Just thought I would pass this on to anyone else who like me were ignorant to how msa parking seems to work …
You never stop learning, eh
Pulled onto Oxford services the other week for a change over. Due to a lack of communication, I ended up waiting four and a half hours for the other guy, who had been delayed on his way up from Belgium.
I was working self employed for a mate, who in turn had got the work through one of his mates, and all I was told was not to park in one spot for more than two hours, or I could be fined.
Consequently, I naively moved a couple of times around the lorry park.
What I didn’t realise until I was informed tonight, is that instead of some jobsworth wandering around the lorry/car parks taking numbers, a camera can be set up to take your reg on the entrance and again on the exit, which is how I ended up with a £60 fine
On the plus side, my mate asked if we could go 50/50, which I was quite happy with, but I honestly didn’t know cameras automatically caught you out if you are on the premises for more than 2 hours … they certainly do at Oxford !
espresso:
Just thought I would pass this on to anyone else who like me were ignorant to how msa parking seems to work …
You never stop learning, eh
Pulled onto Oxford services the other week for a change over. Due to a lack of communication, I ended up waiting four and a half hours for the other guy, who had been delayed on his way up from Belgium.
I was working self employed for a mate, who in turn had got the work through one of his mates, and all I was told was not to park in one spot for more than two hours, or I could be fined.
Consequently, I naively moved a couple of times around the lorry park.
What I didn’t realise until I was informed tonight, is that instead of some jobsworth wandering around the lorry/car parks taking numbers, a camera can be set up to take your reg on the entrance and again on the exit, which is how I ended up with a £60 fine
On the plus side, my mate asked if we could go 50/50, which I was quite happy with, but I honestly didn’t know cameras automatically caught you out if you are on the premises for more than 2 hours … they certainly do at Oxford !
I live and learn . . . .
I think there isn’t an MSA in the UK that doesn’t work this way. ANPR on the way in with a time stamp. Logged into computer in the shop inside. If your Reg No is not logged less than 2 hours later on the outgoing ANPR or you haven’t paid the cashier for parking, then the company send you a letter bullying you out of lots of money…Or go to court. Hang On !!! It is not a legally binding contracted fine and therefore cannot be dealt with in court. Usually you get a couple of reminders and then it’s forgotten.
Quinny:
Ignore any communication from them. It’s an invoice, not a fine. Only the Police and Traffic Wardens can give you a parking ticket. FACT.
Once you reply to them, you are opening the door to an admission.
IGNORE IT.
Ken.
I am so with what you are saying fella, unfortunately the pal I have been driving for is also a Methodist Lay Preacher, and a really nice bloke to boot, so I really can’t see him doing anything other than paying the fine.
Anyways, it has cost me £30, and I was sat in the services for 4 and a half hours at £10 an hour, so I guess all I have really lost out is the pay I should have got for snoozing
Yep, all done by ANPR. Had you gone into W.H. Smiths to pay for parking then the cashier would have pulled up a perfect picture of you, driving your truck, on the way in. No doubt they could also provide a perfect picture of you, driving your truck, on the way out.
I remember the days when we used to say that Communism, the Soviet Union, and East Germany were the most terrible things, and one of the reasons always given was the covert surveillance they carried out on their citizens. We sympathised with their poor downtrodden citizens because of the endless camera surveillance which happened under those regimes.
And now the wheel has gone full circle. Russian tourists come to London and are amazed at the banks of surveillance cameras everywhere, watching their every move. And we accept it like the sheep they were under Stalin.
I was caught out at Lidl with the car once.I was going to ignore them but wife insisted on paying.They are not allowed to call their invoices fines so just ignore.
Harry Monk:
Had you gone into W.H. Smiths to pay for parking then the cashier would have pulled up a perfect picture of you, driving your truck, on the way in.
makes me laugh when you arrive after dark. they show you a picture of a pair of headlights and ask you if it’s the right truck
They can only send you an invoice. If you do not pay the invoice then they have the option of taking Small Claims Court action against you, although they never take up this option because it would cost them £1,000+ to engage a solicitor for the day and they won’t do that to chase a £60 fine, especially as the Small Claims Court never awards legal costs.
If you tailgate another truck going into the services the camera can’t get a shot of your reg plate, they need an in and an out photo to calculate the length of your stay. I’ve done this for quite a while and have never been hit with a fine/invoice.
Harry Monk:
Had you gone into W.H. Smiths to pay for parking then the cashier would have pulled up a perfect picture of you, driving your truck, on the way in.
makes me laugh when you arrive after dark. they show you a picture of a pair of headlights and ask you if it’s the right truck
Diff Lock:
If you tailgate another truck going into the services the camera can’t get a shot of your reg plate, they need an in and an out photo to calculate the length of your stay. I’ve done this for quite a while and have never been hit with a fine/invoice.
■■■■ poor advice on all counts really
Quite a few have anpr technology on the normal cameras throughout the services too
I quite often see a pic of my motor, sometimes with me still in it , when I eventually wander in to pay
I think there isn’t an MSA in the UK that doesn’t work this way. ANPR on the way in with a time stamp. Logged into computer in the shop inside. If your Reg No is not logged less than 2 hours later on the outgoing ANPR or you haven’t paid the cashier for parking, then the company send you a letter bullying you out of lots of money…Or go to court. Hang On !!! It is not a legally binding contracted fine and therefore cannot be dealt with in court. Usually you get a couple of reminders and then it’s forgotten.
There’s still a few that don’t use it As long as you pay before leaving you’re OK. I often rock up late on certain jobs we have and just dive into bed. Then settle up when I go in for brekky and a coffee
Harry Monk:
Had you gone into W.H. Smiths to pay for parking then the cashier would have pulled up a perfect picture of you, driving your truck, on the way in.
makes me laugh when you arrive after dark. they show you a picture of a pair of headlights and ask you if it’s the right truck
The ANPR cameras have suitable lights with them to collect your reg plate and they are pretty much spot on.
There are also numerous signs around if you bothered to read them.
What you could have done was left after an hour and gone to another services but then come back later…
But everyone knows that’ll muck up driving hours, schedules etc… so won’t do it.
i used to drive a merc actros 1 way of getting around it is dropping your front number plate and turning your trailer one around worked for me never paided in them ■■■■ holes
i dont know how true this is but i have heard that failure to pay results in an invoice to your office , this can be ignored but failure to pay results in the next time you visit the MSA that issued the invoice , you get clamped , only hear say so true or false not sure
i used to drive a merc actros 1 way of getting around it is dropping your front number plate and turning your trailer one around worked for me never paided in them [zb] holes
do you mean that before arriving at the MSA you would pull on the hard shoulder and see to the number plates, or did you drive from the last drop you did with the number plates attended to?
seems to me that doing either would risk a legally binding fine in order to avoid a non legal fine .
, when I eventually wander in to pay 
As long as you pay before leaving you’re OK. I often rock up late on certain jobs we have and just dive into bed. Then settle up when I go in for brekky and a coffee 