CLAMPING DOWN ON THE CLAMPERS

17-11-2007

Car clamping is one of those perennial hard-luck stories that seems to have slipped off the political agenda. We can't think why, after hearing this typical tale of woe from a Birmingham woman.

Rachel Pudephatt was clamped after parking "off road" on a patch of land in Lower Essex Street, close to the city centre last week - and ended up paying £390 for the privilege of getting her own car back.

"I was just off to my regular dance class at the Glee Club", she said.

"I've been parking in the same space for the last couple of years without any problem.

"But it turns out that a couple of weeks ago, it was reserved for use by workers in nearby clubs.

"I'm not saying the signs weren't clear. The truth is I just didn't notice them and because I'd been there so often I wasn't looking out."

It was a costly error because when Rachel returned to her motor, it had gone.

At first she feared theft, but when she rang the Police they told her it had been taken away by a company called Midway based in Bordesley Green - by law, clampers have to tell the cops when they remove a vehicle.

Midway's terms and conditions suggest they remove cars if they've been incorrectly parked for longer than two hours, but Rachel's disappeared after about 40 minutes.

What's more, although she was willing to collect the car that night, Midway wouldn't release it - and then charged Rachel £40 for the privilege of overnight storage. That was on top of the £150 clamping fee, and a further £200 for towing the car away.

All these figures are arbitrarily set by the company, and there's no right of appeal.

"They wanted it all in cash as well" Rachel said. "I don't understand in this day and age how this kind of thing is allowed to happen."

Neither can we. Car clamping has long been banned in Scotland, but despite tweaks to the regulation south of the border, this form of legalised robbery continues pretty much unchecked.

So much so, that it no longer causes much excitement among the political classes.

That's a mistake because if nothing else there are votes in it.

Time, we say, to clamp down on the clampers.

Have you been clamped? What happened?

Or do you think illegal parkers get everything they deserve?

See some parking examples - click here

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