Help me win this argument.

[Globalti]

Since you've chosen to resurrect this thread with a story about clamping I'll tell you what really inspired me to resist the extortionists: I used to have a very good Irish friend who was a solicitor. Sadly he drank himself to death but that's another story... anyway one day he parked on a private car park behind some offices in Bradford while we went for a curry. He came out later and found his car clamped. 'Phoned the Police who said there was nothing they could do and advised him to pay the £60. Same story from the AA. So he called a mechanic with a flat bed truck, craned the car onto it and took it back to his workshop where he dismantled the front suspension and removed the wheel so as to take the clamp off, undamaged. The important point is that he did not damage the clamp, which would have been Criminal Damage.

The clamping company were furious; they threatened all sorts but my pal just told them to come and collect their undamaged wheel clamp at their own expense from his garage. When we asked him how much the mechanic charged him he replied:"Two hundred and twenty pounds!" We laughed: "blimey, you'd have done better to pay the sixty pound fee!" His retort? "Yes but the difference was.... I ENJOYED PAYING THAT MONEY!" Twenty years later the clamp is still in his garage, as far as I know.

 

[machew]

Interesting article by a Barrister about being clamped
A challenge to a private parking charge notice issued at the car park of The Aggi in Braunton

 

[Globalti]

Great reply!

Just as amusing is the following comment made lower down the page: "Jolly fun, but why should the fact you were parked because you were in church matter? Is that more worthy than going into Tesco?
I do wish people wouldn't attempt piety as a defence. It irritates those of us who are rational thinkers."

 

[CopperCyclist]

As we are talking about it, I'll cough to a clamping incident too...

In my student days, I had a pass allowing me to park in a certain car park. I had paid a not inconsiderable amount for the issue of this annual pass. Many people used to use the car park without a pass, and one day I came in and found no spaces left, though at least five or six 'passless' cars. I ended up leaving my car on a gravel verge in between two Bay sections. It blocked and inconvenienced no one, though was clearly not a bay.

Guess what - when I returned, my car was there with a clamp. (the other passless cars had gone, no idea if they were clamped too). I was irritated so had a look at the clamp. I noticed it didn't seem on particularly well, as I could get a bit of wiggle room and see the nuts of the wheel. I jacked up the car, managed to access the wheel and let my tyre down, which left me just slip (with a small margin of difficulty) the clamp off the wheel. I then replaced it with my spare, put the flat one in the boot along with the clamp, and drove to the office stated on the ticket, handing the clamp and ticket back in, showing them my parking pass and saying "don't think I'll bother buying one of these next year".

 

[Globalti]

Nice one. I bet you enjoyed that as well.

 

[Cycling Dan]

None.

Private companies cannot issue fines. They like to give the impression they can, hence the threatening letters. All they are entitled to do is to clamp your car and charge a release fee, but they cannot pursue you for any fees once you have left.

If your car is clampped on anything other than a public road it is illegal and you should phone the police for it to be removed and the clamper faces up to a £5000 fine for doing so.

 

[Markymark]

...although this thread was started only shortly after the invention of the car so things may have changed.

 

[Cycling Dan]

...although this thread was started only shortly after the invention of the car so things may have changed.

Only just noticed
Started in 2012