Wheel clamping on private land (and towing away) is to be banned by the coalition government. We had a commitment to tackle rogue wheel clampers in the coalition agreement – and now we are able to take this forward.
It falls in my portfolio at the Home Office. Immobilisation has always had a track record of grief and misery. There cannot be an MP in the land who has not had constituents come to them who have been clamped ‘unfairly’. The complaints that have come in to the Home Office are tales of exorbitant fees, abusive behaviour, signage being invisible and so on.
In a recent adjournment debate I recall that examples were given of a disabled motorist being frog marched to a cash point in the middle of a freezing night to get cash to pay the release fee.
Of course, landowners have a right to stop people parking on their land – but no longer by clamping. In Scotland – where clamping was banned nearly twenty years ago (very successfully) landowners either protect their land by barrier methods or introduce ticketing.
Over time, everyone has tried to make this system work – but it just hasn’t. Individuals have had to be licensed – but that hasn’t stopped sharp practise. The latest thinking (before the ban) was to introduce an independent appeals authority – so that aggrieved motorist could appeal the fee etc. But that would cost £2million to set up and thereafter have to be funded by the public through the fees and just perpetuating a flawed system.
Cars that are parked dangerously on private land – for example – blocking the entrance to a hospital or such like will be towed by the police. However, the police powers are for exceptional circumstances only.
This does need legislation and so it will be brought in as part of the Freedom Bill in November hopefully – and then come into force as soon after the passage of the Bill as possible.
Lynne Featherstone 
Dr Simms and most of the other commenters have justified the need for private landowners to be able to protect their land perfectly, i mean if you cannot guarantee that the police will come to you when you are a victim of crime, whats the liklihood that they will come to clamp and remove a car? Involving the police and councils is a waste of their time and money; since the de criminalisation of the on road enforcement they have struggled to deal with the managment and costs involved. Now a very simple question that will answer ANY critic of clamping and deal with the rantings about the practices of cowboy clampers is: Why cannot there be legislation which caps the amount charged for a clamp release fee/ the circumstances in having a vehicle towed away/sizes of signs/proceedures before a vehicle is clamped. All i hear about from MP’s telling stories about their constituents and people who have been clamped is about the extotionate amount charged etc etc…Simply enforce legislation which deals with this then there can be no arguments. If the private industry was brought more into line with the public sector of enforcement then there can be no complaints. I find it ridiculous that MPs are quick to moan about the unregulated industry and what these cowboys are ‘allowed’ to charge and just sit back and do nothing. Theya re doing this beacause you have allowed them to do so. A complete ban is wrong, the industry needs tight regulation and control so that the legit companies can provide a service to those that wish to have it.
I had to follow up with this excerpt from your own blog; if council workers take advantage of other peoples parking areas as they have no where else to park then i find it hard to believe that other people wont be so selfish when clamping is banned and they park on my estate in my space..
“..George Meehan faced heavy criticism last week as guest speaker of the Avenue Gardens Residents’ Association, an area situated between Wood Green tube and Haringey’s Civic Centre. Residents say they have repeatedly complained that council employees routinely take up the parking spaces of local residents in the Controlled Parking Zone. They have routinely complained to Mr Meehan, their local councillor as well as Council Leader, but the problem has continued..”
No problem with people needing to protect their land, now they must find an ethical way to do that, sorry but issuing penalties from private companies are illegal, the costs of the release of a clamp is a penalty far above the abuse of a parking place, and unless the car is towed the car is still there causing a problem!
These companies only have themselves to blame for the demise of their business, they asked some people for upwards of £1k to release clamps and the costs of towage etc, anything above £100 is grossly inflated and excessive.
Congratulations to Lynne Featherstone for taking the bull by the horns in taking the only obvious step in dealing with these menaces.
Notwithstanding the howls of indignation from the clamping lobby and their champions in certain sectors who I suspect are in many cases are getting a cut of their dubious takings, there is one glaring alternative to private clamping and towing that doesn’t seem to have been suggested here yet.
It is entirely possible for a local authority to be invited to manage parking on private land, either via pay-&-display or resident permit systems. Given that local authority parking enforcement already carries the full weight of statute behind it, as well as being supported by a robust and impartial appeals service, this would seem to be the obvious solution. It would remove the blatant criminality from the current regime at a stroke, provide a legitimate route for redress for the genuinely aggrieved, solve the parking problem in the area affected and increase local authority revenues at a time of increasing budgetary constraint. Plus the genuine, non-criminal VI operatives could be re-employed as local authority Civil Enforcement officers. So how about it Lynn? It’s a win win!
Why are private property owners being thrown to the lions?
