Free Traffic Legal Advice

Need some advice:

I drove to my local hospital on Saturday 28 March (I'm fine) and parked up safely and legally. The car park system there is ANPR - pay on exit or within 48 hours online using the Evology parking app.

I left and tried to pay within 48 hours using the app, but the app (wrongly) recorded me as arriving and leaving within the first 30 minutes of parking, which is free, so it wouldn't let me pay. (The app is set up in a way that you put in your reg, it supplies the entrance and exit times, and you can't edit them.)

I then received a parking charge notice in the post. I appealed it, saying that I tried to pay but the app wouldn't let me, and that the parking office was closed so I couldn't try there either. I enclosed a screenshot of the app showing my reg and the uneditable arrival and departure times with the appeal. ParkingEye rejected the appeal because I didn't pay 'despite there being multiple payment methods available'.

I accidentally told them that I was the driver during the appeal process, so that's that.

I discovered after my appeal that there is a pay machine near the car park, but it's not signposted in the car park, and it's inside a building that appears to be locked at weekends. Likewise I discovered after my appeal that there is another payment machine in another car park, on the other side of the hospital campus, over 1/4 mile away as the crow flies, again without any signage to point this out in the car park I was parked in.

The charge is £100, or £60 if paid by Wednesday (6th). ParkingEye has said that I can appeal to POPLA, but if I do this, I lose the discount and if I lose the appeal, I will have to pay the full £100.

What do I do?

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Links

Photo of parking sign taken on the day of parking:

Street view link (car park 3) - bear in mind that the car park is a little different now and operator has changed since the street view capture was taken:

The only payment machine near car park 3 is in this building, which appears to be locked at weekends:

Parking Charge Notice received in the post:



Response to my appeal: https://ibb.co/N2zWMwdm

Thank you in advance