WH Smith Retail Ltd

Reviews

• Problems with Nottingham Station Car Park

  3rd September 2008 NCP Ltd Notice Processing PO Box 1862 Croydon CR9 1SE Dear Madam/Sir, Re: Parking Contravention Charge Number CP7115602A It is with a combination of Anger, Frustration and Resentment that I am sending you the accompanying cheque for �£25 for a violation on 2nd September 2008 at Nottingham Train Station. Anger – because I tried to pay my car parking fee and failed. Frustration – because I have found all your method of payments non-intuitive and not user friendly. Resentment – because you as a company are clearly aware of the deficiencies of your own systems and have not yet corrected them. The problems – In the last year I have used the Car Park at Nottingham station 3 times and each time I have run into difficulties in paying my car parking ticket. I now understand that the reasons for this are that your Car Parking payment machines on site are non-intuitive and poorly labelled. In addition your telephone payment system is flawed and once there is an error in the system, it is impossible to pay through that system and there is no human contact possible to resolve the issues. I will therefore clarify for you all the problems I have experienced with your equipment – and I wish you to keep in mind that I am a busy Professor, not un-intelligent, but usually with little time before catching my trains. 14th March 2008 – I used the Nottingham Station NCP Car Park. I tried to use my Mastercard to pay for my Car Parking – your machine rejected my card. I went to London without paying an attempted to pay on you automated phone system but could not do so. I therefore phoned my wife at home and she drove from my home to the Station (8 miles), bought a ticket from the station and placed it in the car. 17th June 2008 – Again I used the Nottingham NCP Car Park. I tried to use my Mastercard to pay for my Car Parking – your machine again rejected my card. I went to the Ticket office bought a Car Parking Ticket, went back to my car, placed the ticket in the car and... missed my train to London. 2nd September 2008 – Again I used the NCP Car Park, but this time came prepared with 10 x �£1 coins. Again I tried to buy my ticket from your machine and again the machine did not accept my payment. I did not have sufficient time to go to the ticket office so I caught my train and again tried to pay using your automated telephone system. I dialled 08704589600, your automated system at 07.39. I think your system recognised my mobile phone number and your system has a previously voice activated Registration Number which is incorrect – I think it is currently documented as SP06NNT. I tried to change that and could not because it did not recognise my PIN number. I abandoned the call. I repeated this exercise at 07.42 and 07.43 and experienced the same problems. I then abandoned that method of payment. Next I went onto your website on the internet, probably around 08.15 and emailed you a message telling you I wanted to pay my car parking fee and giving the full details of my car, its location and my payment details. I also tried to change my registered details on your website but it would not let me because I am already a registered customer. When I returned to my car at 14.30, I had, as half anticipated, received a Parking Contravention Charge Notice (attached). I spoke to the NCP Car Park attendant and explained that I had tried to pay that morning but that my money was rejected. He said “I know what has happened – you did not press the button for the duration of your car parking ticket”. We went to the machine, he showed me what I should have done and I realised my error, but I did point out that there was absolutely no labelling on the buttons for the duration of stay, although there were separate instructions below the machine of what to do with the buttons identified on these instructions. Honestly the buttons themselves should not be blank, they should be labelled. However he did also comment “We are always having problems with clients using this system and the company are going to change it if they get their contract extended at today’s meeting.” As I hope I have demonstrated, I have tried to pay for your car park but failed for technical reasons. I would recommend, that if your payment machines are retained the buttons need to be labelled. For your automated telephone payment system there needs to be a help line of some kind – it is completely automated and I cannot currently use it because my Car Registration Number is incorrect and I do not know my PIN number – You need to address these problems as a company, and you need to tell me how I can use this system in future. Despite emailing you around 08.15 yesterday, I have had no acknowledgement and no response – do you not care about your customers. I feel that your company’s attempt at good customer relations are abysmal. Reluctantly I am enclosing my cheque for �£25 with considerable resentment and an assurance that I will rarely be travelling from Nottingham Train Station in future and will choose to travel from Newark to London where there is an excellent car parking system. Yours sincerely Professor W Angus Wallace Professor of Orthopaedic & Accident Surgery cc Station Manager, Nottingham Railway Station

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  Prof w angus W.
  Review Date: 03/09/2008 Report review