The plight of motorist Rosey Hudson at the hands of an unscrupulous parking management company is only too common (“Woman facing £1,906 parking fine for failing to pay for tickets within five minutes”, Sunday 1 December).
Parking charge notices (PCNs), often in excess of £100, can be issued in the flimsiest of circumstances, for the price of a postage stamp – and are enforced, unless challenged, by the overburdened county courts.
Legislation to curb such malpractice was contained in the Parking (Code of Practice) 2019 Act, but never enacted. Why?
My advice to Rosey and others in her position is to go to court and challenge PCNs. I have successfully challenged three, including one where a photograph of a valid ticket displayed on my windscreen was given as evidence of non-compliance!
And don’t forget to claim your costs.
David Hill
Waterlooville, Hampshire
How do you charge an electric car if you live in a flat?
Fining car makers for not selling enough electric cars is not the best solution to getting more people to switch (“UK car production falls for the eighth month after slow take-up of electric vehicles and looming fines”, Thursday 28 October).
As someone else has said, it’s a bit like fining Greggs for not selling enough vegetables.
While the large comparative cost of electric over fossil fuel cars is a major factor, the lack of suitable charging points is even more concerning. There seems to be no equivalent push to get a comprehensive charging network set up. Those living in many inner city apartments won’t have the luxury of a home charging point and will be unable to charge their car overnight.
On a practical note, has anyone calculated where all the power needed to replace the current energy source of petrol or diesel is going to come from? If people currently object to onshore wind farms, what will they think of the hundreds of new pylons we will require?
G Forward
Stirling
Zelensky offers to step into the unknown
With his new proposal to help end the war, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky is demonstrating a high degree of pragmatism (“Zelensky says Ukraine could temporarily cede territory to Russia in exchange for Nato membership”, Saturday 30 November).
I sincerely hope it is taken seriously.
Previously, even the temporary relinquishing of land held by Russian forces has been off the table, so this message of flexibility provides real hope of a breakthrough to stop the untold death and destruction being meted out to Ukraine by the megalomaniac Putin.
David Felton
Wistaston, Crewe
Fixing Britain’s roof
Some of us will have inherited an old house from an aged relative which has been neglected for years. To make it habitable again, for sale or to live in ourselves, takes all our energy and finance, clearing out the junk and repairing the infrastructure (“Rachel Reeves accused of making Britain uninvestable as she defends tax hikes”, Monday 25 November).
The kids keep asking where are the sweets we used to get, why can’t we have the good times we had before? We have to press on, assuring the kids that better times are coming – but we have to sort out the basics first, or it may all fall about our ears.
Robert Alliott
Cambridge
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