Private property owners are a vast percentage of the population, law abiding, innocent and ordinary i.e. not multi millionaires with thousands of acres of parking.
It is obvious that the ONLY way to stop the hard core OFFENDERS that are the problem, is clamping. So take that away and you leave us defenceless.
This is not about taking away the property owners only form of effective defence (notice i use the word defence), it is about tackling the cowboy/rogue clampers and enforcing fair legislation.
People who immediately agree with the abolishment of clamping are mainly those that have been unfairly clamped and fined; and after considering the issue further will nearly always agree that banning clamping will victimise many innocent owners of property, maybe including themselves. Just ordinary people who live in flats, houses etc or small businesses such as doctors surgeries, dentists and many more.
Tackle the legislation and wrongdoers, don’t throw in the towel and allow the hardcore offenders (who are a continual problem; deal with one and another takes its place) right of passage to carry on offending time and again. Please don’t tell me ticketing is the answer to this, it is well documented that it does NOT work with the very people who cause the offence and don’t give a damn.
Why not let local authorities give private property owners a licence to call them to deal with offenders, and enable them to put up signage to warn people parking patrols/clamping are in opperation by THE LOCAL AUTHORITY. Surely Lynne you trust the LOCAL AUTHORITIES don’t you? Simples! Everybody happy? Then just do it.
Next issue….
And clamping preys on the most part on the innocent, really Pete you need to find a new job, as clamping on private land is coming to an end, now you will be able to terrorise people into giving you vast sums of money, sorry about that!
Clamping is not the only defence of property, there are a plenty of other avenues to protect a parking place, they start at about £50 and go up to about £1500 for posts to barriers, and a chain and two posts will stop a majority of inconsiderate parkers, available from your local B&Q or builders yard for a lot less than £50
The end is nigh for private clampers – YAY!
Taffy and all you others that hide under dodgy name – why not put your REAL NAME on the BLOG and OPENLY STAND UP FOR WHAT YOU BELIEVE IN?
The fact of the matter is, although I do NOT own a clamping company, nor do I take a ‘rake off’ as insinuated by Taffy, I DO HAVE TO COMPLY with legislation on the Private Estates my company manages for the leaseholders. Some of these regulations means that we have to keep FIRE ACCESS Doorways Clear, Fire Access Routes have to be kept clear so if some ignorant twat parks there, at this time I have the power to remove it and this is already done in liaison with the Local POLICE as the firm I use will require the Police to have been notified before they WILL REMOVE IT.
There are not a few people that will be affected by this poorly thought out legislation, there are 100’s of 1,000’s of Leaseholders and other residents that live in privately owned developments that will be affected, mainly in Blocks of Flats in built up Cities and Towns where land is a premium and flats is all they can squeeze in….
For all you people agreeing it should be banned, check your facts about this legislation because if THE LAST GOVERNMENT had listened to all of us, the INDUSTRY WOULD HAVE BEEN REGULATED instead of individual Clampers, THEY WANT IT AND THEY ASKED FOR IT AND THEY ARE STILL ASKING FOR IT.
Just because a few rogue companies exist, does not mean we have to dump the rights of every property owner in the country, because if you come home from work and I am parked on YOUR DRIVE, you will NO LONGER be able to have my car towed away…
Before we started Clamping on some sites, we have had baseball bats used on cars and people, I was personally run down by a motorist after I asked him to no park on a lawn, I have seen cars set alight – and this is only the TIP OF THE ICEBERG in relation to what will happen if this law is successfully passed. Do you not realise that the passing of this law will ERODE and TAKE AWAY another important basic right that WE THE PUBLIC have to protect our property.
Taffy, £1500 for an barrier, you obviously live in Cloud Cuckoo Land mate, or you have never put up such a barrier in East London or Essex, they will laugh at you, smash it up and carry on parking and if you give me your e-mail address I will send you a picture of a site were a METAL GATE with a lock was put in on a development to stop every TOM DICK AND HARRY using their gardens as a short cut, so they SMASHED IN THE FENCE next to it and climb through… that is people suits and women – they simply have no regard for anything unless it belongs to THEM.
We created the SELFISH, IGNORANT CULTURE that exists in today’s Society and it is up to US as the public to put a stop to it, removing one of the basic rights to protect private property is going back over 100’s of years.
If you speak to any of my clients, they will tell you what their developments were like before clamping and towing was introduced. Dumped and Abandoned Cars littered the estates, commuters cars parked everywhere including in disabled spaces….
