THE top boss at the firm behind a controversial Workington car park has spoken out after a campaign was set up against the company.

Kenny Marland, director at HX Car Park Management, which runs the car park on Vulcans Lane, has hit back at criticism against the company after Workington MP Sue Hayman announced she was setting up a mass legal action against it.

Mrs Hayman teamed up with solicitor firm Burnetts and the Times & Star to hold HX to account after around 100 motorists contacted the MP after being fined for parking at the Vulcans Lane facility, despite paying for their tickets.

People from all over West Cumbria have contacted the Times & Star and told a similar story: they parked, inserted the number plate in the parking machine and paid, but later received a fine saying the registration number was incorrect. HX maintains the machine is not faulty and Mr Marland said motorists should be educated further on private parking.

He said: “I believe if motorists were educated further, and the myth of Penalty Charge Notices (PCN) not being enforceable was put to bed, then motorists would make better choices and it would lead to less court cases. It would also ensure motorists took full responsibility when parking as they would know parking charges are enforceable.”

Mr Marland added that all fines handed to motorists in Workington were issued because drivers breached the terms and conditions of the site.

He said: “Vulcans Lane Car Park, Workington, has an entry and an exit with marked bays internally. There are 16 signs on site which communicate to the drivers the terms and conditions of parking on the private land. Any parking charges that have been issued have been due to drivers breaching the terms and conditions of the signage. Therefore, no parking charges have been issued wrongly.”

However, Mrs Hayman is aware of at least three motorists who have been successful in overturning their fines in court.

She branded Mr Marland’s comments as arrogant. She said: “He is extremely arrogant in his behaviour. I’m just incredibly disappointed that he’s ignoring what our local court is finding. He’s refusing to accept there’s any fault on their part when the court feels there is.”

The Times & Star told Mr Marland that the MP had reports of people saying they had been harassed by HX. She said: “Now that there have been successful claims in the courts, HX have no excuse for not treating refusals to pay as a genuine dispute.”

However Mr Marland strongly denied the claim. He said: “Motorists are not harassed, we have a very clear letter system which also advises drivers along the process of the increase in value as a parking charge gets older. We have a core three-letter system. We send out a parking charge firstly, which allows motorists to pay at the reduced rate of £60 within 14 days.

“It also informs motorists of the appeals process and data protection information. If the parking charge remains unpaid, we then send a reminder letter which is for the full value of the PCN (£100). If the parking charge still remains unpaid we send one last letter to inform motorists that we will be sending the PCN to our solicitors to try and recover the PCN.”

But Mrs Hayman said HX was failing to fully explain how the charging system works, as motorists reported to her having fines escalating to £160. She added some received threats of bailiffs being sent to their homes, which Mr Marland failed to mention.

She also hit out at Mr Marland’s statement that he has been unable to meet with the MP due to annual leave and Brexit engagements. But Mrs Hayman said that although she had to cancel a meeting scheduled for January due to Brexit votes, Mr Marland had cancelled a meeting at short notice himself last year and then failed to turn up without notice or apology at a scheduled meeting in February.

Mr Marland also failed to answer key questions asked by the Times & Star.

He failed to clarify claims that the company behind HX is the same company behind its appeals process.

Mr Marland also dodged a question asking how much money the car park makes on average in a month from parking tickets and how much it makes in income from fines.

He said HX had many accreditations including Approved Operator of the International Parking Community. He added the company was a member of the British Parking Association and Disabled Motoring UK.

Mrs Hayman said: “I’m aware important questions have been asked of HX as to the way in which it operates. I’m extremely disappointed Mr Marland has chosen not to answer all the questions fully and in a transparent way.”

Now the MP is writing to HX to arrange a meeting in an attempt to address the problems residents have encountered. She is urging people who have been fined to contact her.

For more information on the legal action, contact Sue Hayman MP’s office on 01900 702929 or email sue.hayman.mp@parliament.uk.

You can also share your views on the topic with us – send your letters to letters.ts@cnmedia.co.uk