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Grantham taxi driver refuses to pay £100 fine after making multiple trips to Morrisons

https://www.granthamjournal.co.uk/news/ ... e-9239129/


Image: Grantham Journal

A taxi driver has expressed his frustration after receiving a parking fine for spending too long in a supermarket car park, despite making multiple trips.

Marcin Bugala has been a taxi driver for 12 years in Grantham and says he makes multiple trips to Morrisons car park each day, sometimes up to 30 in a week, to collect or drop off customers.

On Tuesday, December 14, 2021, a camera caught Mr Bugala arriving and leaving 247 minutes apart, which led to a fine of £100 being issued, despite the time of entry and exit being from different trips to the Grantham supermarket. The maximum stay allowed is two hours.

Mr Bugala said: "No I'm not going to pay it, I'm not going to pay for something which physically didn't happen.

"I tried to appeal once and then the second time, and they said there was a delay and it was too late for that."

Despite making multiple trips to the supermarket most days, Mr Bugala has never had an issue like this before, but says his colleagues have experienced similar situations at different locations before.

Mr Bugala added: "It's quite strange because on that day I had to go to Morrisons and back four times, in the morning the camera caught me, but it didn't catch me on the way back, and in the afternoon it only caught me on the way back not on the way in.

"But 20 minutes before I was in a different place, and obviously I can prove that as I have all the evidence with the GPS System but if that happened to a normal person who forgot to buy something and then went again, it could happen to them as well, and obviously they won't have the proof that they haven't been there for that long a time.

"I'm probably going to end up in court with them because I'm not going to pay for it, and then I don't want to waste my time to appeal again."

In a letter to Mr Bugala, Excel Parking Services Ltd says it has rejected his appeal. The letter says that signs at the car park make it clear the maximum time allowed and they are easily seen.

Excel added: "Our letter dated 13/01/22 requested you to supply evidence of your vehicle being elsewhere between the contravention times stated, on the date in question and advised that proof was to be supplied by 27/01/2022. To date you have failed to provide sufficient evidence showing that your vehicle was elsewhere on the day in question, therefore we will continue to pursue this charge."

Sounds like fun

one of the Polish lot that copied our name

no sympathy

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lack of modern legislation is the iceberg sinking the titanic of the transport sector

I have no love for these parking scammers.

However when I have received one through the post from one of the local supermarkets they are always canceled when I email back.

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IDFIMH

he's probably already done that this is a publicity stunt

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lack of modern legislation is the iceberg sinking the titanic of the transport sector

Copied your name? There are two Edders 23 companies in the Deep South?

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Former taxi driver

yes we had been trading under the Premier cabs name for 10 years before they started up in the same district under the same name which has caused a few issues over the years. I should have taken them to court but left it thinking they were just a flash in the pan however they lasted

they are polish owned with polish drivers basically they were trading for 2 years illegally advertising in polish in Polish shops etc. then decided to go legit

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lack of modern legislation is the iceberg sinking the titanic of the transport sector

Blackpool, Bangor, Scunthorpe, to name but three, also have premier cabs, as do dozens more. A1, A2B nothing original in the taxi world, is there? Doubt you were the first Premier in the country. However, two in the same area? Would have thought any licensing team worth their salt would allow that.

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Former taxi driver

they said their remit is licensing and vehicle safety NOT telling people what to call their business

BUT most of the others around the country are Premier CARS not CABS and it isn't an issue if they are hundred or more miles apart

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lack of modern legislation is the iceberg sinking the titanic of the transport sector

Change your name to Uber, see how long it would be before you start getting lawyer letters. Not that I care, you understand. Did I mention my black cab goes to a new home tomorrow?

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Former taxi driver

Are you a limited company? If you are then you can get them to change their name. However if they are a limited company then you could be made to change your name. Or just change it to Premier cabs (Stamford).

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Grandad,

did that a long time ago

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lack of modern legislation is the iceberg sinking the titanic of the transport sector

As regards the names, don't really think it's a licensing matter, even if it's two businesses in the same licensing area.

As Jimbo says, Premier Cars/Cabs/Taxis is quite a common name, so that would certainly count against any legal right with regard to using the name, unless some sort of obvious unfair competitive advantage is gained.

(If, for example, the first business was called Edders Taxis, and the newcomer was called Edders Cars, then that might be different, because it's a more distinct and personal name, and the words cars/cabs/taxis probably don't make much of a difference, because as far as potential customers are concerned, they don't really make a huge amount of difference.)

And since Grantham and Stamford are 22 miles apart (according to Google), then that would count against Edders having any claim to the name, because as far as pre-booked work is concerned, they're different markets. Different, say, if two towns were five miles apart, and the established business covered both towns.

But I think it's all about 'passing off', thus whether a new business could gain some sort of unfair advantage by using an identical or similar name as an established business, but there are no real hard and fast rules.

Likewise, can't see what relevance a limited company set up is to all of this, although two limited companies can't have an identical or similar name.

For example, there might be a limited company called St Andrews Taxis, and if I started handing out cards with my phone number on it then the established business called St Andrews Taxis could challenge my right to do that, even though I'm just a sole trader/owner driver.

But not sure it would make a whole lot of difference if the established St Andrews Taxis was a limited company, partnership or just another sole trader set up - it's all to do with one business posing as another business, not their legal structure.

they are not such separate markets we regularly pick up in Grantham (back to Stamford) and their cars often appear round here and even have in the past tried to work Stamford rank which as they are licensed SKDC they can legally do

They once messed up on a school contract and we got the flak even having to send a solicitors letter to Lincolnshire council to point out we were a different firm

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lack of modern legislation is the iceberg sinking the titanic of the transport sector

Kind of anticipated what your response would be, if only because there are similar issues in our own megazone here in Fife (East)

Anyway, can't really see what public hire work has to do with the issue of 'passing off', as opposed to pre-bookings. I might as well claim that other taxis on the rank here are gaining an unfair competitive advantage because they've got 'taxi' on their roofsign, just like me

So the public hire aspect *is* a licensing thing rather than about an unfair business advantage. I kind of know where you're coming from because, for example, when the British Open golf is on here, there are taxis appearing on the ranks here from maybe 20 miles away that the regulars here have never seen before.

But if there's an argument to say that's unfair, then that's a licensing thing rather than anything else.

As for pre-bookings, not sure if you picking up in Grantham and the Grantham cars picking up in Stamford is really relevant to the issue - it's more about where your customer base is, and presumably you aren't covering people living in Grantham on a regular basis, and the Grantham firm won't be taking bookings from Stamford residents on a regular basis either.

I mean, if a firm called Value Cabs based in Dundee drove 90 miles to Glasgow to pick up one of their customers, a firm called Value Cabs based in Glasgow could hardly claim the Dundee firm was gaining an unfair advantage by impersonating them.

As for the school contract stuff and the confusion there, that sounds more down to council incompetence than anything else