Media

03/11/2011 Daily Telegraph - The Roads and Traffic Authority has advised motorists who find a "fine" from Australian National Car Parks to get legal advice before paying.

03/11/2011 Daily Telegraph - Scroll down till you see "Fresh Fine People". Where a customer receives a payment notice but tells us they simply forgot the ticket, we will sometimes ask ANCP if they can waive it. We did this in Sharyn's case and the payment notice has now been waived.

03/11/2011 Today tonight - The stakes of finding a parking spot have never been so high, and shopping centres are now hiring companies to tow vehicles away at any cost. Mentions Australian National Car Parks.

03/11/2011 2GB Radio - Ben Fordham talks to Gerard Brodie from the Consumer Action Law Centre and ACA reporter Sarah Stewart about people getting parking fines in private areas such as Woolworths carparks.

03/11/2011 2GB Radio - Ray Hadley speaks to NSW Roads Minister Duncan Gay about the RTA providing drivers' details to Australian National Car Parks. They talk about the current appeal in progress in which the RTA are appealing a court decision to release driver details to Australian National Car Parks, and they also talk about the possibility of creating a new law to forbid private parking companies from providing drivers addresses to private parking companies. The segment on the RTA starts 4mins 37secs into the recording.

12/08/2011 Herald Sun - Consumer Affairs Victoria advises people who receive private parking fines to wait for follow up action from the carpark proprietor, and then to contest its validity by writing a letter formally denying liability. And should advise those pursuing the demand that it is in dispute.

12/07/2011 A Current Affair, Channel 9 - Pat Wakefield got a private parking fine from Australian National Car Parks for parking in the Melbourne suburb of Preston. They fined him $88.00 for parking in a car he doesn't own, in a suburb he has never been to. Pat has lived in Gippsland for the last 25 years (about 150 km from Preston).

14/06/2011 Hansard Victorian Government - The minister for Consumer Affairs is asked to launch an investigation into Australian Recoveries & Collections. The complaint is that ARC continued to demand payment after ANCP had withdrawn a private parking fine. (when you open the document, perform a find on Australian Recoveries and Collections). Or read an extract here ==> https://sites.google.com/site/australiannationalcarparks/australian-national-car-parks

06/03/2011 The Age - Tens of thousands of motorists have been issued with potentially unlawful parking ''fines'' by private operators of car parks at shopping centres and other locations across Melbourne. Mentions Australian National Car Parks, Care Pare, and Parking Patrols Vic Pty Ltd.

18/11/2010 The Daily Telgraph - Private carpark operator ANCP has backed out of a promise to stop issuing ``fines’’ against people who haven’t displayed a ticket during the free two-hour period. See also.

13/09/2010 Herald Sun - Private car parks in Victoria have been banned from issuing phony fines to motorists for staying too long at supermarkets and other venues.

02/07/2010 A Current Affair, Channel 9 - For months, we've been reporting on Australian National Car Parks and the fines they have been unfairly issuing to drivers. But the company has backflipped and motorists have earned a small victory.

02/07/20010 The Daily Telegraph - Australian National Car Parks has decided to dump the requirement catching out so many Sydney motorists - that a ticket must be displayed even during the initial "free" period.

04/06/2010 Herald Sun - Ace Parking and Parking Patrols (Vic) being taken to court by Consumer Affairs.

03/06/2010 A Current Affair, Channel 9 - Andrew Borodin defended his case. In an embarrasing backflip, ANCP rolled over and withdrew its case at the very last minute. Andrew's case was discontinued and the 850 claim against him wiped out. Mr Borodin's defence was he wasn't driving the car and doesn't know who was (or couldn't be sure). If Andrew wasn't driving the car he couldn't have entered into a contract. ANCP lawyer Michel Roper when questioned outside court told the Current Affair reporter "Be sensible about or shutup". Also interviews Ed McKail. Also discusses case where ANCP accepted $200 from another driver who had original fines of $844.

02/06/2010 Herald Sun - The ACCC will be approached to consider a class action. Mentions Australian National Car Parks and Parking Patrols and Care Park.

