A DRIVER was slapped with a $63 ticket after he left his car for less than an hour due to a shopping center’s crackdown on who uses their parking lot.
Town and County Village, a shopping center in the San Francisco Bay Area, demanded the shopper pay the fine after walking off their property while he was running errands.
Palo Alto resident Jay Chesavage parked at the shopping center to bring something to his wife across the street, according to the Palo Alto Daily Post.
After getting a smoothie, he returned to his car 45 minutes later to find a notice on his windshield.
The ticket demanded he pay the $63 fine, with the violation noted as a “walkoff.”
“It just didn’t occur to me that it would be prohibited,” he told the Post.
Chesavage refused to pay the ticket.
“Demanding payment under false pretenses is more commonly known as a scam, and I’m sure your business doesn’t want to be known as operating a scam,” Chesavage said in a letter on December 13 to the shopping center and the parking service that issued the ticket, according to the Post.
It’s unclear what false pretenses Chesavage is referring to.
The charge is part of Town and Country’s crackdown to prevent non-customers from using their parking spaces.
The shopping center hired Parking Control Service, which is based in San Francisco, to issue the notices.
The service helps property owners enforce parking regulations and policies.
The ticket issued to Chesavage emphasizes that the charge is not a parking citation as “PCS is not a government or affiliated agency.”
“The vehicle identified below is parked on private property in breach of posted and established rules and use limitations of this property,” the notice said.
The ticket offered an early payment charge of $40 if Chesavage wished to pay the fee within three weeks.
PCS’ website says issuing fines is less intrusive and less costly than the alternative of towing vehicles.
How to fight a parking ticket
You can avoid being ticketed by following all posted laws and ordinances, but sometimes mistakes are made
Like any form of citation, parking tickets are preventable by reading and obeying posted signage. However, when visiting a new city, or state, or in a hurry, things can be missed and mistakes are made.
Suddenly there’s a ticket you weren’t prepared to pay for. If the ticket is a surprise to you, there are a few things you can do to help your case when appealing a parking ticket.
- Carefully read the ticket. Look for errors like incorrect street names, license plate numbers, vehicle make and model, time and date, etc. Errors would then make the ticket invalid.
- Take photos. Of the vehicle in the parking space, lack of signage, or other vehicles that weren’t cited for performing the same parking job. If the ticket involves parking too close to something like a fire hydrant, a photo showing a reasonable distance would help your case. Make sure metadata with the time and date are accessible. Signs that are obstructed by trees, or are on bent posts, or aren’t “obvious” are great things to photograph, too.
- Make sure the statute that was violated is listed on the ticket. If not listed, the ticket is not valid.
- Promptly follow the appeal instructions on the ticket. All legitimate tickets will have directions for appeal. Waiting until the very last moment weakens your argument and can result in late fees.
- When in court, avoid these phrases as they reduce your credibility and weaken your argument:
- “I didn’t know the law.”
- “I was on my way to move my car.”
- “I can’t afford this ticket.”
- “I’ve been doing this for years.”
- “I checked with the parking officer, who said it was OK.”
- Contact a lawyer. If you’re running into roadblocks and feel stuck, it may be best to reach out to a traffic lawyer in your area. Many have free case consultations.
Source: Reader’s Digest
The parking company hasn’t responded to The U.S. Sun’s request for comment.
Joan Fantazia, the shopping center’s general manager, said the parking lot is often used by people who aren’t customers.
“As you know, our location is highly desirable, which creates challenges with unauthorized parking,” Fantazia said, according to the Post.
“Students from Paly and Stanford often use the village to avoid paying for parking.”
Fantazia said people also use the parking lot during Stanford Football games.
The shopping center hasn’t returned The U.S. Sun’s request for further comment.
