What the Clamping Ban means to you

On Friday the coalition government announced its Protection of Freedoms bill. Ostensibly aimed at protecting civil liberties, it proposes sweeping reforms to legislation regarding the use of CCTV, counter-terrorism detention sentences and the storage of information for those charged with criminal offences. The bill is scheduled to become law at the beginning of 2012.

Included in the bill is a blanket ban on wheel clamping on private land, which will result in those that do clamp having criminal charges brought against them, and receiving an unlimited fine and criminal record if convicted.

Like many industries, the parking sector has certain rogue individuals whose actions stand in direct contradiction to the policies of fairness that govern our service. In much the same way as the legal profession, construction industry and estates agencies can be besmirched by a handful of bad apples, it is this minority’s self-serving way of doing business that sours public opinion of the majority.

Excel Parking actively seeks to improve the codes of conduct that govern our industry, and is in full support of all efforts that hamper the operations of ‘cowboy’ companies. As an Approved Operator of the British Parking Association, we feel that only rigorous, independent policing can improve public confidence in the private parking industry.

For reputable companies such as Excel, vehicle immobilisation is used solely as a last resort. While ticketing serves as an effective deterrent in the majority of cases, in instances where a motorist repeatedly ignores a site’s terms and conditions vehicle immobilisation is often the only recourse.

As a result, we feel that this ban will be most sharply felt by the landowners, private businesses and members of the public who use our car parks on a daily basis. From a purely commercial standpoint, fly parkers take up space that is intended for the customers of a business. If they are unable to park because these spaces are filled with commuters, or sports traffic, or simply those who feel somehow above the regulations, then the business loses customers.

Can it be fair that a pub or local shop, or even a large shopping centre, should have to subsidise those who are directly depriving them of business? Why should someone pay thousands of pounds a year for a reserved parking space, only to find it filled with someone else’s car?

Where we feel the government has most let down both the public and the private parking industry is in the absence of any official examination into the consequences of a ban. Excel Parking would gladly welcome more rigorous regulation, and would suggest a system of licensing that ensures only qualified companies who have shown themselves to uphold the highest standards of customer service, staff training and internal quality monitoring are able to legally immobilise vehicles. This would ensure that the less than savoury elements are no longer able to operate, while maintaining a system proven to prevent parking abuse.