Firms apologise as motorists wrongly fined £100 after paying for parking at Portsmouth ferry terminal

Drivers who correctly paid for parking at Wightlink's Portsmouth ferry car park were wrongly issued with £100 Parking Charge Notices (PCN) after a change of parking operator led to a payment information error.

Initial Parking, which took over management of the car park in Gunwharf Road on September 21, issued the notices to motorists who had paid for their parking through the RingGo app.

One motorist received a notice after parking at the site on September 23, despite having paid through RingGo.

When they appealed, Initial Parking initially rejected the appeal on the grounds that RingGo was no longer the payment operator and that JustPark had taken over.

However, RingGo, Initial Parking and Wightlink have now all acknowledged the problem and confirmed that incorrectly issued PCNs will be cancelled or refunded. The PCNs carried a charge of £100, reduced to £60 if paid within 14 days.

A RingGo spokesperson said: "Due to an error made during a change of parking operator for the Gunwharf Quays car park, some motorists who correctly paid for a parking session with RingGo were incorrectly issued with a PCN.

"RingGo, Wightlink and the parking operator have rectified the issue and have identified any motorists that may have been affected. All incorrectly issued PCNs will be cancelled or refunded.

"RingGo remains the sole parking payment provider for Wightlink ferries. We apologise for the confusion and inconvenience caused during this time."

Initial Parking said it began operating at the site on September 21 but was unaware that RingGo continued accepting payments in accordance with its contractual obligations to Wightlink.

As RingGo was not Initial Parking's designated payment provider, the company said it had not expected to receive payment information from the app. Consequently, some motorists were issued with parking charges.

Initial Parking said: "At the point Initial Parking were made aware of the situation, processing was ceased and all appeals received which included evidence of sufficient payment made, were approved."

The company added that the notices had been correctly issued based on the information available to it at the time.

It has since received the outstanding payment data from RingGo and confirmed that any parking charges issued to motorists who paid the correct fee through the app will be cancelled.

Wightlink also confirmed that the problem occurred during the changeover to Initial Parking as its car park management provider.

A spokesperson said: "During the changeover to Initial Parking as our car park management provider, an issue meant that some customers who had correctly paid for parking through RingGo were incorrectly issued with Parking Charge Notices.

"As soon as the issue was identified, Initial Parking cancelled incorrectly issued PCNs where proof of payment was provided, and the issue has now been resolved. We apologise for the inconvenience caused."

Wightlink added that customers who believe they have been wrongly issued with a PCN after paying through RingGo, and whose case has not yet been resolved, should contact Initial Parking directly at [email protected], providing proof of payment.

Despite all three companies confirming that the issue has been resolved, neither Initial Parking nor RingGo has disclosed how many motorists received incorrect PCNs or how many have so far been refunded.

It is also unclear how many motorists paid the discounted £60 charge or the full £100 rather than appealing, and whether all those payments have now been returned.

Motorists who used RingGo at the car park during the changeover period and subsequently received a PCN are being advised to check that their notice has been cancelled and, where applicable, their money refunded.

Anyone who believes their case remains unresolved should contact Initial Parking at [email protected] with proof of payment.