£70 charge for parking at Tesco's !

Since the first ever Parent & Child bays starting appearing in our local supermarket car parks there has always been a division between people as to whether these were intended for lazy parents or a good idea. Quite often though these bays are misused by people parking in them who do not have children, but Tesco's has decided this needs to stop and has announced plans to fine shoppers who incorrectly use parent and child and disabled car parking spaces.

Staff at the supermarket will take pictures of cars parked incorrectly in the spaces for people with Blue Badges or children under the age of 12. The evidence will then be sent to a company, Horizon Parking, which will get the drivers' details from the DVLA and issue a £40 fine. The fine could rise to £70 if it is not paid within 14 days. The scheme has been trialed at 81 stores and will be rolled out at a further 200 in the coming weeks,

Tesco says it is not a money-making scheme as the fines will only cover the costs plus fees.

A spokesman said: "Many disabled customers rely on our disabled parking bays, so we’ve introduced our self-monitoring initiative to highlight the importance of using the bays properly, making it fairer and easier for everyone to find a space."

Have you ever tried using a designated space and they've been full through misuse?