A taxi driver who was hit with a fine after stopping to pick up a ticket that had blown out of her hand at East Midlands Airport has won her appeal after a 16 month long battle.
Kim Blagden was fined by the airport's parking team, Vehicle Control Services Ltd, in July last year as she attempted to leave after dropping off passengers, reported LeicestershireLive.
As she drove to the payment machine, the ticket was blown out of her hand and onto the ground, and the only way to retrieve it was to move into a "no stopping" zone that led to the fine.
"I could not open the door to pick up the receipt because there was not enough space, so I drove through the barrier,” she said.
"And then I literally stopped the other side of the barrier that went down and I went to pick up my receipt off the floor."
The Castle Donington airport’s estate roads are red-routed, with “no stopping” signs in place to discourage drivers from waiting in undesignated parking areas when dropping off and collecting passengers, reports Nottinghamshire Live.
But Ms Blagden refused to pay the fine and appealed.
"It is not like I stopped to let passengers out, so I was avoiding paying the drop off charge that has already been paid,” she continued.
"I had stopped to get my receipt to claim the parking charge back from the company.
"They say I stopped where I should not have done, but I stopped because I needed to go and pick something up that I dropped.”
Initially issued with a £60 fine, Kim’s charge was later increased to £100 after she refused to pay.
Her appeal against the £100 charge has been going on for more than a year, with her then employers, DG Cars, also trying to cancel the fine.
Finally East Midlands Airport said this month the fine had now been cancelled, a full 16 months after it was first issued.
A spokesperson said: “We understand that, after further review, Kim Blagden’s parking fine has been cancelled. We apologise for the inconvenience and worry this has caused."
A Vehicle Control Services Ltd spokesman said: “Our mobile CCTV Enforcement vehicle observed Ms Blagden's vehicle parked in the exit lane to one of the airport parking areas, causing a potential obstruction to other vehicles.”
"The captured footage clearly showed the vehicle parked and was in no obvious signs of distress or emergency as its hazard lights were not active, as a result, it was considered the vehicle was stopped in an unsafe manner and was issued a Parking Charge Notice for stopping a vehicle where Stopping is Prohibited.
"However, following a further review of additional evidence provided by her to the Independent Appeals Service, we decided to cancel the charge and allow the appeal on the grounds that Ms Blagden did pay for her parking and had a reasonable cause to stop."
"We would have advised that in such circumstances it would have been appropriate to have hazard lights on to alert other vehicles of the situation."
