Man helps quash 400 parking tickets in Barnet

1:50pm Friday 19th October 2012 in News Photograph of the Author By Natalie O'Neill

A travel and logistics consultant has helped fellow drivers to successfully quash a staggering 400 parking tickets.

Simon Kalman, 56, of Gainsborough Gardens, Golders Green, has a 100 per cent pass rate in overturning the parking tickets given in the last six years in Barnet.

He said: “Over several years people have discovered I know about parking tickets and send me emails to see if their tickets have been given wrongly.

"Why is it that officers are issuing tickets that are wrong? It costs the council money and it’s a waste of time."

In the past two months since Barnet Borough Council outsourced its parking department to NSL Limited last December, Mr Kalman has helped overturn four tickets.

He said: “One was given to a local GP who parked over the dropped curb to his own surgery.
“Another was given to someone who had displayed an out of date resident’s permit with a current permit higher up the windscreen.”

On Tuesday Mr Kalman also helped a driver who was given a fine in Alber Gardens, Golders Green, despite the enforcement officer taking a photo of his car with a valid resident’s permit clearly displayed.

Mr Kalman said: "It’s not fair that the traffic system is such that the council register tickets and the driver has to then waste time, effort and money and if they take legal representation and have to recover the cost because the system won’t allow it.

“I’d like to suggest that where tickets are blatantly issued, NSL should pay to the keeper of the registered vehicle what they are being told to pay otherwise it’s tantamount to fraud.”

A council spokesman said: “The service is still relatively new, having a mixture of experienced and new officers carrying out the service at all levels and locations. There is continued communication and adjustments made on a regular basis.

“The council will continue to work closely with its contractor ensuring that the statutory processes involved in enforcement are met, and any incidents requiring investigation are looked into.”

The council will file a report on Mr Kalman’s complaints which will be reported to the area environment sub-committee in January.

Comments(8)

NoToMob Member says...
8:44pm Fri 19 Oct 12

Well done Mr Kalman, NSL are only after revenue at any cost. And they won't let a little thing like the Law or Rules get in the way.

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MrMustard says...
10:55pm Fri 19 Oct 12

Hello Mr Kalman

A mutual friend is going to put us in touch. We have a lot to talk about.

The council spokesman is talking tosh. A prefectly good service was privatised and all of the back office staff got rid of in order to employ cheaper, and evidently less able, staff in Croydon. The contract started on 1 May and is a disaster.

Whatever a traffic warden (CEO) tells you is not to be trusted. Ask them to write it down. Take a note of their badge number on their shoulder. Even if a traffic warden in say N Finchley says you are OK where you are parked one of the other 4 N Finchley wardens may well come along and give you a ticket.

Parking is all about raising revenue and nothing else.

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Devonshire says...
6:06am Sat 20 Oct 12

I suspect the ticket given to the doctor who parked across a dropped kerb outside his own surgery was in fact correctly issued. It is illegal for anyone to park across a dropped kerb - the resident of the driveway it leads to has no more right to park across it than anyone else, neither can they give permission for friends or relatives to break the law. We don't own the road in front of our own houses and have no more right to park there than anyone else.
However I have never heard of such a ticket being issued before unless the the driveway owner has complained that they can't get in or out. The parking wardens should use some common sense but it seems common sense is no longer as common as we would like.

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barnet head says...
11:52am Sat 20 Oct 12

We are all bored with the same old parking stories over and over again every year its the same and much worse in many other boroughs up and down the country.
You talk about this as if its new. If a ticket is incorrectly issued or evidence and information comes to light, then the council or its partners can cancel a ticket.
Barnet had a 27% cancellation rate last year and 19% the year before its on line.
The worst in London.

The council that we voted for helps set some of the guidelines as thats all they are. Ultimately it can make a decision to change the ruling.
Its illegal to park on any crossover and any dropped kerb. Break the law get caught tough luck. If the system fails appeal thats what its there for.

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Mr Reasonable says...
10:07am Sun 21 Oct 12

Devonshire, I am not an expert but I thought that according to the Traffic Managerment Act 2004 it is an offense to park across a dropped curb with a number of exceptions. The second exception is where the vehicle is parked outside residential premises by or with the consent (but not consent given for reward) of the occupier of the premises. So this suggests that you can park across your own dropped curb.

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Devonshire says...
6:57am Tue 23 Oct 12

Mr Reasonable, thankyou for your response: you are more of an expert than I am so I accept your comments are correct - though they sound just too sensible to be true.
It does mean that the traffic wardens have an enforcement problem though. If a car is parked across a dropped kerb how do they know whose car it is and whether permission has been given? Is it reasonable to ask them to knock on the door before issuing a ticket? I suppose one approach is not to issue a ticket unless requested by the house occupants.

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educated says...
9:56am Wed 24 Oct 12

Would it not be sensible that the CEOs do not issue a ticket to somebody parked across a dropped kerb, unless there is a complaint?

Where I work there is space on the forecourt for three Directors. The company has four, so one of them parks across the drop down curb in front of the driveway. Everybody knows who it is, so if somebody needs to go out, they can ask their colleague to leave.

Nobody has ever been given a ticket to my knowledge.

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james smyth says...
4:21pm Wed 24 Oct 12

If you wish to establish facts about parking tickets issued either on the highway or in car parks etc,then a very good place for info is
www.moneysavingexper
t.com
the site is run by consumers chapion Martin Lewis.
You will find out all you need to know AND the correct way to appeal.
On the point of how many tickets were cancelled by Barnet,those figures can be looked at twofold.....either Barnet issues lots of illegal tickets and so hence why so many cancelled or they issue tickets correctly but are generous on appeal.
I think it is the first scenero as my experience is that the CEO are poorly trained.
They seem to think that if a car is parked in a loading bay then they can issue a ticket,but unless there is a sign indicating the times when it is and isnt a loading bay ,you have every right to park there.That is the same for disabled bays and motorcycle bays.

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