02/06/2010 Today Tonight - "Unlike council parking inspectors, private companies do not operate under the same law. We think that these car park operators don't have the right to claim $88 off people. We've been getting complaints about these car park operators for several years now and we now know that just in the last year and a half over 100,000 Victorians alone got these demands for payments" (Nicole Rich from the Consumer Action Law Centre). "If they do otherwise as these car parks appear to be then that's a penalty and that's illegal" (Bernard Murphy from Maurice Blackburn Lawyers). There are 386 private parking operators in Australia. "As from July 1 any contract entered into that contains an unfair contract term and that of course means almost anyone that chooses to use a car park after 1 July may run the risk of it being declared unfair. It's been suggested that some car park operators are attempting to collect fines or penalties using notices that look very much like an official notice from a local council or the like that does run the risk of misleading and deceptive conduct" (ACCC Chairman Graham Samuel).

28/05/2010 The Daily Telegraph - Mentions Australian National Car Parks and Ed McKail. Consumer Action Law Centre advised the penalty does not represent the damage which could make the demand unfair and hence unenforecable.

20/01/2010 A Current Affair, Channel 9 -More violence in Car Park Investigation. ACA report that:

1. a member of the public was "required to give the (ANCP) man cash in hand (without any receipt) to avoid being fined".

2. A viewer wrote an email that said: "the bloke on the TV at the moment was the same bloke that booked me at Safeway in St Kilda while I was getting a ticket from their machine. When questioned, I got the finger" - Rod Whitehead.

3. A veiwer wrote an email that said: "As an ex parking officer if I attacked any person whilst on duty ... I would not only expect to be charged with assault but to be sacked on the spot." - David Scott.

19/01/2010 A Current Affair, Channel 9 -When we went looking for answers, the (ANCP) company's representative happily responded with his fists". At the start of the story, the channel 9 camera man was filming a person who works for Australian National Car Parks (ANCP). The ANCP employee, when he discovers he is being filmed, approaches and assaults the camera man. A person passing tries to assist the camera man and this man is also assaulted by the ANCP employee.

14/01/2010 A Current Affair, Channel 9 - Follow up story on Australian National Car Parks.

12/01/2010 A Current Affair, Channel 9 - Original Current Affair story on Australian National Car Parks.

28/10/2009 Today Tonight - Fair Trading's warned they're allegedly illegal ransoms to pay up - not worth the paper they're printed on. "We have really big concerns that stores are just outsourcing the management of these carparks to companies that don't treat their customers well at all... We have really big concerns that stores are just outsourcing the management of these carparks to companies that don't treat their customers well at all" (Consumer Action Law Centre's Nicole Rich). The Victorian Consumer Action Law Centre advises don't just automatically pay - its website offers various options to consider.

27/10/2009 Herald Sun - Previously a ticket dispensed as the vehicle entered the parking station was assessed at a boom gate and the parker was free to go. Now the driver must get a ticket from a machine in a corner. Care Park applies to a court for an order that the RTA furnish it with the names and addresses of certain vehicles, perhaps hundreds at a time, and since a ruling against the RTA by the NSW Court of Appeal in mid 2007 its application is granted as a matter of course. A boomgate system at the car park would be simpler and would not leave users of the car park inadvertently exposed to Care Park's demands, but on the other hand it would leave Care Park without the income of the so-called liquidated damages. We need government to protect us from the excesses and might of private enterprise. Where are you, Nathan Rees? Jodi McKay? And where are you on this?

04/07/2009 The Examiner - Care Park's hard line on unpaid parking charges.

20/02/2009 ABC - The Adelaide City Council has successfully taken legal action against two companies issuing fake parking fines in the council's name. The companies, Adelaide City Fines and Park Fast, issued the so-called fine notices which looked look similar to parking fines issued by the council.

11/10/2008 The Herald Sun - Care Park mimicked council infringement notices to penalise motorists, a court heard yesterday. Consumer Affairs Victoria was intervening in Melbourne Magistrates' Court to try to prevent the company receiving motorists' details from VicRoads.

