Kirkby Army veteran, 81, is victorious in fight against parking fine

Malcolm Scothern, of Kirkby, receives the British Empire Medal from Sir John Peace, Lord-Lieutenant of Nottinghamshire, in 2016.

It is the third time disabled 81-year-old Malcolm Scothern has successfully appealed against unfair fines on privately-owned car parks in the Mansfield and Ashfield area.

This one followed a dispute with CP Plus after he had parked, quite legitimately, at St Peter’s Retail Park in Mansfield in April.

Malcolm was there for 75 minutes after paying his £2 at the designated machine.

But he still received a fine of £60 from CP Plus, who claimed he had parked without payment.

The determined former member of the 17th/21st Lancers (now the Queen’s Royal Lancers), an Army cavalry regiment, wrote to the car park company, claiming he thought the machine had been faulty.

And fortunately, he had kept his parking ticket/receipt to prove his case.

Now CP Plus has responded by saying: “This parking charge has been cancelled in full. No further action will be taken.

“We apologise sincerely for any inconvenience caused in this matter, and can confirm that the case has been closed.”

Malcolm said: “There was no explanation that anything had gone wrong, which proves my point that these companies just send out the fines and hope the recipients have disposed of their ticket and so pay up.

"I feel there is a danger that the public are being ripped off terribly.

"I don’t suppose many people keep their receipts and so, to save a lot of trouble, they automatically pay the fine immediately.”

Malcolm’s fight is typical of a man who was awarded the BEM in 2016 for his voluntary work as chairman of the East Midlands branch of the Queen’s Royal Lancers Regimental Association.

He founded the branch from scratch and built it up to such an extent that it had more than 1,000 members. It improves the quality of life for former soldiers and boasts a thriving social network.

Malcolm’s previous parking fine successes were at the Festival Hall in Kirkby about ten years ago and at the Commercial Gate car park in Mansfield in February.

The latter came after the ticket machine refused both cash and card. Malcolm’s complaint was upheld by the POPLA (Parking On Private Land Appeals) service.

The Chad has approached CP Plus for a comment.