I have shopped at Yate Shopping Centre for 20+ years, many of my favourite shops have since disappeared. Then the inevitable closure of Woolworths & Store 21 replaced with the predictable 99p & £-shop, I still found time to travel the weekly 29 mile round trip, spending money & time (along with family & friends), particularly around Xmas time.
Following receipt of a recent £80 Car Parking Charge, (which is excessive for what is a FREE Car Park), I will not support/shop here again. I understand from enquiries made that this charge is not legal and I should ignore it, however I find it totally unacceptable that a shopping centre which includes a cafe, more recently a Weatherspoons and a HUGE Tesco store which also includes a Coffee shop should allow only a 2 hour stay - how ridiculous!!
Goodbye Yate Shopping Centre - I DON'T wish you well.............

By Looby at 19:15 on 23/10/12

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Dear Lobby

The 4 hour parking restriction has been in place for over 10 years in all of Yate Shopping Centre's car parks. We installed automatic number plate recognition 12 months ago in order to manage the car parks effectively.

The 4 hour limit is in place to deter persons from using the car park as a park and ride. With more retailers wishing to be represented at Yate (M&S, Sports Direct, Costa & more to be announced), the increasing population and over 1500 shop employees driving to work it is vital that we manage car parking and ensure customers can park easily.

These type of charges are common and can be found in many retail parks, shopping centres, supermarkets, hospitals and train stations. Time restrictions are also common and can be found in most retail parks and supermarkets.

All of the car parks have prominent signage advising customers of the car parking regulations.

However, we do not wish for our genuine customers to receive parking charges. Please forward a copy receipt from your shopping trip and we will arrange for the parking charge to be cancelled.

The shopping centre management suite can be found at 43 North Walk, Yate Shopping Centre, BS37 4AP. Alternatively receipts can be emailed.

Kind regards

Andrew Lowrey DipSCM
Centre Manager
Yate Shopping Centre
01454 318554

By AndrewMLow at 00:13 on 24/10/12
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sorry but i live and shop in yate every week and have never seen any car parking restiction notices so they cannot be that easy to see plus. i can spend more than 4 hours if i am shopping and using the cafe so thgink this needs be be rethought cos i only llive 1/2 a mile away and could even walk to the centre but then wouldn't be able to get my shopping home

i could spend an hour or so in tesco's plus another hour in the pound shops if i then went to the cafe and on to boots to pick up my perscritions or get my hair cut i would go over the 4 hours
so mr andrews re think this time period

By griffbag at 22:14 on 25/10/12
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Dear Griffbag

The notices are bright yellow and are all around the car parks and entrances.

As explained the 4 hour restriction deters park & riders and stops staff parking in the customer car parks, the time restriction also allows turnover of spaces. Average dwell time in the car parks is currently 1 hour 6 mins, we have 1000 spaces and they are turning over 8 times per day allowing 8000 customers to park. Without the restriction commuters and staff would park in the customer spaces and therefore spaces would not rotate at this rate, meaning that less customers would be able to park - this would then see a significant impact on to our retailers.

I went to Bristol last weekend, Cabot & Galleries car parks were full up and closed - I then parked in an NCP for 3 hours costing £9.60.

4 hours free parking in a town centre is a great offer.

Regards
Andrew

By AndrewMLow at 09:05 on 26/10/12
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Andrew, whilst I appreciate your prompt response & offer to cancel the charge on receipt of our till receipts, I feel this car parking scheme needs re-thinking
Griffbag (thanks) has taken up my very point, as we travel 29 miles we arrive in a group and make a day of it. Parking has never been an issue in all of the 20 odd years, so why is it now? Why would we look out for restrictions in what we have always deemed to be a free car park?
The new Tesco Superstore, £s shops and Weatherspoon's, as you would expect, are the very reason we were enticed to shop and spend for so long and are now the very reason we won't return.
Whether you care to admit this or not I have visited a number of blog/sites & can assure you that many of your customers that have fell foul to this charge are extremely unhappy they are being penalised for spending their well earned cash there. Further to this many of these reputable sites advise that this charge is not legal and only a Council or Police can enforce such a charge not a Car Parking Management scheme such as this.
I am sure that these bright yellow signs as you put it do not warn customers of the intrusion of their privacy as we were surprised to receive a photograph of us all in the car!!
At this critical time many businesses are feeling the pinch and struggling to survive (we have seen many of our favoured stores disappear from your very centre) and yet it seems you are penalising the very customers that regularly spend (over 4 hours) spending in your stores.
Finally, I would say that we find the charge excessive for an otherwise free car park (£80 unless paid in within a limited time) and as there were AMPLE parking spaces on the day in question, no store would have incurred a loss by us parking at this time.

