The Crusader: PCN error based on faulty camera drives husband to despair (2025)

Private car parking (Image: Getty)

The idiocy of the alleged evidence against a car driver accused of a private parking breach steeled him to fight the charge and forCrusaderto back him and his passenger wife all the way.

When doing a U-turn in a building’s parking space, “I never stopped and the whole manoeuvre took barely a minute. We did nothing wrong but are now facing a £100 fine and debt threats”, protested Roger Harrison as the pressure intensified for him to admit guilt.

++ If you've been affected by this issue or feel you've been a victim of injustice, please contact consumer champion Maisha Frost onmaisha.frost@express.co.uk++;

“I often drop my wife Paula off by her work, do the turn then drive back to our house which is quite near. What I do is safe and I’ve never had a problem until recently,” he explained toCrusader.

But the infringement notices he received from private parking manager Civil Enforcement presented a different account. While the address in Maidstone, Kent, was correct, the rest was not.

According to the PCN and the seven notices issued Roger had left his car there all day and overnight. “But that would be insane behaviour for someone whose address they had and showed they lived just down the road,” he pointed out.

But that commonsense argument made no headway and, while the couple thought they had appealed, like many with the convoluted process they got bogged down and as far as they were aware hadn’t heard.

So in a bid to ease the pressure on Roger and stop matters escalating Crusader put the details both to BizSpace, landlord of the workspace and parking area and to Civil Enforcement. First to hear was Roger when he was most relieved to be told of a welcome U-turn with all charges dropped.

The company and Civil Enforcement then told Crusader: “These fines were issued as a result of a technical error, which has now been corrected. Please pass on our apologies and those of the operator.

“The driver in question used the specific car park over multiple days, but on some occasions turned their vehicle so acutely after entering the car park, that our cameras failed to record the licence plate as they exited the site. Their licence plate was then captured exiting the car park on a subsequent occasion, meaning the recorded duration was inaccurate and a PCN was issued. This particular scenario is extremely rare but can happen if the angle of the vehicle exit is too tight for the cameras to record the full number plate.” [Names have been changed]

Private parking rules brought in over the past year include: motorists will not receive a penalty notice if they pay for parking more than five minutes after entering a space and penalties are capped at £100 with reduction to £60 if paid within two weeks.