A grandfather has been handed a fine after taking too long to drop his family off at Manchester Airport.
Eric Moffatt, 66, was dropping his daughter and granddaughter at Manchester Airport on Friday August 8 ahead of their flight back home to Dubai when he was slapped with the charge.
The father, from Aigburth, Liverpool, dropped his family at the Terminal 2 Drop Off at 6.35am and went to use the toilet inside the terminal.
Mr Moffatt, who has a bladder condition that means he has to use the toilet more often, then decided to nip to the loo – a ‘long’ walk from the drop-off point, he said.
He returned to the parking zone, went home, and went online to pay – before realising he’d been slapped with a fine for overstaying his welcome by just 18 seconds.
As per the new drop off parking rules at Manchester Terminal 2, customers are allowed to park for up to 10 minutes for the price of £6.40.
Over this, they must pay £25 – a deterrent imposed by airport bosses to stop drivers loitering.
Customers have up until midnight the following day to pay for the parking via the airport’s website.
Eric Moffatt, 66, (pictured) was dropping off his daughter and granddaughter at Manchester Airport on Friday, August 8, ahead of their flight to Dubai, when he was fined £25 for staying 18 seconds over the time limit
The grandfather (pictured) had parked at the at the Terminal 2 Drop Off but was forced to ‘walk a far way’ to the toilet which caused him to overstay
Leaving the drop off zone at 6.45am, Mr Moffatt believed he was inside the 10-minute allotted time.
After arriving home and going online to pay for the parking he found he had been charged £25, despite the parking receipt confirming his duration was 10 minutes.
After a closer look at the receipt, he discovered he had been parked up for 10 minutes and 18 seconds, taking him over the time limit.
Mr Moffat believes he is ‘being penalised’ for his health issues.
He said: ‘Me and my daughter were seeing my other daughter and granddaughter off, they live in Dubai. In March I had a health problem with my bladder which means I have to go to the toilet more than usual.
‘I’d gone into the terminal to go to the toilet and the guy behind one of the desks pointed me in the right direction. They were right the way down a long corridor.
‘I went back and said my goodbyes to my daughter and granddaughter.
‘As soon as I got home I went on the website to pay the £6.40 charge but when I went to pay it it said mine was £25. I phoned up to question it and the guy told me I can appeal but if I lose the appeal I’ll be told to pay £60.’
Instead of being charged £6.40 for the drop off at Manchester Airport (pictured), Mr moffatt was charged £25
Mr Moffatt added: ‘When I investigated why I’d been charged over the 10 minutes it said I’d been 10 minutes and 18 seconds over.
‘The guy on the phone said if you’re one second over the 10 minutes you’ll be charged £25. It just doesn’t seem fair when I was 10 minutes, I wasn’t 11 minutes.
‘It is a new terminal, I didn’t know where I was going inside and I have a bladder problem – I feel like I’m being penalised twice for it. I’ve been charged £25 for 18 seconds, how is that fair?’
Manchester Airport said its drop-off charges are enforced to help it manage demand for access to terminals and traffic congestion.
It says it means these areas ‘remain efficient’ even at busy times because people are not staying there for extended periods.
A spokesperson for Manchester Airport said: ‘Drop-off charges help us to manage demand for access to our forecourts, where space is limited, and reduce traffic congestion.
‘It means that the areas remain efficient even at busy times because people are not staying there for extended periods.
‘We also offer a completely free drop-off facility by the nearby JetParks 1 car park. It is served by a 24-hour shuttle bus that runs every few minutes and takes less than six minutes to get to all three terminals.’
