‘It was very deceiving’: People caught out by parking confusion at Long Buckby railway station

Motorists who park at Long Buckby railway station are being fined even though they have paid for parking online.

The car park at the village railway station near Daventry, in Northamptonshire, has two parking areas that are run by different companies, Saba and Total Parking Solutions (TPS).

Drivers claim this is not made clear online or at the site itself.

Joanne Diprose, 46, from Daventry, was caught out by the parking confusion when she and a friend planned a trip to London.

She said: “It’s not until you really go into their website and look, and it shows you one area of the car park. It’s very, very unclear.

“It was very deceiving. You probably wouldn’t go on the website. You just purchase your ticket, and off you go, which I think is where people are getting caught out.”

Joanne and her friend used the car park on January 24 to attend Britain's Got Talent auditions in London. They searched online for parking at Long Buckby railway station and were directed to the site of the Saba parking company, which offered a space for a day for £6.

They each booked a space, and a few weeks later, Joanne received a parking fine in the mail.

Joanne said: "We just arrived and parked. Like others, you don't look at signs once you arrive, as we felt we pre-paid and purchased correctly.

“Once you have gone into the car park, that determines whether you get a fine or not. It is so badly sorted out.”

Ms Diprose appealed against the charge issued by Total Parking Solutions, who manage the main part of the car park, but the appeal was rejected.

The company offered to reduce the fee to half the amount as a goodwill gesture. Joanne paid £20.

She said: "It needs to be clearly stated online that there are two separate companies. It is a different parking app and company altogether.

"The online information needs to change. Some kind of clearer signage when you arrive as to where you should be for that parking ticket.”

Joanne shared her story with our community on social media and received more than 30 responses from others who have been caught out.

Various solutions have been suggested for the issue, leaving people frustrated but with hope of change.

“I put a post up on the local Facebook page, and I was shocked at the amount of comments other people were making that had the same problem. It does seem to be an issue.

“A lot of people are not actually parking at the car park and are parking at the housing estates nearby because people are worried that they are going to get fined. It just seems to be a really big problem,” said Joanne.

Saba and TPS have been contacted for comment.

Total Parking Solutions (TPS) said: "We do not presell spaces at the Long Bucky car park on our website, we will arrange for some signage for the walkway to the platform and at the entrance to remind the motorist this is not the station owned car park."