BB.lv: “They fined me for nothing, and they also called me a sucker”

While going regarding his daily business, Ervin often drives along the Gustav Zemgala overpass in Riga. Moving towards the VEF area, during traffic jams, leaving the overpass, you often shorten the path to Brivibas Street, passing through the parking lot near the Elkor Plaza supermarket. Many drivers do this. This shortening of the road is not prohibited by any road sign.

It came as a big surprise to Erwin when he received a notice of violation and a fine of 30 euros from the manager of a particular parking lot, Park Expert, earlier this year. Attached to the statement are photos from the camera, which allegedly show Erwin’s car allegedly being delayed in the parking lot for 25 minutes one day in November.

The rules for using the parking lot state that vehicles stopping on the territory are recorded by a camera installed at the entrance to and exit from the parking lot. To enjoy three hours of free parking, the vehicle’s registration number must be registered to the in-store device within five minutes of entering the premises. This means that you can freely pass through the parking lot without any penalties. Journalists calculated that cars taking shortcuts through the territory remain there for up to a minute.

Erwin said that he, too, is slowly moving around the area.

Also on that day, according to the parking lot manager, the car stood there for 25 minutes, driving through the area as usual – without stopping there, Erwin said.

The driver said that he spoke with Park Expert by phone, but representatives of the parking lot operator were not too responsive. He asked to see camera footage so he might track the car’s movement and make sure it hadn’t been parked there for 25 minutes, but only received photographs. The man believes that what is happening to him is ordinary extortion. According to Evin, the interaction was not only unfriendly, but also rude.

“I go there every day, I’ve never had any fines. I said that perhaps something happened in the system itself, to which they answered that perhaps something happened in my head. They called me a sucker! I emailed three times, no one responded. I asked for camera footage because there are cameras on every corner. I think there’s no problem watching,” the driver says indignantly.

Erwin did not pay the fine as a matter of principle, because he believes that he is being punished without guilt. Later, Park Expert got involved in the matter with a debt collector, who had already demanded a cash payment from Erwin – 37 euros. To avoid getting into bigger problems, Erwin transferred the required amount of money. The driver cannot shake the feeling that he was robbed.

It should be noted that there are obvious omissions in the camera images sent to Erwin along with the violation notice, which suggests that the merchant may have unfairly fined the man. Each photo was taken on a different day (date).

The Consumer Rights Protection Center (CPPR) stated that the merchant is obliged to cooperate, and the consumer has the right to receive additional information regarding the violation of which he is accused.

The CPPP reported that Park Expert had previously come to the attention of consumer rights advocates due to unsatisfactory communication, which the CPPP asked to improve. The supervisory authority stated that a particular businessman “carries out not very honest commercial activities,” and reported that there are many complaints once morest Park Expert: last year, the Center for Public Prosecutions advised dissatisfied people 85 times, this year – already 38 times. Journalists have also repeatedly reported on disputes between drivers and Park Expert.

Journalists asked to explain Erwin’s problematic situation. The merchant ignored questions regarding whether providing additional information, such as watching videos, would help clarify the situation in this and similar situations. It is unclear whether Park Expert did this or checked anything at all. At the moment, it is no longer possible to verify the movement of Erwin’s car in the parking lot in November, since the camera footage has been deleted.