G24 parking expose in Sun - ANPR for Toys-R-Us Tesco Homebase Boots

Mr King and his firm, which operate number plate recognition cameras at car parks up and down the country, receieve hundreds of complaints EVERY WEEK from angry motorists.

And, in a bizarre twist, employees at the firm tell motorists with complains over tickets that the “director” responsible for dealing with customer services is named Neville Stanley, who Cashflow has learned is a 72-year-old unemployed odd-job man.

Stanley has never been a director of the firm and does not know he is supposed to be boss of customer services at G24.

The only director listed is boss Adrian King.

The firm use Neville’s name so that furious customers who ring up to complain can never be put through.

Complaining drivers receive a standard letter signed by the “Chief Enforcement Officer” with no identity, but when they ring up to ask whom they should write to, they are given the name Neville Stanley.

Customers are told that Neville, who lives in a one-bed flat in Neasden, South London, is “director of customer relations”.

When The Sun rang to speak to him at his office, we were told he was in charge of customer services but was on holiday.

On other occasions, attempts to speak to Mr Stanley failed as we were told he was in meetings or visiting a site.

On one of the occasions he was supposed to be in a meeting, we telephoned him to find him at home at Neasden — alone.

Neville was stunned when approached by The Sun and said: “I am just an odd-job man. I run errands when they want me.”

And he added: “I’ve never worked for the firm full-time and never been a director.”


He also revealed he was only paid £10 or £20 a day when he turned up at the offices — although he said he had not been to Beaconsfield for around six months.

G24 claims a list of well-known High Street names among its customers including TESCO, TOYS ’R’ US, HOMEBASE and BOOTS.

But the firm, which takes in around £120,000 a month in parking fines, is being inundated with complaints from customers furious about penalties of between £25 and £95.

It boasts on its website that its office is in posh Harley Street, West London, but that location is just a mail forwarding address.

Its actual offices are in a small flat above a dry cleaners in Beaconsfield.

But G24 has come unstuck after disgruntled customers heard about a legal loophole highlighted on a consumer revenge site on the internet — resulting in the firm being forced to scrap around 2,000 fines.

The wording of the letter found on consumeraction.co.uk/forum challenges G24 to provide evidence the motorist has actually seen a warning sign on the car park which could be regarded as a contract between the firm and the driver.

It also stresses that the fact the car is registered to the driver does not mean he or she actually parked it.

Owners of cars are under no obligation to tell private car parking firms who was driving the car at the time. A parking industry insider has told The Sun that the firm has not challenged the letters because it cannot come up with any proof.

“They have had to rip up all those tickets because of this letter, which seems to be getting more well known.

“Many motorists just pay the fines without challenging them and others are frustrated by trying to make phone complaints.

"And if they try to speak to Neville Stanley they are always told he is not available.”

The Sun made several attempts to get a comment from Mr King, but he never returned our calls.

Angela Smith, Labour MP for Sheffield Hillsborough, is mounting a major challenge to private car parking firms like G24.

Mrs Smith has written to Transport Secretary Ruth Kelly to highlight her concerns that companies are using heavy-handed tactics to make money and are accessing people’s details via the DVLA.

She said: “I have been aware of several firms who use intimidating language to elicit payment. The amount demanded is often disproportionate and often people are not aware they have breached car park rules until they receive the letter.

“People have been wrongly penalised for not showing their ticket because the automated system could not see it, while others have been sent tickets for parking over the lines by a minuscule amount.

"Signs warning car park users of the rules and regulations are often so small that drivers do not see them on entering.”

Among the firms which Mrs Smith’s constituents have expressed concerns about are G24, operator of the huge Meadowhall Retail Park car park in Sheffield.

The car park is understood to be G24’s biggest earner, helping the firm to raking in nearly £2million a year from motorists.

The Sun