Apology After Some Drivers Pay For ‘Free Parking’

Some people paid to park in Market Harborough on Saturday, when it was actually free.

There were no signs in car parks, or displayed on payment machines, telling drivers that charges are suspended on Saturdays in the run-up to Christmas, to encourage people to ‘shop local.’

Harborough District Council has apologised and is to refund anyone who paid for a parking ticket.

Leader of the opposition, Cllr Phil Knowles was in the town centre on Saturday and told Hfm what was happening:

A spokesperson for Harborough District Council said: “Unfortunately, the appropriate signage was not in place prior to the start of this initiative on Saturday due to human error. We sincerely apologise for this. The signs will be going up this week to make people aware of the free parking.

“It is important to us that we are able to offer free parking on Saturdays in the run up to Christmas in our car parks to help local businesses and encourage people to shop locally.

“Anyone who purchased a pay and display ticket on Saturday (5 Dec), when they should have parked for free, can apply for a refund by emailing carparking@harborough.gov.uk or by calling 01858 828282 if they do not have access to email.

We’d also like to remind car park users that they need to get a ticket from the pay & display machine, by pressing the green button, to park for free on Saturdays, but do not have to enter their vehicle registration number.”