Karin Streete, from Bath, is warning others to be cautious when entering car registration details after her husband was charged £170 due to a simple mistake. Earlier this summer, while visiting The Globe Inn in Newton St Loe, Karin accidentally swapped two letters in their car’s registration number on the pub’s parking payment system.
What seemed like a minor error quickly escalated. The couple was initially fined £100 for allegedly parking without paying, a fee that increased to £170 after it was handed over to a debt collection agency. Karin’s husband is battling cancer and recovering from a stroke, making the situation particularly stressful for them both.
Karin explained, “Inside the pub, they have monitors at the bar where you enter your car’s registration. Under stress, I reversed the last two letters but didn’t think it would cause a problem.” They spent just over an hour at the Inn and left the car park believing everything was fine.
READ MORE: Best Friends Launch Chai & Chutney: Authentic Indian Flavors with 25% Off Opening Weekend
READ MORE: Council Leader Slams Government’s ‘Austerity in Disguise’ Over Funding Cuts
Weeks later, they received a final demand letter from Euro Car Parks accusing them of illegal parking. Karin and her husband were taken aback, suspecting a scam since they were confident they had paid correctly.
There is CCTV footage that shows the registered plate was nearly identical to their actual plate, highlighting this was a genuine human error rather than intentional evasion. However, Euro Car Parks passed the case to Debt Recovery Plus, which added an additional £70 fee.
The Globe Inn had no authority over the car park, so their staff were unable to assist. Reaching Euro Car Parks proved difficult, trapping the couple in a frustrating cycle of unhelpful phone lines. Karin was eventually told to seek legal advice but feared the cost of a solicitor and the prospect of court action in Northampton, too far for her husband to travel.
Facing mounting pressure, the couple reluctantly paid the £170 charge on September 3. Despite the ordeal, Karin remains a regular patron of the Globe Inn but urges everyone to double-check their registration details to avoid similar mistakes.
“I don’t expect anything to come from this, I just want to warn others to be careful when paying for parking,” she said.