A furious mother says she would rather go to prison than pay a £170 fine for parking by the seaside with her disabled daughter.
Laura Franklin, 40, left her vehicle in a Dover seaside car park while taking her disabled 13-year-old daughter and her friend – who has cystic fibrosis – to the beach in August.
After thinking it was public parking, she was shocked beyond belief when, three days later, a ticket arrived in the mail.
Ms Franklin said: 'There was no parking along the beach so I came here where I parked before.
'I had no other choice because my daughter's friend can't walk very far. So I'm furious about that. I really am.
Laura Franklin, pictured, was fined £170 for parking by the sea with her disabled daughter
The mother-of-four said: 'I'm not giving up. Even if I end up going to prison, I would gladly accept it'
Mrs Franklin, who works in a charity shop, was originally fined £100. She then appealed the fine and was emailed confirmation that the matter was being investigated.
“But then I received another letter saying the fine was now £170 because I hadn’t paid it within the required timeframe,” said the mother-of-four.
'170 pounds! How can you justify this?
The Harbor House Car Park, which uses automatic number plate recognition, is public part-time and private part-time for Dover Harbor Board employees.
Below the signage stating 'Public Parking Available', it clarifies the times when the public can park on site – from 4pm to 8am, Monday to Friday, and all day on weekends.
But Franklin – who visited the site on August 13, a Tuesday – says the writing is very small and should be clearer.
She added: 'When you have children with you, you get distracted. I only thought about providing them with fun.
However, the letter sent by GXS Services, which operates the car park, states that there is “clear signage” at the site.
Furthermore, it states that even with her blue badge, Ms. Franklin should still have paid for parking through the RingGo app – something she said she was not aware of.
Ms Franklin is registered as disabled because she suffers from an irregular heart rhythm and has stents installed in her heart. Her daughter has learning difficulties and her daughter's friend has cystic fibrosis.
The Harbor House Car Park, which uses automatic number plate recognition, is public part-time and private part-time for Dover Harbor Board employees
Below the signage stating 'Public Parking Available', it clarifies the times when the public can park on site – from 4pm to 8am, Monday to Friday, and all day on weekends.
When she visited the Harbor House Car Park, she parked in a marked disabled space and displayed her blue badge the entire time – between 12.15pm and 1.59pm.
The mum, who lives in Dover, said: 'I don't think it's right. I am disabled and had two disabled children with me at the time.
'Plus they have CCTV so they would have seen that my daughter's friend has additional needs. I proved that I am disabled and showed them proof of my blue badge.
Franklin says he will fight the fine until the end – even if he ends up in prison.
She said: 'If they refuse my appeal it will go to court and I will fight it until the end.
'I feel I'm vindicated and I'm not giving up. Even if I end up going to prison, I would gladly accept it.
'I don't think it's right. I do not believe that these private companies should be allowed to charge £170.
'This is stressing me out. I'm having trouble sleeping at night. I'm worried because they are on my case. They want me to pay this fine. But I just can't do it.
GXS Services was created in 2014 and states that its ethos is to “eliminate the burden of abusive parking through the implementation of ethical and transparent parking management”.
The letter sent to S. Franklin states: «This fee relates to the parking period specified above, the fee has been charged for the reason indicated and responsibility for the same has been brought to the attention of the driver through clear signage in and around of the location at the time of parking.'
A Dover Harbor Board spokesperson said: 'The Harbor House car park has allocated parking accessible to blue badge holders.
'As a private, signposted car park, the standard rate applies to all users, including public parking only outside office hours, with a paid ticket required for the time required.'