10/10/2008 The Herald Sun - Consumer Affairs Victoria today will issue a statewide alert warning motorists that Care Park Pty Ltd has no power to issue fines or impose penalties at "free" supermarket car parks. Care Park has used the courts to obtain the addresses of more than 16,000 car owners this year. Mentions Australian National Car Parks and Parking Infringements Victoria (now called Parking Patrols (Vic) Pty Ltd) as being under investigation by Consumer Affairs. Consumer Affairs director Claire Noone said shoppers should not be misled into accepting liability for a fee for which they may not be liable.

02/12/20007 The Age - He said payments demanded over "free" parking were potentially illegal because private car parks did not have statutory authority to issue fines. Instead, they seek payment of damages for breach of contract. "When anyone enters into a contract and breaches it, the other party can charge money for breach of contract. But that money must relate to the cost incurred when a consumer fails to follow parking instructions. If the charge is out of proportion to the cost incurred, it will be considered a 'penalty', which will be unenforceable at law." Common law forbids contract terms that provide for fees that are not a genuine pre-estimate of the loss that a business suffers as a result of a breach by the consumer, but instead amount to a "penalty". VCAT deputy registrar Jenny Phillips said ANCP had been involved in two VCAT applications, both withdrawn at the last minute. Care Park had also been involved in VCAT cases. Meanwhile, Magistrates Court of Victoria figures reveal that ANCP has been using the court to obtain the personal details of thousands of motorists.

Each application costs $34.20, but covers the names and addresses of many hundreds of motorists. Mr Brody said the "discovery" applications were supposed to be a precursor to issuing court proceedings. Yet so far, ANCP had not done so and was using its legal letters to bluff customers into paying up. See also Liz Porter's follow up article the same day about her own personal experience with taking a case to VCAT.

30/06/2007 The Sydney Morning Herald - The Roads and Traffic Authority is urging the State Government to review court rules after a private car park company won a long battle in the Supreme Court to force the authority to reveal the addresses of drivers. The authority said it wanted the laws changed. "The RTA will write to the Attorney-General's Department asking it to review the court rules, which allow for the release of this information."

11/05/2007 The Examiner - Parke Lawyers principal Jim Parke (Care Park's lawyers) said "We live in an information age, and identifying where a person lives is hardly difficult".

22/04/2009 The Age - Mark O'Brien, the Mayor of Moreland, which includes Brunswick, Coburg and Pascoe Vale, accused Australian National Car Parks of bullying behaviour. Last August, then NSW fair trading minister Diane Beamer urged drivers to "exercise extreme caution" in ANCP car parks because the company could have been engaging in "improper, misleading and deceptive conduct". Monash University law professor Mark Davison said the parking operators are going to have to demonstrate that the damage to them of someone overstaying their time is $66. It's difficult to see why they're $66 worse off as a consequence of someone staying an extra minute." See also the follow letter to The Age editor on 29/04/2009. (do a find on Australian)

31/03/2007 The Examiner - Care Park, which owns 17 car parks across the State including sites at the Launceston General Hospital and Launceston CBD, is owed hundreds of thousands of dollars. Care Park lawyer Jim Parke said unfortunately word had spread in Launceston that payment notices would not be enforced.

26/01/2007 Adelaide Now - Adelaide City Council has accused a private car park operator of deceiving thousands of motorists into paying "parking fines" worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. The council is seeking a Federal Court order to stop two firms solely owned by Adelaide businessman Damian Lester, Adelaide City Fines Pty Ltd and Park Fast (SA) Pty Ltd, from issuing tickets at private car parks in Adelaide's central business district.

22/04/2003 The Age - Hundreds of motorists have been caught up in an illegal car parking operation in South Melbourne, where a company has been unlawfully issuing fines and parking fees on a vacant lot near the West Gate Freeway. Trading under the name Care Park, it has operated without a permit for more than two years on a 16,080-square-metre site in Montague Street.

Suburban newspaper list starts here

12/06/2015 South East and Peninsula Leader - Care Park to continue issuing windscreen notices in spite of new Victorian legislation blocking Care Park's access to Vicroads registration data.

06/02/2014 Bayside Leader - Care Park starts up operations at the Peninsula Aquatic and Recreation Centre.

