Heathrow Airport holidaymakers hit with £33,000 of fines after paying for secure valet parking – after their cars were dumped in council pay and display
Some 275 vehicles were put in two car parks near Heathrow, where wardens slapped up to five tickets on each motor
HUNDREDS of Heathrow Airport travellers have been hit with fines worth £33,000 after valet parking workers dumped their motors in council pay-and-display spaces.
Holidaymakers paid private firms up to £150 a week for the "meet and greet" service promising cars would be kept in secure car parks while they were away.
They returned to find they had been hit with £60 fines — which double to £120 if not paid in two weeks.
As we revealed last week around 275 vehicles were left in two council car parks in Yiewsley and West Drayton, Middx, around five miles from Heathrow.
They were free over the Easter weekend, but in the last week wardens have slapped up to five tickets on each motor.
Some with several tickets on the windscreen had Heathrow short stay parking vouchers visible on the dashboard — from the area where owners handed them over to the valet parkers.
David and Julia O'Neill, of Lichfield, Staffs, found out their car had been ticketed after a two-week trip to Vietnam.
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Mrs O'Neill said they were were "horrified to find out our car had been parked here" having been told it would be left in "a secure car park".
She said: "I wouldn't leave my car here in the daytime, let alone the night. I can't believe it was left here in this unsecured car park for up to two weeks.
"It says in the paperwork it was to be kept in a secure compound. I could have parked here myself and left here and caught the bus.
"We'll just wait and see now if the council get in touch about our parking ticket."
Hillingdon council's Trading Standards department is probing a number of firms that offer the "meet and greet" service at Heathrow, even though they have no official deal with the airport.
One company, Connect Parking, based behind a lap dancing club in Colnbrook, Berks, admitted putting some vehicles in the car parks.
Boss Tahir Zama said: “Only five of the cars belonged to us.
“What happened was the drivers left the cars, went for lunch and then got the tickets. The company contacted the council to pay the tickets.”
A shopper who saw the vehicles in one car park said: “Some had five parking tickets plastered on their windscreens.
"I looked through one of the windows and there was a receipt on the seat for Terminal 2.”
Local resident Sarah Harvey photographed the cars plastered with tickets and warned on Facebook: "People are being ripped off".
She said some of the cars had gone since last week but were replaced with more.
And a shopkeeper told the BBC: "The private car parks are overflowing so what they have done is park their cars over here and gone.
"The wardens have been giving tickets every single day."
The council said car owners would have to appeal against their fines in the usual way.
A spokesman said: “We are aware of reports that some vehicles were parked in the car parks by a Heathrow parking company and not the vehicle owners.
“Our trading standards team has launched an investigation.”
Heathrow airport said: “We are working with the Met Police and the local community to investigate this matter further.
"We encourage passengers to use parking services which are British Parking Association accredited, to ensure they receive the best possible service at Heathrow.”
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