Furious tourist says he'll 'never return' to seaside town after car park 'scam'
28.05.2024 - 12:15
/ dailyrecord.co.uk
A furious tourist has sworn off a Cornish seaside town after claiming he was "scammed" by a car park operator - despite paying for his stay. Paul Spooner travelled to Sennen Cove with his wife Christine for a family gathering last April.
Government employee Paul pulled up in the village's beach car park, arriving shortly after 2pm and paying £9 for a 24-hour stay. The on-site parking machine recorded his car registration details but failed to issue a ticket.
Surprised at the lack of permit, he looked around and realised there were a number of ticketless cars parked in bays, so assumed it would be fine, Cornwall Live reports.
The enjoyed their time with their loved ones, but the trip was soured soon afterwards when, to Paul's dismay, he was slapped with a £100 fine for his stay in Sennen Beach car park.
He claims that he repeatedly tried to contact Armtrac Security, the car park operator, to contest the fine, but was unable to get through for two days. He also sent them an email, providing evidence of his payment for his stay, but received no response for several weeks.
By the time finally Armtrac responded to his email, they told him that his appeal was not lodged within the required 21-day period.
The irate 50-year-old said: "They wouldn't even accept my proof of payment. They were rude on the phone and put the phone down on me twice.
"When I managed to get hold of them again, it was the same woman I had had before and she even denied ever speaking to me. I think the way these people operate is scandalous. It feels like a total scam."
Paul claims the email used by Armtrac did not match the one listed on their website. And he says that the official letter he received informing him that his appeal was unsuccessful had some