17/02/2014 Dandenong Journal - Loraine Doran unfairly fined when returning to her car to pick up her daughter at Dandenong Plaza in Melbourne. Traffic Monitoring Services who manage the car park for Secure Parking admitted the fault and said "we will hopefully have the system fixed in the future".

01/12/2013 - Maribyrnong & Hobsons Bay Weekly - Shoppers caught out in new ANCP car park in Altona, Victoria. Queens Counsel Julian Burnside quoted as saying "fines incurred in the first free hour were unenforceable".

15/09/2013 Youtube - Man tries to pay a $60 parking fine at Adelaide City Council in 5 cent coins.

11/06/2013 Auburn Review - Australian National Car Parks have applied to Auburn Council to manage an ALDI car park.

19/04/2013 Maribyrnong Leader - McDonalds to charge for parking at its Victorian Restaurants. Secure Parking company to manage paid parking at McDonalds, and will use its subsidiary Traffic Monitoring Services to put fines on driver's windscreens.

04/04/2013 Central Western Daily - Orange City Council will take legal action in the Supreme Court against the management of the Orange Central shopping centre in a bid to fight Traffic Monitoring Services imposing a three-hour daily parking limit introduced last year.

14/12/2012 Fairfield Advance - Smithfield state Liberal MP Andrew Rohan said he lobbied the state government to change the legislation after receiving similar complaints from constituents. "I was concerned in particular about the release of information to some carpark operators, and its uncontrolled use, storage and destruction," Mr Rohan said. "This law is all about protecting people's privacy."

12/12/2012 Many Daily - Gary Followill of Elanora Heights says "TO anyone using the AUstralian National Car Parks and has received a fine from them or is thinking about using their car parks, you should Google "Australian National Car Parks Parking Fines Appeal". This site will give you all of the inforamation you need to know. The way this company operations has been subject to many state inquiries and investigative TV shows, and people need to know exactly what they are dealing with. (Page 23 Conversations).

08/11/2012 Central Western Daily - Orange Central pakring revolt. About one third of the centre’s businesses have spoken out about the three-hour daily parking limit which they say is not being administered correctly. Charter Hall spokesperson said in the “unlikely event” that a shopper’s parking time was inaccurately monitored customers could appeal the infringement notice with Traffic Monitoring Services. “Genuine customers are never penalised by Traffic Monitoring Services,” she said.

04/09/2012 Canterbury-Bankstown Express - Clock ticks on legality of parking penalties in Canterbury-Bankstown region. Bankstown state Labor MP Tania Mihailuk took on Australian National Car Parks (ANCP) earlier this month on behalf of Bankstown man Jeffrey Richards.

25/07/2012 Central Western Daily - Opposition to Orange Central car park’s three-hour daily parking limit is again ramping up with business operators, shoppers and Orange councillors united in their criticism of the “ridiculous” rules. Drivers who have challenged parking fines issued by the parking contractor Traffic Monitoring Services (TMS) were told they needed to produce receipts in future to prove they were shopping in the centre.

30/06/2012 The Manly Daily - A driver who received the RMS letter advises other drivers to consult the Unfair Parking Fines website. Page 32 NEWS The Manly Daily Conversations.

31/05/2012 The Manly Daily - The state government is looking at new laws to protect motorists’ personal details from being given to companies such as Australian National Car Parks.

02/05/2012 The Manly Daily - A Dee Why store owner has started a petition to have a boom gate installed at a local car park to stop shoppers getting “unfair” fines.

19/04/2012 Surf Coast News - Minister for Consumer Affairs Michael O’Brien has welcomed a Victorian Supreme Court decision that strengthens protections for consumers against private car park operators who use misleading tactics.

17/04/2012 The Manly Daily - I no longer shop at Aldi Mona Vale, or any establishment that uses Australian National Car Parks.

17/04/2012 Caulfield Glen Eira Leader - Time expires at McDonalds Elsternwick. Traffic Monitoring Services employed by McDonalds in Elsternwick to issue fines to McDonalds customers who exceed their allocated time to eat a Big Mac.

