Let’s face it; no one likes a parking ticket or even worse, to be clamped. Thankfully legislative changes in 2012, resulted in wheel clamping on private land being banned, thereby removing the generation of “cowboy clampers” who were unfairly targeting and charging UK motorists. At CarLease UK, we received a number of fines on behalf of our car leasing customers which were extortionate. That being said, clamping is still an option for local councils who can enforce this deterrent for drivers who fail to adhere to strict parking conditions.
Thankfully (well not for the drivers) councils do not allow the rich and famous to miss out on the fun of having their cars clamped. Yesterday, two extremely beautiful, but poorly parked, cars were clamped outside the luxury department store, Harrods. The Koenigsegg and Lamborghini Murcielago were clamped by the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea for blatant disregard to the parking conditions. According to the council, the bays are reserved for residents only and clamping is utilised as an effective method to deter visiting motorists from breaching conditions.
According to the council, both cars were released shortly after the fines per paid early, £70 per vehicle. A drop in the ocean in comparison to the cars’ worth but perhaps enough for the drivers to learn a little lesson about proper parking? Or maybe not …