In many cases the schemes we put in place were IN CONSULTATION with the Local Police, we would meet with their local community support officers, discuss the problems and work on a solution. In many cases we have POLICE EVIDENCE that where schemes were put in place, car crime dropped overnight, reports of criminal damage and violence are no unheard of – this is what creating a COMMUNITY is all about, it is NOT about raising revenue for the leaseholders or a private contractor as the GOOD ONES will tell you that when an effective scheme is put in place, they might be lucky to find one (1) car a year to clamp and then the release fee is UNDER THE GOVERNMENTS guidelines of £150 and we have an appeals procedure.
If you apply the same principles to tax evasion, does that mean the government will stop charging us tax because they cannot control a few rogues?
If you apply the same principles to Immigration, does that mean they will close the borders because some come in illegally?
If you apply the same principles to the PUBLIC ROADS, does that mean the Goverment will ban all parking tickets because some people never pay them and over 6.5% of all cars in the UK are unregistered.
The problem is with the ‘Ban Clamping/Towing’ Lobby is ‘F**K YOU I’M ALRIGHT JACK’ which is the attitude that has turned this country into a Bankrupt, Failed, Third World Dictatorship…
Footer for Lynne and every other MP of all parties – YOU WORK FOR US, WE PAY YOUR WAGES AND THE WAGES OF EVERY PERSON EMPLOYED IN THE PUBLIC SECTOR – please start listening to the PEOPLE that HAVE THE PROBLEM and NOT THOSE COCCOONED in their ivory towers.
If people park on PRIVATE LAND we DESERVE THE RIGHT TO TAKE ACTION AGAINST THEM, if they learned to READ SIGNS before parking, then they would not be clamped by Rogues or anyone else, nor would they get PARKING TICKETS from the Councils, which in my opinion are EXCESSIVE in comparison to the Penalty and I have a letter from the Dept of Transport on this matter whereby they revealed penalties are set HIGH as a deterent – it does not work though does it, MILLIONS OF POUNDS are owed to Council by people that won’t pay, whose cars are not registered etc – so if the Councils and the Government are unable to enforce tickets, what hope has a single mother living in a flat with a Car Parking Space got?
Clampers and their supporters many of whom took a kickback need to get real. The reason the practice is being outlawed is that many (if not all) in their industry overstepped the mark repeatedly. It was as the AA and RAC rightly say a form of modern day highway robbery, legalised extortion, having nothing to do with parking management and being solely concerned with extracting the maximum amount of money through intimidatory methods. No genuine person who does not have a vested interest will mourn its long overdue demise. If only the clampers who have taken some much of their time to post on here had made the same effort to clean up their industry after repeated warnings they might not be in this position.
Dr Simm,
I applaud you, I used to run a large wheelclamping company and tried for many years to change the way the industry was organised wheelclamping should never have been put under the auspices of the SIA, the soloutions are simple. amongst others
Robust management of the industry with those those who do not comply expelled and unable to trade
Pre determined sensible fixed pricing
Uniform signage
but the goverment cant or wont see them a blanket ban will be a disaster.
@ Joe Public – if you continue to hide behind a false ID and name and continue to accuse people of offences not committed, you commit the offence of Libel and Slander and persons/companies on this website reading your slanderous comments can force the owner of this web site to cough up your IP address, get a Court Order to serve on your Provider and drag your sorry backside into Court? Or are you just a TROLL sitting at home on Benefits paid by Law Abiding Tax Payers watching some dross daytime TV programme with nothing better to do all day?
Can you not get it through your THICK SKULL the the MAJORITY of the Companies that offer a clamping service WANT REGULATION, THEY WANT THE COWBOYS RUN OFF THE ROAD and they WANT CONTROLS put in place by the GOVERNMENT……
Maybe I should locate your address and arrange for a pile of people to park on your property… see how you deal with it….
Lynne, you were spot on that regulation would never and could never have worked. The people who it would be directed at would never have complied. The only solution was outlawing as you rightly decided. The last government consultation on the issue did not even give this as one of the options. Despite this it is truly remarkable that the most popular option was for a total ban. This overwhelming popular public will was ignored until now. Bravo to you for taking the bull by the horns.
Regards chaos after a ban, just self serving sour grapes. Nothing happened in Scotland, except that a bunch of goons were forced to find alternative employment. It will be the same here, despite the somewhat desperate efforts of those with a very vested interest to plead otherwise.
Dear oh dear, it did not take long for the threats to come. Why am I not surprised? What are clamping supporters going to do – take everyone to court who agrees with the ban and says so? You do absolutely no favours for your cause with this sort of nasty reaction. I am as entitled to my opinion as anyone else on here and I have not defamed (it is libel by the way) any specific individual.