14/04/2012 The Manly Daily - Sledge-hammer fines discourage shoppers and parking fine saga leaves a bitter taste

13/04/2012 The Manly Daily - Shoppers hit with a $88 payment notice in the Dee Why Square carpark could appeal to the centre manager to have it cancelled.

12/04/2012 Central Western Daily - Opposition to Orange Central car park’s three-hour daily parking limit is again ramping up with business operators, shoppers and Orange councillors united in their criticism of the “ridiculous” rules. A spokeswoman for the centre’s management Charter Hall said “Traffic Monitoring Services have the control to work with customers in waiving infringements should a customer be wrongfully fined. Dollars & Cents manager Mandy Willox said customers had told her they were avoiding the car park because of the unfair daily parking limit. Cr Chris Gryllis said: “I’m very upset that a car park that’s meant to be ratepayer property is controlled by somebody else.

12/04/2012 The Manly Daily - Unsuspecting shoppers at Dee Why Square’s car park are being slugged with $88 payment notices - even during the three-hour “free” period. Mike Pawley, owner of a sporting goods store in the shopping centre, said he thought about 50 people a day were being charged for not displaying a ticket. “This is just a money-making set-up and it is scaring customers away because no one knows what the rules are,” he said. “This company (ANCP) is just ruthless.” Mr Pawley said a boom gate or better signage should be installed.

29/03/2012 Western Advocate - Parking made over changes. Secure Parking to take over parking enforcement at Bathurst Chasefrom Bathurst Regional Council. According to several retailers, shoppers are staying away in droves.

17/01/2012 Port Phillip Leader - The boom gate at Albert Park’s Melbourne Sports and Acquatice Centre (MSAC) was removed just before Christmas, allowing drivers to park without realising they should have a ticket. “The boom gate system worked smoothly because everyone was issued a ticket on entry and the fines were non-existent,” a driver said. He said the carpark was managed by Australian National Car Parks, who he said stands to gain the most from the removal of the barrier.

04/11/2011 Manly Daily - The operators of a new “pay and display” parking system set for Dee Why believe they will be up and running before Christmas.

02/11/2011 Manly Daily - Shoppers slugged: pay to park in Howard Ave car park.

15/08/2011 Indymedia - In Victorian Parliament on 14th June 2011, Mr Michael O'Brien, the Victorian Minister for Consumer Affairs, said he will ask his department, Consumer Affairs Victoria, to look into complaints about Australian Recoveries & Collections

29/03/2011 Hornsby and Upper North Shore Advocate - The elderly Wahroonga resident got out of her car at Mt Kuring-gai ALDI’s new pay-per-use carpark and walked a few steps when she realised she had forgotten to put her ticket on her dashboard, as required. She returned to her car and found the $88 payment notice. This is an Australian National Car Parks car park for an ALDI supermarket.

02/03/2011 Peninsula Weekly - A ticketed parking system, implemented in August, is causing problems for people who are unsure about how long they will be required to stay at Peninsula Private Hospital.

01/03/2011 Frankston Times - Overstayer's fined. Peninsula Private Hospital's car park operator, Care Park, is fining hospital patients who cannot be back to their care before their parking tickets expire. See page 3 of the March edition.

02/02/2011 Hornsby and Upper Noth Shore Advocate - Mt Kuring-gai shoppers have lashed out at the new ticketed parking system at what was previously a free car park in their suburb, saying it is inconvenient and unnecessary. The ticketing system is run by National Australian Car Parks. Be sure to read all the comments.

29/09/2010 Melbourne Times Weekly - Last week, Consumer Affairs Minister Tony Robinson announced new laws designed to stop private car park companies issuing misleading documents that were designed to look like official fines or infringement notices.

31/08/2010 Newcastle Herald - Impossible fine for van that was never there. When Len Worgan received a fine for his van being left in a Newcastle car park, he had something to point out.

The van was never there, it was too big to fit through the gate.

07/07/2010 Fairfield Champion - Australian National Car Parks announced on Friday that motorists will no longer need to display a ticket when parking in lots it manages.

03/07/2010 Preston Leader - Private car parking company Care Park has come out swinging against a local MP who encouraged people not to pay penalty notices dished out at Preston Market.

