A leading private parking company has launched a shock legal crackdown against Courier Country motorists in a string of new court cases.
In a move that will cause concern for thousands of motorists across Tayside and Fife, UK Parking Control (UKPC) this week began small claims cases against drivers who it says failed to display tickets at a Dundee retail park.
Private parking companies have traditionally avoided pursuing motorists who incur one-off parking charges in Scotland, which many consumer groups and legal figures have branded “unenforceable”.
But, on Thursday, a sheriff warned members of the public to “proceed with care” and take independent legal advice if facing similar proceedings.
Two Dundee motorists appeared in court at the start of their bids to fight the £160 charges UKPC is trying to claim back from them.
Three drivers appeared in Forfar’s small claims court on Wednesday and a further Dundee motorist’s case is to call at the city’s sheriff court next month.
All of the Dundee cases and at least one of the Forfar cases involve private parking charges incurred at the Gallagher Retail Park in Dundee.
A recent Courier investigation revealed that only a tiny percentage of the tens of thousands of private parking charges issued every year ended up in court.
A senior Dundee legal source said he believed UKPC was using the Tayside small claims as “test cases”.
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