By Looby at 22:54 on 26/10/12
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Hi. I too have just received an £80 fine for overstaying 4 hours in Yate shopping centre car park. I travel from Longwell Green on a regular basis to do my shopping at Yate. I have done so for about 20 years and can honestly say I have NEVER seen a parking restriction notice. I have always believed it to be a FREE car park. Having spent more than 4 hours shopping in Yate,shows just how many shops I visited and how much I must have spent!!!!
What a shame, all those shops will now loose my custom as I will never visit Yate again!!!! Shame on you Yate council.

By Beaver9 at 13:52 on 29/11/12
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All these people moaning should go to Kingswood where you have to pay for parking if they want something for nothing they need to get out of the car park after 4 hours thats plenty of time.

By Daisy10 at 14:20 on 29/11/12
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Dear Beaver 9

As per my above comments, we have explained the reasons for the 4 hour parking restriction at Yate Shopping Centre. Unfortunately all town centres can only provide limited parking and therefore car parks need to be managed to ensure customers can park easily. We only have 1000 spaces and with over 1500 staff driving to work and with a significant number of persons leaving vehicles in the car parks and then using other forms of transport to visit other destinations - the 4 hour rule ensures that customer spaces are not taken up by staff and park and riders.

Currently average dwell time in our car parks is 1 hour 6 minutes and spaces rotate 8 times per day allowing 8000 customers to park. Therefore the 4 hour rule allows for rotation of spaces. For example if the 1000 spaces were used for 8 hours each only 1000 customers could park each day - this would then result in a significant loss of sales for our retailers.

These type of parking charges are common and are used to manage all private car parks including retail parks, shopping centres, supermarkets, cinemas, train stations and hospitals. Car parks in Longwell Green such as the M&S car park has a 3 hour rule.

However, we do not wish for our genuine customers to receive parking charges. Please forward a copy receipt from your shopping trip and we will arrange for the parking charge to be cancelled.

The shopping centre management suite can be found at 43 North Walk, Yate Shopping Centre, BS37 4AP. Alternatively receipts can be emailed.

Kind regards

Andrew Lowrey DipSCM
Centre Manager
Yate Shopping Centre
01454 318554

By AndrewMLow at 14:38 on 29/11/12
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To Daisy ref. your remark about shopping in Kingswood. I shop on a regular basis in Kingswood and NEVER pay for parking. The car parks in Cecil Road and Halls road are FREE. Yes they have a 2 hour limit but these are well signed and I would be surprised if anyone missed them. As for needing more than 4 hours, well on this ocassion I was Christmas shopping and choosing gifts can take some time, especially electrical items which need to be chosen carefully and cost a lot of money.

By Beaver9 at 17:24 on 29/11/12
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Beaver9 - I have since been advised by a number of ppl & through several websites that you can ignore this charge as only Police & Councils can legally demand such a fee and can only take to court if they can prove that the stores ran at a lost as a result of your parking and that they will simply give up if you ignore – however I will leave that decision to you.
Daisy - I am not complaining about car parking costs as such, if I were to park in a pay/display or multi storey etc I am happy to pay this, if not I simply wouldn't park there. The restriction signs in Yate Shopping Centre are not as clear as suggested and obviously so, as it appears that almost all customers that receive these charge notices are sincerely surprised/unaware of the restriction. The so called bright yellow signs are simply yellow not bright and not that big (I have since gained photos of these), especially if you are not looking out for them having parked for 20+years hassle free always deeming it to be free car park. Also that the £80 is exceptionally high for what is otherwise a free car park and finally that with the large Tesco Store, coffee shop, hairdressers and Weatherspoons and planned M&S, Sportsdirect, Costa and more, it is therefore extra likely that customers will spend more time (and money) and therefore even more likely that they will receive this charge notice.
It's a shame that the long term, loyal customers, particularly those outside the area (and with rising petrol prices) that have over the years supported YSC are the very customer who are now being driven away.
Andrew-other similar car parks allow free parking if you provide a receipt of a specific amount, wouldn't this work at YSC?

By Looby at 23:00 on 03/12/12
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Lobby - All car parks have parking rules and if these rules are followed parking charges will not be issued. For those customers that do not see the notices, they can simply contact centre management and once receipts are provided - the charges are cancelled. Beaver 9 has contacted us and the charge has been cancelled.

I was in Sainsbury's Emersons last night 3 hour rule, no facility to provide receipts and no return within 2 hours. Lidl Yate 1.5 hours, no facilty to provide receipts, Longwell Green 3 hours and there are stories out there that chipping sodbury will be having a 2 hour rule.

By AndrewMLow at 10:40 on 04/12/12
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