I stand by my comments on what the industry has become. It seems the government agrees with me. The excesses of the wheel clamping industry are well documented all over the Internet, documented in countless cases of misery. As the esteemed motoring organisations AA and RAC say they were operating as a kind of modern day but legalised highwayman. That is now ending and clampers would in my opinion be better preparing for this rather than wailing at the sea.
@Nick Kenward – I assume from your name that you’re one of the directors of the clamping outfit CES Ltd? If so, how do you square your claim to be a reputable firm with the several unsatisfied CCJs against CES going back to 2008 that existed as late as March this year?
I also wonder how you square your desire for “sensible fixed pricing” with the fact you charge victims in excess of £400 for clamping and towing?
We could also mention the case of another of your outfits (IS Traffic Management: now dissolved, I wonder why?) clamping a Nurse visiting a terminally ill cancer patient and then insisting on cash only to release her.
can someone please tell me how much councils charge for being clamped or towed on the public roads,it also needs to be banned or is it because it’s a massive money spinner for local authorities that it wont be.
Dear Taffy,
I have several jobs and non are even remotely linked to Parking/clamping. I am quite simply an owner (along with my mortgage company I might add) of private property and I do not want low life parking on it, with total disregard to me and any consequences I may suffer.
Let local authorities have the power to issue licences for the likes of me, to put up signs to say parking is monitored by them and ticketing and clamping is in opperation. Thats right Taffy THE LOCAL AUTHORITY, surely you believe they would opperate fairly and justly don’t you?
This should appease all parties concerned, and would allow the forgotten innocent victims of these OFFENDERS (the property owners) to get on with their lives in relative peace.
If you do not think this is a fair resolution you are beyond help/hope, and I must assume you only post here to get reaction and people’s backs up.
@Joe Public, you are talking out of your backside and are probably one of those members of Joe Public that wants a ban because.
(a) The ramifications of the ban have not been explained how it will affect you and your family personally.
(b) You are looking forward to FREE PARKING on anyone elses property because you don’t want to get clamped or fined in a Council Car Park or Public Road.
The FACT of the matter is Mr. Joe Public, no one has threatened you, you were simply advised of the facts…
[quote]
Clampers and their supporters many of whom took a kickback need to get real.
[end quote]
Your comments were very clear, you did not say it was ‘In your Opinion’, you stated it as a fact.
As for your ‘esteemed’ motoring organisations, they have been committing daylight robbery of motorists for years where the motorist has regretably broken down at the side of the road or motorway and their is NO REGULATION of what they are allowed to charge whatsoever.
You have STILL FAILED to answer these points.
If Clamping and Towing away on Private Land, why should public land be treated any differently – what is the justification.
If the Government are unable to stop individuals avoiding paying tax, why have they not abandoned charging everyone else tax?
@Dr Simm
Are you seriously saying that landowners in some cases never received a cut from the earnings of clampers. You cannot expect to be taken seriously if you come out with guff like this. Threatening to sue (as if), threatening to come and park on my drive for days, this only reinforces the public’s view of the industry you so vociferously support. I say again this does your cause no good. I suspect at the start Lynne was listening to the points you made, now all she sees is thinly veiled threats and hateful stuff about benefit scroungers.
Not the way to run a campaign if you want to overturn something you don’t agree with.
To joe public et al; There is legislation in place which will enable restrictions on the price charged/circumstances in when/how car to be clamped..basically all the issues that you all seem to have. If these issues were addressed would you still be opposed to clamping? If so on what basis? I would be interested to hear what you think is a reasonable clamp release fee bearing in mind that the law states councils can charge £70 outside london and £105 inside london??? Do you not agree that if the industry was properly regulated that this could be a better option to a ban, since it could allow landowners/residents etc to exercise their right to protect their own property? And before i hear about barriers etc, we are all not stupid enough to think that that is feasable on every piece of private land?
RT @lfeatherstone: New blog post: Wheel clamping on private land to be banned – http://is.gd/el6S5
@Anne
I don’t believe regulation could or ever would work and I don’t think clamping on private land is justifiable in any circumstances.
The industry was given chance after chance to clean up its act. It failed to do so. I believe the reason for this was that many elements, and not a few, operating within it were simply beyond the control of anyone. They would not have paid any heed to tighter regulation. Even when the possibility of a draconian crackdown on clamping was staring them in the faces they could not curb their excesses. As a result the government was I believe rightly forced to conclude that the only option was an outright ban.
@Joe Public
Stop hiding behind a false ID and maybe I will take you seriously instead of a troll. To answer your points.
1. I, nor my company have ever taken a single penny from any fee charged by our contractors to remove a clamp from a vehicle.