21/06/2010 Preston Leader - Preston state Labor MP Robin Scott has told Darebin residents not to worry about paying “fines” at a new Care Park. “Neither Australian National Car Parks, who manage the Safeway/Woolworths carpark, or Care Park have the power to issue fines,” Mr Scott said. From July, the ACCC will have powers to launch class actions of behalf of motorists. “The ACC chairman has commented that from July 1, the companies ‘claims for liquidated damages’ are likely to be ruled an unfair contract term, and therefore not enforceable,” Mr Scott said.

16/06/2010 Fairfield Champion - Lindsay Langlands and Edward McKail say the next step in her fight to rid Fairfield of Australian National Car Parks is a community forum. Fairfield Public School, 68 Smart Street Fairfield, NSW on Tuesday 29th June 2010, commencing 6.30pm. Meanwhile, 472 people had joined a Facebook group called The People vs Australian National Car Parks. More info: linds.soullady@gmail.com

09/06/2010 Fairfield Champion - The start of a community action group to drive car park operators Australian National Car Parks out of the area. Australian National Car Parks spokesman Paul Jensen said he encouraged the community action group to contact him.

26/05/2010 Fairfield Champion - Fairield MP Joe Tripodi has called for the state government to step in to stop consumers ``getting ripped off by dodgy car park operators''. Mr Tripodi has two Fairfield car parks in his sights both operated by Australian National Car Parks. A Fair Trading spokeswoman said the company managed car parks in Cabramatta, Fairfield, Campsie, Padstow, Neutral Bay and Wollongong and was under investigation.

07/04/2010 Preston Leader - Customers and stallholders will lose out in a new parking regime set to begin at Preston Market, a trader claims. Consumer Action Law Centre policy and campaigns director Nicole Rich said “Concerns about the way these carparks are operated are really well known now so any traders that want to provide a good experience for potential customers shouldn’t be going down this path”.

05/03/2010 Moreland Leader - VICROADS and a controversial car park operator called Australian National Car Parks have both denied responsibility for a bungle which has again raised privacy concerns.

Newcastle Herald 20/01/2010 - Ms Payne admits she forgot to return to her car to get a ticket at 9am, after arriving much earlier. She says she will not pay the penalty because she does not believe it is legitimate.

18/01/2010 The Wimmera Mail Times - HORSHAM resident Lyn Flack has warned Wimmera residents about a parking fine scam. Ms Flack said she thought the letter was legitimate, but was confused with the Barkly Square Shopping Centre car park location where she supposedly received the fine in June last year. Barkly Square is in Brunswick, Melbourne. "I don't even know where it is. I've never been there before," she said.

Newcastle Herald 28/10/2009 - But it is not a fine because the car park company, Care Park, is not a statutory body authorised to issue fines.

16/09/2009 Blacktown Advocate McDonald’s will pay the price for a new ticketed parking system being tested at the Third Ave, Blacktown site customers say. They told the Advocate the new parking system would deter them from eating there in the future. About three months ago, McDonald’s and Australian National Car Parks implemented a ticketing system at the Third Ave premises.

08/09/2009 Stonington Leader Australian National Car Parks was investigated by the NSW Office of Fair Trading for issuing potentially illegal fines and Parking Infringements Victoria (now called Parking Patrols (Vic) Pty Ltd) was investigated by Consumer Affairs Victoria. In October the department warned motorists that Care Park was using procedures similar to a law enforcement agency. CAV spokeswoman Emma Neal said the company was asked to change its payment procedures and the wording in its contract.

02/09/2009 Illawarra Mercury Sneaky motorists parking at Wollongong McDonald's for longer than it takes to eat a Big Mac and fries will now need to ask themselves: "Would you like a fine with that?" Australian National Car Parks has been engaged to run the car parks and will collect the revenue from fines - referred to as payment notices.

