When in Rome do as the Romans!
You know someone actually complimented me on my driving today, they left a note on my windscreen, it said, 'Parking Fine'.
Tommy Cooper
Hello dear friend,
I have been meaning to pass on this warning for some time now, but better late than never I think. If you use any supermarket car park in the UK please take note: Have a good look around the car park for signs listing the rules for using that facility. It could save you from a hefty fine!
It doesn't seem to matter where you are in the country or which supermarket chain you are stopping to shop at. Unless you familiarize yourself with conditions under which you are allowed to park you could come a cropper. From listening to friends and their problems with such parking I'd advise you to especially scour the rules for two things: 1) The length of time you are allotted to do your shopping. 2) If it states you are only allowed to park within the marked spaces.
The first one seems obvious - though not necessarily. A friend, at Christmas time was in an Aldi car park up north. She did her shopping. Had to queue for ages due to seasonal peak of customers. And then went back into the shop to buy a plant she had seen but couldn't carry until she'd stowed her groceries. She later, in the post, got a letter containing notification of a £70 fine, along with a photograph of her car both arriving and leaving the car park. Bah humbug, eh! And the photos were really spooky - big brother and all that! George Orwell certainly knew a thing or two.
My lovely friend had legitimately been shopping at Aldi's for the whole time, but the parking policy was to allow only 1 hour 30 minutes to do so. The queuing and the plant had cost her an extra £70! She was understandably very angry. When she made inquiries in shop she was told - very politely -that it was not the responsibility of the shop but that it was down to the company running the car park. (You make up your own mind about that...!)
Another friend was fined £80, in - as far as I can remember - a Marks & Spencer car park in Manchester, for parking with one wheel very slightly on one of the white lines marking the parking space.
With these two friends as a warning I made sure, that when I first parked in the car park of a new Aldi's I visited, I read the warning board. There, among a list of many things, I found I could only park for 2 hours - fine for me generally, but at least I knew to keep an eye on the time and not get too caught up in shopping. I also read the 'park within the marked bay' rule. And when a couple parked beside me, straddling a line I told them about the rule, and they corrected their parking.
And now I have told you.
Happy shopping!
And if you have your own story to tell I'd love to hear from you.
Love and blessings
Teresa x
PS Don't forget to take a look at my other blogs: http://teresaodriscoll.blogspot.co.uk/ and http://teresaodriscolldeardiary.blogspot.com/
PPS Don't
forget to check out my book: 9 Days to Heaven, How to make everlasting meaning
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