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Airport parking worker drove bride's BMW 500 miles and got £70 parking fine while she was on honeymoon

Zoe Parr was ‘gobsmacked’ culprit had taken her car on shopping trip to Asda while she was in Jamaica

Toyin Owoseje
Friday 16 November 2018 18:05 GMT
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A new bride discovered an airport parking worker drove her BMW while she was on honeymoon after she was sent a £70 parking fine.

Zoe Parr, 42, from Wolverhampton, said she was “gobsmacked” when she arrived home from holiday to a fine for overstaying in an Asda supermarket car park in Oldham. On that date, her car was supposed to be in the care of Manchester Airport Parking Services Ltd.

The mother-of-two said the fine included a CCTV camera snapshot taken on the second day of her break to Montego Bay in Jamaica. It showed what appeared to be a man driving into the shop car park.

“It’s completely unacceptable what they have done,” she said.”They have been using it as a freebie because the petrol tank was empty when it returned to us.

“It’s was absolutely appalling behaviour from a professional meet and greet car parking firm.”

Ms Parr and her new husband, who doesn’t want to be named, departed from Manchester Airport on a two-week honeymoon break on 7 July.

They paid for a meet-and-greet service with Manchester Airport Parking Services Ltd, and she made a note there was 50,000 miles on the clock.

Zoe Parr’s car was filmed at an Asda car park in Oldham

When they arrived a fortnight later, she discovered there was an extra 469 miles on the clock, leaving the petrol tank virtually empty.

She recalled one of the staff members acting shifty and “dashing away rapidly” after dropping off the car.

Once inside her vehicle, she noticed crumbs all over the back seat and the petrol light was on.

“I knew then that the car had been driven,” Ms Parr said.

Her suspicions were confirmed when the fine from Parking Eye came through the post.

“We immediately called Asda and explained the situation and they agreed to drop the charge.”

She said they also contacted the police, but were told they could not prosecute because they don’t know who the driver was at the time.

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She is yet to receive an explanation from the company – despite contacting them seven times.

“I have gone through hell trying to find out what happened to our car, it’s actually spoiled our honeymoon completely,” she said.

“I feel like I have been burgled because the police cannot do anything in taking action against this firm. The whole experience has been absolutely disgusting.”

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