The devil is in the details. This probably aptly applies to the terms and conditions governing fees and charges in the usage of public carparks.
Often the fine details of such terms and conditions appear in obscure notices or in small print evading the immediate attention of motorists who only come to realize later when it's probably too late.
In the first 8 months of this year, the Consumer Council has received 50 cases of complaints against public carparks mostly in disputes over charges, compared with 53 cases for the whole of last year.
In one case, the complainant found his carparking ticket missing and reported the matter to the shroff office which produced the company's T&C stipulating the levy of an administration fee of $100 and the parking charge starting from the day's midnight (00:00am) in the absence of the ticket to verify the clock-in time.
In the ensuing dispute, the complainant agreed to pay the administration fee but not the parking charge of $180 since he had parked his car for only an hour. A request to access the carpark CCTV which would have the time recorded on the video was turned down on grounds of privacy violation.
Despite the conciliation of the Council, the company insisted that charges arising from lost carpark tickets were levied in accordance with its T&C which were on display for the notice of motorists.
In a second case, the complainant had his van parked overnight at a carpark which had the charge notice displayed prominently, at its entrance, for day/night parking at $140 and $80 respectively. He clocked in to the carpark at around 00:50am.
Later at 11:55pm the same day, he returned to collect his vehicle and was surprised the charge came to $336 and not $220 as advertsied. He was told the overnight parking charge was applicable only between Monday and Friday (except public holidays) and as the day happened to be a public holiday the regular hourly rate would be charged.
The complainant was dissatisfied as such fine detail was in very small print and since the notice board was erected on the left side of the entry gate it was impossible for the driver on the right-hand side to read clearly. He suggested the carpark to use the same bold print as with the parking charge to avoid unnecessary misunderstanding and dispute.
In a third case, the complainant drove her car to a carpark and finally pulled into a parking space she believed to be on an hourly charge. When she returned a few hours later, she was shocked to find her vehicle impounded.
It transpired that she had parked at a space reserved for tenant use only. On the tenant's complaint, the carpark had followed the company's procedures to first post on her vehicle a warning notice but since it was not removed within the stipulated time limit, the company had her car impounded accordingly.
The complainant contended that the parking space had only a numerical sign without specifying it was reserved for tenant use only. But the company maintained adequate notice was posted to remind motorists of tenant-only spaces, and insisted she paid the impounding fee of $320 before being allowed to drive away her car. On Council's conciliation, the company offered a $50 gift coupon as a goodwill gesture to resolve the complaint.
In a fourth case, the complainant took her car to a shopping mall carpark at 8:15pm to take advantage of the 2-hour free parking on spending of $200 at the mall. She noticed on a display board that the privileged parking was valid from 6:00am to 10:00pm.
When she came back for her car at the customer service counter, at 10:25pm, to claim her free parking, she was refused by the staff claiming that privileged parking service ceased to operate at 10:00pm. The complainant noted that no where at the mall was there any reminder notice that motorists must show up before 10:00pm to redeem free parking at the service counter.
On the Council's conciliation, the carpark refunded her the parking fee and undertook to review the T&C relating to the beneficial carparking service.
Public carpark operators are urged to draw up T&C delineating clearly the rights and responsibilities of both parties between the service provider and the consumer, and put on display prominently at carpark entrances for the attention and easy understanding of motorists.
On the issue of lost carparking tickets or electronic charge cards, carpark operators should adopt measures allowing access to check the exact duration of the vehicle's parking, and base the parking charge in accordance.
Whenever possible, motorists should take the time and effort to browse the websites of the carparks to familiarize themselves with the T&C in detail.
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- 2014.09.15