The Alternative (Dick Turpin) Parking Awards 2008 ... the Dorchester

Breakfast meeting with the lawyers at the Dorchester to discuss the pending Judicial Review of a recent NPAS decision, which is anticipated will not only expose the reality that the National Parking Adjudication Service is not 'independent' from the local authorities that they receive 60p per ticket from but will challenge the validity of every single Controlled Parking Zone in the country.

On the CPZ issue the Department for Transport have already admitted that there is a problem which could lead to a valid challenge to every CPZ in the country. They were aware of the problem some time ago and may have to redraft the legislation to correct the error.

We will be making all the legal arguments available to Parking Appeals members shortly including the report from expert witness Richard Bentley which the Department for Transport not only had sight of, but agreed with.

Meanwhile, the F1 NED vehicle was parked outside in a 'pay by text bay' outside the Dorchester and within minutes the Westminster Parking Attendants had turned up.
"You have not paid Sir."

He was very polite and courteous. I pointed out that the sign was illegal and I was not going to hand over credit card details to any telephone number printed on a plastic sign held up with cable ties.

He disappeared. I went in for the meeting. Minutes later two Parking Attendants appeared and were captured on film by a photographer who had been awaiting the arrival of the great and the good for the lavish British Parkin Awards ceremony. (Don't forget to ask your council how many representatives they sent, and ask for full disclosure of all expenses).

The Parking Attendant can clearly be seen on his radio. Looks like the instruction came back not to issue. Are Westminster frightened of us challenging their pay by text operation?

Meeting over and delegates starting to arrive ... so we got our Alternative (Dick Turpin) Parking Awards ready. The delegates, including the representatives from councils and the enforcement industry proved somewhat camera shy.


We waited and waited.

The 'industry' that is so keen to take photographs of motorists committing contraventions and so keen on rolling out CCTV enforcement to monitor your every move ... not for criminal activity as CCTV was intended, but for monitoring of civil infringements for revenue generation.

What a dilemma that would be ... do you zoom in on the mugger or the parking contravention?

One is easily traceable and will get a fine and the other will take a little more effort and involve cost to the public purse and if caught, will be given a fine less than the motorist.

Are you surprised that the motorist gets the attention?

We waited to spot a representative from NCP Services and Richmond and Islington Councils to give them their Dick Turpin Awards, but to no avail.


We re-positioned F1 NED so that they couldn't miss us but they were still reluctant to be photographed and dived into the venue. Many however, were already in the Dorchester having stayed over in their 'from £234.00 per night' rooms.

By now we were attracting attention from curious HackneyBlack Cab drivers.

Once we explained that the back-slapping British Parking Awards were taking place the cabbies got on the radio to tell their colleagues not to pick up from the Dorchester later that afternoon when the great and the good from the Parking Industry would be leaving. They also asked if they could e-mail us their horror stories ... so come on all you cabbies across the country, let us know how you have been plagued by Parking Attendants and CCTV.