers won't realise that after a lot of effort they can get the fine cancelled.

Really? The notice says that you were there charging?

They have no way of knowing if a Tesla is there to charge, or if a Tesla is there to park and use other services. Sure the probability is that they are there to charge. They are probably just following the terms of their contract. They could even be in breach of contract if they don't fine a Tesla that fails to be registered.

The site host could modify their contract to say not to fine a Tesla even if they don't register, but I highly doubt they would do that.

 

[Peteski]

I completely agree - but the "chat" approach hasn't produced a result. Meanwhile ParkingEye are deliberately targeting Tesla drivers who either don't see or don't understand the warning signs, and Tesla have simply put a mention of fines at the bottom of the info page on the map - you need to scroll down to see it.

As I see it we have two options:

1. We use this forum put pressure on Tesla, who in turn lean on the Campanile, who in turn demand that ParkingEye simply stop issuing penalties to Teslas that stay less than an hour. (btw - the registration process is redundant, the ANPR system does everyting automatically)
OR
2. We leave things as they are because as half the people in this thread have confirmed - registration isn't really a big burden, (and by inference it is ok for a few newbie Tesla drivers , tourists and foreigners to be fined).

When the Model 3 wave arrives, and quite a few of them end up being fined too, they might come to read this page, and realise that this problem existed long before they came along, but the Model S and X drivers thought it didn't matter enough to make a stand.

I do sympathise, but ANPR is now everywhere you go in the UK and a fact of life when parking here. Foreign visitors are more likely to get caught out for sure. A bit like I got caught out recently in France with all the new speed cameras on the way from Nice airport up the hill to Vence and ridiculously low revised speed limits. I was fined 3 times for exceeding the new limits by all of 4 kph on a road I used to drive regularly for years. The locals are obviously aware of the new regime, but tourists must get totally hammered as even in a diesel Cactus hire car (the slowest accelerating car I've ever driven) it was hard to even keep below these ridiculous new limits. It's a good job I wasn't in the Tesla!

 

[SeanG]

UPDATE - £100 fine now cancelled

1. Tesla got involved - they contacted the hotel.
Thomas Parsonage <[email protected]>
25 Oct 2018, 17:30 (13 days ago)

I have received the following reply back from the hotel. They have put a request in to cancel the parking fine. If parking eye reject the claim then the parking fine is still valid. The manager will only hear back from parking eye if the cancellation is rejected for whatever reason.

“Hi Thomas,
The customer will get a cancelation letter through the post - it usually takes 3 weeks.
I will only be informed if they do not accept the cancelation.
Regards
Massimo”

Please let me know if you haven’t received a confirmation letter in a few weeks time. Also could you please let me know once the letter has been received?
Kind regards
Tom parsonage
Senior field service engineer

2. I also appealed the fine with ParkingEye - they rejected the appeal, and then I was allowed to make a further appeal to POPLA, and got this reply yesterday.
POPLA <[email protected]>
Tue 6 Nov, 16:59 (18 hours ago)
Thank you for submitting your parking charge Appeal to POPLA.
An Appeal has been opened with the reference 6062958675.
Parking Eye Ltd have told us they do not wish to contest the Appeal. This means that your Appeal is successful and you do not need to pay the parking charge.
Yours sincerely
POPLA Team

I can only guess that ParkingEye backed off thanks to Tesla putting pressure on the Hotel, and the Hotel telling ParkingEye to drop it. I am not the first person to go through this, and I am afraid I probably won't be the last.

Hopefully Tesla will get tired of having to intervene and they will just tell ParkingEye to stop sending fines to Tesla drivers. As you can see from the fine notice, it is pretty blatant - TESLA and 38 minutes .... what did they think I was doing there, if not charging?

 

[Peteski]

View attachment 350521

Hopefully Tesla will get tired of having to intervene and they will just tell ParkingEye to stop sending fines to Tesla drivers. As you can see from the fine notice below, it is pretty blatant - TESLA and 38 minutes .... what did they think I was doing there, if not charging?

Good news! To be fair, ParkingEye probably have no clue whatsoever about Tesla or Supercharging. For them it's just one of hundreds of carparks on their automated system. Hopefully the instructions from the hotel (who I presume contracted ParkingEye) will help to prevent further problems for Tesla drivers who miss the warning signs. Not that I'm going to test it myself!