2. Our normal contract is that the Residents Association/Management Co, pays £282.50 per Annum for the Residents Permits for us to issue and the installation and maintence of LARGE CLEAR SIGNS at each develoment.
3. People in my position and reputable, registered Security Companies that offer clamping as part of their services in accordance with the Goverments Guidelines in that they only use Clampers that are Registered and Licenced under the current scheme do not ‘split’ takings as there simply is NOT enough money taken on a well managed scheme – our release fees range from £40 to a maximum of £120, the maximum being £30 under current guidelines.
4. Most of our sites that have clamping and towaway RARELY even clamp a car due to the CLEAR, VISIBLE, LARGE signs that are plastered everywhere – I don’t wan’t people clamped, but at the same time I don’t want my clients having the hassle of coming home and having nowhere to park due to the previous illegal parking and dumping that occured.
5. If you read through all my previous posts, you will see and understand why this ban is a HUGE BURDEN on Leaseholders and Residents that have struggled to get a mortgage and move onto the property ladder and whose finances are such they simply cannot affored EFFECTIVE BARRIERS if they can get planning consent etc. Nor can they affored to enter into long costly legal battles with motorist that don’t pay tickets even if the car is registered.
Now, this is ONE of the reasons these well managed schemes are effective and it can be checked with South Ockendon Police in Essex.
On November 5th 2009 a clamper calls my office in relation to a parked vehicle that appeared suspicious, so suspicious he did not want to approach it or put a clamp on it.
I drove to South Ockendon to have a look. It was a Volvo Estate and the back of the Vehicle was full of 25 Gallon Plastic Containers full of a red liquid and attempts had been made to cover it up. Wires were coming from the gearbox area to the rear of the car… having been raised in the services, I suspected this might be a car bomb especially with it being Guy Fourkes Night, a perfect night to set off such a bomb.
The Police were called and after careful examination, they finally entered the vehicle and discovered not a car bomb but barrels of illegally stolen Red Diesel, reported stolen from local farms. The Car was registered in Ireland with no known keeper.
The Police arranged the removal of the Diesel and authorised us and the contractors to remove the car and have it scrapped being untaxed…. now, in a worse case scenario, if we did not monitor our car parks, if that had have been a car bomb, then either it may have gone of at the development of 40 residential flats causing carnage and mayhem or driven to somewhere else, maybe a Public Fireworks Display and set off – can you see the point?
Well managed schemes are NOT the problem, Rogue Clampers are the problem and they are normally operated by the same people that own the land they operate on…. the contractors we use are ALSO used by two local authorities in my area to Lift Cars off the street where they are parked illegally and for road tax dodgers… they are a responsible contractor, we are a responsible company….
Meanwhile, if you post like a troll, I will treat you like a troll.
@ Joe Public and other sceptics
I am not a landowner but I have purchased two parking spaces in a private development of apartments. Cost of purchase of the parking spaces £20k.
The access road serving the apartments is used by a pub for deliveries, refuse collection, etc. As a leaseholder I have a contractual obligation to keep the access road clear so that the pub can manage deliveries, etc. There are also contractual obligations regarding disabled parking bay access, etc.
The communal areas of the apartments and access road are managed by a property management company. My contribution to this management is £5kpa.
The same access road also serves a housing association development that has its own allocated parking spaces.
The access road is ‘protected’ by gates off a main road. Although keyfob access is required to exit the development, the gates open automatically upon entry to comply with local authority and TFL planning regulations.
The development is well signed regarding private property, keyfob requirements for exit, clamping warnings and clamping is conducted by a reputable organisation who do not provide any kickback to the property management company or myself.
Under Lynne Featherstone’s legislation I have no means to deter or prevent anybody parking in my parking spaces or on the access road that I am obligated to keep free.
Do you understand this? I have £20k of parking spaces ‘protected’ by a gate that does not protect them due to other legislation. Anybody can use my parking spaces as they see fit. If they cannot get out of the development they (have been demonstrated to) break the automatic gates to leave further adding to my costs.
Please explain to me why I should be put in this position because of rogue clamping companies? I agree that rogue clamping companies should not operate in the manner in which they do and be appropriately regulated. I would also be in favour of having licensed or local authority-approved contractors being used to protect my property and be used as a deterrent.
Is it not unreasonable for me to want to have free access to my property (which is protected to the extent it can be) and to be able to have effective deterrents in place to enable this? I take care not to get a free ride from other people’s property, obey parking restrictions whether public or private and accordingly have never been clamped or ticketed in a situation where I should not have been. If I park in contravention of warnings or penalties I expect to carry the risk of receiving a penalty. Of course if I am clamped unfairly (with no warning signs, etc) then I will dispute this and the argument about rogue behaviour is simple and clear.
