A MAN from Denbigh has told of his disbelief at receiving a parking fine after using the disabled car park at Rhyl Library.

Reverend Brenden Bithell said that, on July 30, he mistakenly paid for parking at the adjacent Morfa Hall car park, which is run privately by Smart Parking Ltd.

Rhyl Library’s car park is for disabled parking only, and is operated by Denbighshire County Council, which has issued him with a penalty charge notice (PCN) of £50 (or £25 if paid within two weeks)

Rev Bithell, who is disabled and is awaiting two knee replacements and hip and spinal surgery, said he has appealed the “bonkers” fine.

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He said: “On July 30, I parked on land opposite Rhyl Library to do a good turn for a Ukrainian refugee, to take them to an appointment there.

“I'm disabled, and when I arrived, the spaces outside were occupied, so I drove into the large car park to turn around, then spotted the several spaces to the left and came back and parked in them.

“I paid for Morfa Hall instead of Rhyl Library, as that was the only machine I could see.

“Being disabled, I sat in the vehicle searching for the nearest machine to pay, and spotted the machine up the ramp at the highest level.

“I am appealing the ticket on the following grounds:

  • “The signage is, at best, confusing. It's not at a level of eye for people with a disability.
  • “The correct machine was obscured at the time by contractors employed by the council to carry out work at the library.
  • “The offence mentioned is ‘Parked in a car park without clearly displaying a valid pay and display and display ticket or voucher or parking clock’. The ticket was valid at the time as was my disability badge and parking clock. The issue appears to be that it's valid for a different part of the car park.
  • “The council is responsible for failing to ensure an additional machine is placed inside the secondary disabled parking area to avoid confusion and disabled people having to cross a busy entrance in order to seek out the correct machine.”

Previously, numerous residents have contacted the Journal saying that they were left aggrieved to have been fined by Smart Parking Ltd for paying for parking at Rhyl Library when, in fact, they were parked at Morfa Hall.

Each of them have cited a lack of clarity to help them differentiate between the two adjacent car parks.

Last week, a Freedom of Information request revealed that, since the start of 2022, Rhyl Library car park has seen 295 PCNs issued, the seventh-most out of all council-operated car parks in Denbighshire.

A council spokesperson said: “We are aware of the appeal from Mr Bithell, and as it is a legislative procedure, Denbighshire County Council cannot comment further.”