There Asda be a better way than fining shoppers (From Bucks Free Press)

There Asda be a better way than fining shoppers

1:14pm Friday 22nd June 2012 in Your Letters

DURING visits to Asda, Cressex, I have noticed signs to the effect that, if you park for longer than two hours, you are breaking the conditions.

I had often wondered why on earth anyone would want to park in that car park for more than two hours as there is nowhere else to shop in the vicinity; shopping is unlikely to take more than two hours in the supermarket and why should there be a parking restriction at all?

How wrong I was. I’ve just been fined £30 for parking there for more than three hours.

I visited my daughter, a missionary doctor, and her family, in Uganda a short time ago and took over 600 photos so, after doing some shopping in the store, I went to their photographic department and spent some time viewing, editing and ordering my photos. I became entirely engrossed in this fascinating activity and, before long, I had exceeded the two hours without even being aware of this.

I must say that the two hour limit was far from my mind at the time. I have been sent irrefutable photographic evidence of our vehicle arriving and leaving the car park, and a fine has been incurred, but there is no recourse for explaining why we overstayed the time or to explain that we were doing genuine ‘Asda business’ and were not parking our car there for any ulterior motive. It is unnerving and smacks of a ‘big brother’ attitude to learn that the car parking firm then contacted the DVLA regarding our car’s number plate and were quickly issued with our name and address, so that a letter could be sent to us. I feel that there must be mums and families who might go shopping and then spend time at Asda’s café, or other outlets, who could easily exceed the time limit by the time they have shopped, eaten and gone to the loos, and I think that this information regarding car parking restrictions should be more widely known. I’d also be intrigued to learn of Asda’s rationale for this rule as their car park is huge and I can see no logical reason for there being parking restrictions here, but it seems increasingly difficult in this society to question seemingly arbitrary rules and obtain sensible replies.

Jennifer Bluck, Kingsley Crescent, High Wycombe

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