Excel Parking: Sheffield firm loses court case over driver at Broomhill Rooftop too slow to pay £1.20
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A judge dismissed the firm’s claim after David Lockett took 24 minutes to make payment at Broomhill Rooftop Parking.
Excel demands £100 from users who take more than 10 minutes to buy a ticket. The figure jumped to £268 over the following months amid a string of legal letters.
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But in court, David said the judge “honed in” on Excel’s evidence which appeared to be confused about whether the deadline was five minutes or 10. It came after the firm sent him a letter stating the maximum period allowed was ‘0 minutes’.
District judge Ranjit Uppal also noted there was no financial loss to the company since Mr Lockett had overpaid for his stay. He dismissed the case.
Mr Lockett said fighting Excel for a year was stressful.


He added: “The process shows a lack of due care or human ability to consider. I got the impression they make a lot of money off cases like this.”
Broomhill Rooftop is notorious for complaints over its 10-minute payment deadline, lengthy terms and conditions, densely-written sign boards and glitchy tech.
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Hide AdIt was estimated to be earning the firm up to £500-an-hour in October as motorists struggled to pay in time.
Local MP Abtisam Mohamed stepped in and Excel reinstalled card payment machines and switched to a different payment app.
Mr Lockett said his problems started when he attempted to park next to a Range Rover before giving up and moving to another space.
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Not having cash, he downloaded a payment app before he registered himself and his car, entered his bank details and responded to verification emails.
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Hide AdThe process, including two failed attempts to download the app, took 24 minutes.
Excel sent him a letter demanding £100 and rejected his appeal. The Independent Appeals Service rejected a second appeal, he said.
The IAS is run by regulator International Parking Community which is funded by parking firms including Excel.


He then received letters from DCB Legal, based in Runcorn, demanding £100, then £200 and then £268, reduced to £200 if he paid within seven days.
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Hide AdMr Lockett said when the case went to mediation, a process that seeks to keep cases out of court, he offered to pay £85. But it was rejected, leading to the court hearing - from which he emerged victorious.
Mr Lockett acknowledged the help he had received from an Excel Parking advice page on Facebook.
We asked Excel Parking why it did not accept Mr Lockett's offer of payment during mediation to keep the case out of court.
We asked if the case was a good use of court time.
We also asked whether it would abandon its 10-minute time rule and adopt the same terms as Bank Park at Berkeley Centre on Ecclesall Road. It offers half-an-hour free and payment at any time within the two-hour maximum stay.
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Hide AdExcel previously ran the site but was replaced in July 2023 after years of complaints. There have been none to The Star since Bank Park took over.
In a statement, Excel Parking said it was reviewing the judge’s comments and remained confident its case against Mr Lockett was valid.
It also said it would only switch to the Bank Park system if it could be compensated “for the loss of parking revenue” it would suffer in Broomhill.
A spokesperson said: “We are currently reviewing the judge's comments and considering our next steps. It would therefore not be appropriate to comment, other than to say we are confident the parking charge was correctly issued as payment of the tariff was not made until 24 minutes after the motorist entered the car park.
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Hide Ad“If the motorist had difficulties using the Connect Cashless mobile application, he could have called our 24-hour helpline, used one of the on-site pay machines, or called the Connect Cashless telephone number or their website.
“Regarding free parking for 30 minutes; if you would like to personally compensate Excel Parking for the loss of parking revenue, they would gladly consider it.”
Excel Parking doubled its profit before tax to £4m in 2023. Boss Simon Renshaw-Smith paid himself £653,000.
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Hide AdExcel Parking has a lease to run Broomhill Rooftop with managing agents Philip Fisher LLP, based at Dancastle Court, Arcadia Avenue, Barnet, London. The directors are John Lawson, Leslie Frankel and Andrew Michaels. They also own the site, including the shops, through their company Staghold Ltd.
Philip Fisher LLP previously said they had been in touch with the firm after “hearing allegations about its business practices.”
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