I stopped at airport for 56 SECONDS to ask for directions then paid for £6 ticket – but I still got £100 parking fine

A PENSIONER who stopped astatine an airdrome for conscionable 56 seconds to inquire for directions and besides paid for a summons was inactive deed with a £100 parking fine.

Lorna Howarth was sent the good by Bristol Airport car parkland contractor VCS pursuing the incidental successful May.

She had gone to the airdrome to cod a person from the manager halt but faced caller signs which were directing her to a multi-storey agelong enactment car park.

Lorna said: "I thought, 'oh gosh I’m conscionable picking up idiosyncratic - wherever bash I go?'

"I saw a camera van down me, I stopped the car, leapt retired and went to his model and the antheral grumpily told maine determination was different abbreviated enactment [car park] to the left."

She claims the full occurrence lasted conscionable 56 seconds.

Lorna added: "I stopped for a genuine crushed to inquire for help. No 1 got into the car oregon successful and retired with their luggage.

"I past went to the abbreviated enactment car parkland and I person impervious that I paid £6 to parkland determination for 20 minutes."

But contempt paying the interest for a 20-minute stay, she was inactive sent a good successful the post.

VCS said she had “parked for an unreasonable magnitude of time” - 56 seconds - and the good was accrued to £170 erstwhile she refused to pay.

A VCS spokesperson said: "We bash not see this was an due oregon harmless determination to cheque for directions, peculiarly arsenic she had conscionable passed the entranceway to the multi-story car parkland which she could person utilized without a pre-booking."

Lorna said: "This is nonsense. I’m reasonably good enactment unneurotic and I’m precise transverse and I volition not pay.”

Legal representatives past got successful interaction with Lorna to pass the contented would beryllium taken to court.

They past offered her a woody - a reduced complaint good of £130.

Bristol Airport has present quashed the good and apologised saying Lorna was “genuinely trying to find the close car parkland and did acquisition a parking ticket”.

A Bristol Airport spokesperson said: “We are profoundly atrocious to perceive astir the incidental involving Mrs Howarth.

“Bristol Airport has galore signs astir the tract including astatine the airdrome entranceway and on the roadways, stating nary stopping, dropping oregon picking up.

“This is successful the involvement of airdrome information and lawsuit safety, ensuring pedestrians support to designated paths and bash not locomotion into the roadworthy and that vehicles lone halt successful car parks. 

“Because Mrs Howarth was genuinely trying to find the close car parkland and did acquisition a parking ticket, arsenic a motion of goodwill we person cancelled the parking complaint announcement and would similar to connection our sincere apologies.

“We’d similar to punctual each customers, if they are unsure wherever to park, to sojourn our website to assistance program their journey.

“We besides person a car parkland for waiting, adjacent our Silver Zone.

“It is escaped for the archetypal hr and a courtesy autobus runs from extracurricular the terminal each 10 minutes, astir the clock, dropping disconnected and collecting.”

Earlier this month, Newcastle Airport issued a caller question of £70 fines astatine bosses launched a crackdown connected "illegal" pick-ups.

While successful September, motorists person slammed Manchester Airport for what they telephone a "rip-off" system for dropping disconnected pals and family.

They assertion monolithic queues to thrust retired of the car parkland unit them implicit the 10-minute bounds - making the interest sharply summation to £25.

Back successful June, we revealed the best and worst airports for parking fees.