01/09/2009 Caulfield Glen Eira Leader Glen Huntly resident Roger Jennings said the carpark conditions at the Spotlight Centre in Carnegie, on the corner of Dandenong and Koornang roads, were misleading. Care Park’s terms and conditions stipulate that the first two hours are free

27/05/2009 Whitehorse Leader Box Hill Centro shoppers have been slapped with fines they may not have to pay. Private company Parking Infringements Victoria (now called Parking Patrols (Vic) Pty Ltd) issues payment notices that are similar in size and shape to council parking infringements. The company is contracted by Ace Car Parking. Consumer Affairs Victoria spokeswoman Emma Neal said the department had received many complaints against the company. Be sure to read all the comments.

12/05/2009 Geelong Advertiser - Consumer Affairs Victoria warned last year that Care Park P/L was not a law enforcement agency and had no power to issue fines. "Anyone getting these tickets should approach the manager of the car park concerned, and car parks now have to have conflict resolution processes," the spokeswoman said. Care Park manages four car parks in Geelong: Cunningham Pier, Yarra St next to Westfield, 2-10 Bellarine St and Officeworks off Malop St.

10/03/2009 Cumberland Courier - If you’re looking for a cheap feed at McDonald’s in Stanmore, don’t bank on it. Last Sunday night, Petersham’s Paul Marshall popped into the Parramatta Rd outlet for a burger and left with the bitter taste of an $88 fine. Fair Trading officers negotiated with Australian National Car Parks (ANCP) and got Mr Marshall’s fine cancelled.

10/03/2009 Moreland Leader Moreland Council is considering launching what is believed to be a landmark legal challenge against car park operator Australian National Car Parks by claiming that leaving infringement tickets on windscreens is a form of littering. Australian National Car Parks (ANCP) operates car parks at the Barkley Square Shopping Centre and Safeway on Albert St.

16/01/2009 Fairfield Advance Antonella Souralay will never shop at Fairfield Forum again. She said installing boom gates would be more convenient for motorists and a lot “fairer” as drivers would be forced to collect a parking ticket on their way into the car park. “But of course they won’t do that because they won’t be able to get revenue from unsuspecting shoppers.” The site is managed by a private company, Australian National Car Parks.

13/01/2009 Springvale Dandenong Leader Consumer Action lawyer Tom Willcox said inadequate signage at the Springvale shopping centre car park operated by Care Park meant Mr Tan was unaware he had parked in a Care Park area. Care Park media relations manager Yolanda Torrisi said “We take appeals very seriously and have reviewed Mr Tan’s case extensively. We offered to accept payment of $30 in February 2008 but we got no reply.”

22/10/2008 Moreland Leader Barkly Square Shopping Centre car park is at the centre of a legal case. Consumer Action Law Centre is taking National Car Parks Pty Ltd to VCAT to challenge its right to slap $66 payment claim notices on parked cars that violate rules. Consumer Affairs Victoria this month issued a warning over another park company, Care Park Pty Ltd, which operated under a similar system.

12/10/2008 The Advocate Shopping centre patrons issued with fines by a commercial car parking company may not be legally obliged to pay them, with the matter under investigation as a potential breach of the Fair Trading Act. In Victoria it's been reported that Care Park used the courts to obtain the addresses of more than 16,000 car owners this year, which added up to $1.4 million in "penalties". Care Park Tasmania manager Bob Scholz said the company did not have direct access to the Tasmanian Motor Registry. "They (TMR) don't release the details directly to us. We take a bulk action to sue to get the details," Mr Scholz said. Consumer Affairs and Fair Trading Tasmania branch manager Phil Marriott said a complaint against Care Park's payment notices had been received on Friday

12/08/2008 Canterbury-Bankstown Express Canterbury Mayor Robert Furolo said Canterbury Council tried to take on the company in 2006 when they first discovered the car company operating in the region. “When it came to our attention that Australian National Car Parks where fining people ... we advised them that they cease this practice as they did not have council permission to do this,” he said. “They subsequently lodged a development application to operate the car park as a public car park with ticket machines.” Cr Furolo said the development application was refused by the council in November 2006. “We felt this was not in the best interest of the public,” he said. The company then appealed the council’s decision in the Land and Environment Court. The court upheld the appeal and granted development consent to the application. See also Canterbury City Council records that show an application to the council by ANCP director Victor Nudler.

Disclaimer: the author of this website is not a lawyer and this site does not constitute legal advice.