If you and others like you are incapable of understanding the desire of people like me who wish to protect their property and enjoy the free use of property that they have paid for, it seems that:
1. the only way for you to gain an understanding is for you to experience the inconvenience of having your access to your property denied. You can then understand the problem of having no effective recourse or solution to this situation
2. ultimately property owners will take law/frustration into their own hands and become criminalised as a result of poorly thought out and implemented legislation that favours those who act selfishly.
@Anne
You are so incorrect, the industry wanted regulation and still want regulation, the last government ignored their pleas and introduced a scheme that registered individuals and not companies or operaters…
@Dr Simm I am not incorrect, although i can see how you may see this; you are refereing to the wrong legislation (SIA atc 2001). The crime and security bill which was passed in March 2010 says that companies must be licensed. The government simply has to enforce this: The SIA can license a company under which a requirement would be to become a memeber of a trade association ie the BPA which is the only associated trade association on the DVLA, to be a member of the BPA you must follow their rules which has limits for signage/fees and circumstances of towing. Although Labour could have done better by introducing limits on the fees as part of the statute the basis is there…….
@joe public Do you think it’s justifiable for councils and the police to clamp? If so isn’t that double standards since the reasons are pretty much the same? I’m not sure how you can say the industry was given a chance to clean up its act – how was this done?? and even so it’s wrong to tar a whole industry with the same brush…its a private company that works of behalf of the DVLA to clamp and remove/crush cars of road tax evaders. Are they also cowboys just cos they are doing the job they were employed to do???…….Also, you are incorrect a ban was included in the consultation.
Hi Lynne,
I think you will find the real identity of ‘Dr Slimm’ is Andrew Jackson of the Wheel Clamping Company or ‘Yellow Triangle’ one of his operators is using a fake SIA ID card in Winchcombe Street, Cheltenham. Even yesterday he marched a mother with a small child to the cashpoint in the pouring rain.
If anyone is interested; I have posted pictures of the rougue operator in Cheltenham on the Pistonheads Forum. There is also a picture of his ‘unmarked’ van on that website. The man has made threats against me; I have reported the matter to Martin Horwood’s office.
Lynne, PLEASE do not go back on your word.
@ David Smith
I think you will find you are totally incorrect and I resent the slander and the slur… I am Dr. Simm, I live in Havering, I am registered with the National Union of Journalists under No.925903 and either you can retract that statement or find yourself in hot water…
Why do you have to resort to this type of slander – check your facts mate.
What is the link Mr. Smith….
@ David Smith:
“Even yesterday he marched a mother with a small child to the cashpoint in the pouring rain.”
Was she parked:
a) on private land?
b) in view of signs warning her that she would be clamped if she parked there?
@Phil.
Your quite correct I used to be a director of CES and before that ISTM, i have not been involved in the industry since 2008 and have nothing to lose or gain by the ban, however I do have a belief that clamping is necessary if done correctly sadly many practioners have abused the system and created the mess you see today.
Phil it would appear that you are one of those people that are easily led by the press reports the nurse in question was clamped correctly we as a clamping company were one of the only ones to recognise the NHS green badge or the local area parking permit none of these were present we didnt clamp nurse we clamped a plain black car the nurse was offered payment by cash or card and chose cash, remeber many people claim to be something they are not to avoid paying and that is why we had in place a robust appeals procedure, which the nurse in question used to provide documentary evidence that she was indeed a nurse and was working on the day in question, and of course a refund was issued immediately.
one of the reasons I left the industry was I had a clear picture in my mind of how the industry needed to move forward I was not a sole director and decided to direct my attention toward goverment, the clamping industry will not win friends by charging huge fees and by sharp practice, the goverment had an opportunity in 2004 to take control of the industry which everone would have welcomed sadly they bolted clamping onto the SIA licensing which was the beggining of the end.
I am sure you have seen the recent media frenzy around the 30 hour standoff in North London yes the clamping firm may have overeacted but no one asked the man in question why he had parked in a residential estate to visit the mosque across the road
I have said it many times before, clamping is necessary, but only if it is regulated properly
Come on David, fess up, I know who you are, what you do for a living, you see I have been a member of Piston Heads since 2006
You can either apologise or I will start posting information about you…. except the information I post will be HONEST AND TRUTHFUL and not a slur on your character….!
Sure, Nick you’re no longer involved in the industry since 2008 – then why is Companies House still showing you as a director of CES? Have those CCJs been satisfied yet?
I’m sure you’d love to have your “industry” legitimised by the government. Happily it looks like it will go the other way.
