Ever been given a ticket for £60 or whatever in Asda or any other private land? I'd just like to reassure you all ( and this goes for any other car parks not operated directly by the council). You don't have to pay any 'penalty charges' as they have no basis in law. Lucky really, as the signs at Solihull Ice Rink say that parking is for patrons but that even if you can prove you were a patron, penalty charges issued won't be rescinded. ***.
Private car park operators rely on official sounding paperwork to intimidate you into paying a sum they know they'd never be able to claim in a court ( which is why they never, ever go to court).
The law on private parking is concerned only with civil damages. The civil damages for overstaying for an hour are one hours worth of parking costs, not £ 60 or whatever ludicrous sum they try and extort from you. They claim that as registered keeper you are liable. Not so as the only contract they can claim as contravened is with the driver who may or may not be the registered keeper.
First they put an invoice on your car which they misleadingly call a 'penalty charge'
Then they send you a letter fraudulently claiming that as registered keeper you are liable.
Then they add on random amounts and try to tell you they have a right to this money (lie, lie, lie)
Then they send you a debt collectors letter claiming they'll take you to court and send in bailiffs (lie, lie, lei)
There is not a single incidence of a private parking company taking anyone to court, ever. They know they'd lose.
If you ever get one of these 'penalty charges' from a private company. DO NOT respond. Consider it a spam email. If you reply, you're on the hook and will get lots of further correspondence. If you ignore them, they WILL go away.
For more information read
http://forums.pepipoo.com/index.php?autocom=ibwiki&cmd=article&id=56
Tell everyone you know not to fall for this scam. It's too late to mention it when they've just paid through ignorance of the law.
Do pay council charges though, they can and will take your wife/ car/ collection of whisky miniatures.