Its sad to see so many who tell us they have no axe to grind having a rant and rave about the long overdue and entirely merited ban on clamping. They are not connected to any company they tell us but yet their posts are full of personal diatribe and rants, along with the totally expected threats to others who dare to disagree with them. Why take it so personally if you are not affected? Take a chill pill guys.
All the pro-clamping people are doing is showing exactly the traits which have resulted in the upcoming ban. Clampers might think they are big men intimidating a granny out of her pension in a dimply lit derelict car park with non existent signage but they just look like bullies online when they try these tactics. But I’m told that a leopard cannot change its spots.
@ Joe Public…
No “Mr I have not got the balls to show my name”, we get annoyed when we are slandered, defamed and treated like we are the problem when in reality there are only TWO PROBLEMS.
Problem One is the Rogue Clampers that don’t give a damn about who they clamp, when they clamp or how much they charge.
Problem Two are the people that will RISK parking on private property, signed or not because they are either too lazy to walk a few extra yards to a proper car park provided for their use, or they simply don’t want to pay…
So come on Mr. Joe Public, use your real name, or you are just another TROLL.
…and constructively what do landowners do (see my earlier post)?
It seems the pro-clamping side cannot resist calling others out. It must be in their DNA. Now a sensible person who had a message and wanted to get it across might think twice about ranting and raving, threatening others and calling them names, making hateful comments about less privileged members of society etc on the blog of the very Minister who has just decided to get rid of them. They are not clampers they keep telling us but cry slander whenever anyone insults a clamper.
landowners will have several options when clamping is history, which Lynne has herself referred to. It will be their decision whether to take these options or to sit on the sidelines carping about the loss of clamping. If they choose to do the latter they cannot really expect any sympathy from anyone and people will rightly conclude that there never was a parking management problem in the first place.
@Dr Simm
“No “Mr I have not got the balls to show my name”, we get annoyed when we are slandered, defamed and treated like we are the problem when in reality there are only TWO PROBLEMS …”
WE get annoyed when WE are slandered? I thought you said you were a journalist and not a clamper? You must try to remember what you have said previously.
Oh, dear, mr troll, I am going to ignore your comments from now on, you have nothing constructive to say, you just insult everyone, make assumptions about them…
For you reference, I will be making enquiries legally about your IP Address via this website, I will also ask that your insulting remarks and inuendo’s about me and my company are removed.
My identity and positions has already been confirmed to the owner of this website whereas you sit behind an anonymous name and identity because you have no balls… what are you afraid of, that some people may agree or disagree with your opinion…. anyone that posts garbage about others in an effort to discredit them with lies and innuendo behind a false identity is a troll.
@ David Smith
Pistonheads post (from “dwspirit”):
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=28&f=10&t=866253&mid=215518&i=0&nmt=Wheel%20Clamper%20caught%20on%20camera!&mid=215518
Assumed to be yours.
Photograph of the car park in question:
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=cheltenham&sll=51.901878,-2.072017&sspn=0.005097,0.013937&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Cheltenham,+Gloucestershire,+United+Kingdom&t=h&layer=c&cbll=51.902056,-2.071351&panoid=lEG1LyfcUCH1Ra26KbClUw&cbp=12,290.23,,0,2.44&ll=51.901981,-2.071416&spn=0.002549,0.006968&z=18
Car park is well signed, makes it clear that parking is there for customers of the shop that own the land that comprises the parking.
A simple question… was the poor school teacher marched to the cashpoint in the rain a customer of those shops? A simple yes or no will be fine.
@Joe Public..
You really must learn to read sir.
I am NOT a Clamper, nor have I ever stated I was.
I do not take Kick Backs from Clampers, I made that clear.
I do contract Clamping Services for clients, I made that clear.
…and yes, I am registered with the National Union of Journalists.
…and yes, I have put in a formal request for your IP Address.
So what do you need help with to understand – Oh, I get it, you do not agree with my point of view so set out to make everyone that disagrees with you look bad… your purpose is to try and make all pro-clamping lobbyists look bad, like we are the lunatics – sorry mate, you just make yourself look more and more like a troll.
@ Joe Public
I personally despise clampers but unfortunately they are a necessary evil. What is required is strong legislation to regulate these businesses.
I think it has been shown that the several options available should clamping be banned are not viable. Ticketing is not enforceable and any erection of barriers will require planning permission, which gets turned down more often than not as it infringes upon the street scene.
Do you have any other constructive suggestions?
Also, if you want to be taken seriously and really believe in what you are saying then you should not hide behind a pseudonym.
@Lee H.
Ooops he broke the Law, the person is in a private vehicle on private land so the taking of a photograph and publishing the same is unlawful… it makes me laugh when they are happy to create a fuss about Rogue Clampers, tar everyone with the same brush but happy to break the law when they feel like it…
If the clamper is acting unlawfully or in a manner likely to cause distress, there is a simply way to resolve the issue – contact the owners who run the scheme, ask to meet with them and the clamper and MEDIATE to find out why people are being clamped… I know loads of such small developments with small and large retailers that suffer from this problem, the car park is FOR THEIR customers and not every other Tom Dick and Harry, the real laugh is the sign can be clearly seen on the wall…..
This seems to be turning into a tit for tat and getting a bit personal for this type of blog. Joe Public, if you really are representing Joe Public then your doing a bad job as you seem to be narrow minded and full of assumptions – the kind of rantings best suited to CAG or Pepipoo. Pro Clamping does not mean that ‘we’ are clampers; just people who will be affected by this ban in some form or another, although i am sure that there are clampers here as well. You have not justified the ‘alternatives’ that Lynne has thrown up. For the landowner they have no powers to enfore a PCN as the Liability remains with the driver and barriers are not suitable for all…..what else can someone do? And for the morons who have put the industry for shame; surely tight legislation can only help? Can logical and adult conversation now continue??…..
@ Dr Simm
You appear to be more than a little aerated. What insults have I made about you? On the other hand you have made quite a few about me. I simply pointed out that your first statement that you were a journalist not associated with clamping and the later one saying you were annoyed about insults against clampers were a wee bit incompatible. A not unreasonable point to make.
Good luck with your little trawl for my identity. At the end of it you will no doubt discover that even if you could find out my name insults and even abuse are no actionable under defamation laws anyway, even if I had done these things. But hey don’t let me stop you from trying. I will try my best to sleep at night knowing that the long arm of the law is reaching out for me. LOL.
Dr Simm – do you plan to do somthing about this? You have stated quite a lot of the last few days. Although they have already held a consultation and so can just ban it, are the avenues of appeal for a re look at the Crime and Security Bill to try to make it cost effective for the Govt? I think one of the reasons lynne stated was because it will ocst 2mil for an appeals service, this could be subsidised by the companies/licensing authority?
@Dr Simm
“I am NOT a Clamper, nor have I ever stated I was.
I do not take Kick Backs from Clampers, I made that clear.
I do contract Clamping Services for clients, I made that clear.”
I have not said you do any of those things, unless you are reading some other thread.
You have called me a troll repeatedly when I deign to disagree with you and even a benefit scrounger at one point, amongst other numerous insults. But as this is the normal cut and thrust of debate I will not make an issue of it unless I have to.
@joe public – Please answers these questions??
1. What were the ‘warnings’ given to clampers to clean up the industry.
2. Are the govt at fault for not putting in stricter controls/tighter legislation since their first legislation of the sector in 2001?
3. What alternative remedies do you suggest to landowners etc apart from issuing a pcn or barriers (confrontation excluded)
You have a lot to say about the anti clamping stance and i would welcome your comments…..
The answer is a total ban on the towing of vehicles unless they are causing an obstruction i.e. blocking emergency vehicle access and cap the clamping charge at no more that what the local authority charges.make the signage uniform throughout the county so that if you get clamped in London or Newcastle the signage would be the same and severely punish any company that steps out of line.
@Anne, yes I will be doing something about this and started what will be a long report on how private individuals will be badly affected by this legislation should it be allowed to proceed in its current format.
I hate the fact the term ‘Land Owners’ is used as it gives the impression that we are only dealing with Large Corporations that own large swathes of land that they leave empty to entrap and ensnare unsuspecting motorists, but that simply is not the case, the majority of people that will be affected are Flat Owners with Private Car Parks, your small shops and Doctors surgeries etc that are in built up areas where parking is a premium.
Good Legislation formed with good consultation of the public and the operators will ensure we can see an end to rogue clampers, an end to gory headlines whilst still be able to clamp on private property or tow away as a last resort.
This Legislation needs to cover such items as:
Registration of all Security Companies that offer Clamping/Tow Away.
Registration of all Staff used for this purpose.
An Agreed sensible sized Minimum Notice (A3 or above)
A Minimum Number of signs per sq ft of parking space (or per x spaces)
An Agreed Font Face and size (such as Arial that is clear and easily read)
An agreed sensible amount as the maximum fine.
A Code of Practice agreed by their newly formed Industry Watchdog.
It is not rocket science to put together a good piece of legislation to cover all bases and include certain exemptions to clamping such as Nurses Vehicles that are identified as such, Disabled Drivers etc.
All it needs is a common sense approach to get rid of the cowboys and alllow people to protect what is rightfully theirs.