Clamping

theocn

I had to go to the bank yesterday so I parked in the public car pk beside it. There's a ticket machine which only accepts coins, but I'd no change. As I was only dropping something off at the bank I decided just to chance it as it would have taken longer to cross the rd to the nearest shop to get change.
As I returned to my car, no more than 3 minutes later, a clamper was approaching with a clamp, he asked was that my car, and said I was lucky I got back in time.
Now I know I should have paid the fee, but surely 3 minutes is a bit quick to be clamping.

Saab Ed

theocn wrote: »

I had to go to the bank yesterday so I parked in the public car pk beside it. There's a ticket machine which only accepts coins, but I'd no change. As I was only dropping something off at the bank I decided just to chance it as it would have taken longer to cross the rd to the nearest shop to get change.
As I returned to my car, no more than 3 minutes later, a clamper was approaching with a clamp, he asked was that my car, and said I was lucky I got back in time.
Now I know I should have paid the fee, but surely 3 minutes is a bit quick to be clamping.

I feel your pain

biko

OP, did you time it? Anyway, I don't think there is a general grace time - if they want to clamp you immediately they can.
They can't tell you'll be "right back" when you leave the car unattended and not paid for.

Signpost

Was told b4 by a clamper you should leave hazards on if you are gone for change / getting tickets etc, Never do it but I'm sure some clamers out there would be delighted if we did...

_Kaiser_

Saab Ed wrote: »

I feel your pain

Indeed

Gary ITR

Just gave that a bit of a tidy

Dankoozy

should have left the ****er clamp it and sank an angle grinder into it.

clamps are expensive, and they'd let on that they can get you for criminal damage but really that is a very tedious process and hardly worth their bother

Anan1

Dankoozy wrote: »

should have left the ****er clamp it and sank an angle grinder into it.

clamps are expensive, and they'd let on that they can get you for criminal damage but really that is a very tedious process and hardly worth their bother

Why? The clamper doesn't care either way, and most people have better things to be doing with their time than sawing through clamps.

bryanmurr

Sure the clamper didnt know how long you were parked there in fairness

Dankoozy

Anan1 wrote: »

Why? The clamper doesn't care either way, and most people have better things to be doing with their time than sawing through clamps.

to have a go at the clamping industry. everything should be done to make live hard for those bastards. if u have a good angle grinder it won't take too long. we're in recession now in the good old days people were too enthralled in their convenience-based D4 lifestyle to be bothered with DIY anything but not so much anymore now

Anan1

Dankoozy wrote: »

to have a go at the clamping industry. everything should be done to make live hard for those bastards.

They couldn't care less. It may be personal for you, for them it's just a job.

Dankoozy wrote: »

if u have a good angle grinder it won't take too long.

How many people carry an angle grinder around with them? And even if you do, it's still a complete waste of time.

Dankoozy wrote: »

we're in recession now in the good old days people were too enthralled in their convenience-based D4 lifestyle to be bothered with DIY anything but not so much anymore now

What does recession have to do with deliberately getting clamped so you can cut the clamp off? Unless you're unemployed and terminally bored, I still don't see the point.

Dankoozy

Anan1 wrote: »

They couldn't care less. It may be personal for you, for them it's just a job.
How many people carry an angle grinder around with them? And even if you do, it's still a complete waste of time.
What does recession have to do with deliberately getting clamped so you can cut the clamp off? Unless you're unemployed and terminally bored, I still don't see the point.

a lot of people are terminally bored. and before people would pay their way through every inconvenience life throws at them. many cant afford to do so now

i have an angle grinder and inverter in the boot in the car. hopefully i never have to use it but really people should stand up to this idiotic practice of clamping cars

the clampers tend to care a lot, else they wouldnt be running out within 3 minutes to throw a clamp on. they know their wages are paid out of release fees and this makes them more eager to put on clamps. many of them also have targets and quotas - of course they wouldnt be officially written down anywhere but i know someone who got a ticket (not clamp) and the guy said if he didn't give out any tickets he'd be out of a job. recession also makes them more eager to keep their job - if they loose theirs now they'll be on the dole

theocn

bryanmurr wrote: »

Sure the clamper didnt know how long you were parked there in fairness

I think that's a fair point, but I was literally 3 minutes, if i'd gone to get change it would have taken me longer. Imo if clampers arrive at a car park they should at least wait 5 minutes before clamping to see if someone has gone off to get change.

The-Game

theocn wrote: »

I think that's a fair point, but I was literally 3 minutes, if i'd gone to get change it would have taken me longer. Imo if clampers arrive at a car park they should at least wait 5 minutes before clamping to see if someone has gone off to get change.

Keyword there is should. Arguing the toss with a clamper isnt that easy.

Anan1

theocn wrote: »

I think that's a fair point, but I was literally 3 minutes, if i'd gone to get change it would have taken me longer. Imo if clampers arrive at a car park they should at least wait 5 minutes before clamping to see if someone has gone off to get change.

Abolutely, i'd say 10 minutes would be a fair time to wait.

holyjoe

i hate attitude that sure il im only going into tesco or the bank for 2 minute to get a loaf of bread or drop something off so ill park as close as humanly possible to the front door cos im too shaging lazy to go to the trouble of find a legal parking space and walk extra 50 metres to the shop/bank which in this case the op could have done also if he wanted.
so i dont understand why the clamper is getting stick here, he wasnt going to clamp a car that was legally parked, this was 100% the ops fault, he was chancing his arm.

so while i do feel sorry for the people who wrongly get clamped i would have no sympathy for the OP. Clampers may be c**s at times but without them you'd all be on here complaining that you had to spent 30 minutes trying to get down some street cos some ignorant feckers has parked thier cars all over the place blocking half the street (more than likely as they are in the bank for 2 mins!)


btw im not a clamper!, i just think they get some unjustified stick.

Dankoozy

holyjoe wrote: »

Clampers may be c**s at times but without them you'd all be on here complaining that you had to spent 30 minutes trying to get down some street cos some ignorant feckers has parked thier cars all over the place blocking half the street (more than likely as they are in the bank for 2 mins!)


btw im not a clamper!, i just think they get some unjustified stick.

if the said ignorant fecker's car was clamped he'd be blocking the way even longer...

holyjoe

Dankoozy wrote: »

if the said ignorant fecker's car was clamped he'd be blocking the way even longer...

said ignorant fecker would be towed.

so what would you suggest as an alternative to clamping?
a free for all parking system maybe?

Dankoozy

holyjoe wrote: »

said ignorant fecker would be towed.

so what would you suggest as an alternative to clamping?
a free for all parking system maybe?

that would be nice but there's no space in dublin unfortunately. give the fecker a nice fine. but leave his car alone and be sure to come knocking for the fine if he won't pay up.

also get rid of private parking companies like NCPS, they're a shower of ***** and they have far too much to gain from clamping people.

Lord Nikon

Clamping is extortion, and does absolutely nothing to solve the problem in the first place, and it's a money making scheme.

Instead of issueing a fine, which could be paid when convenient to the car owner, it instead forces money from them to have their property released. Clamps should be abolished.

My car was clamped a while ago, and while it was my fault where I parked, I still contested it. Saturday night, empty car park, no obstruction at all. BS. Yet while Sunday mass is on, the carpark is jammers with nobody getting clamped.

TJJP

Dankoozy wrote: »

i have an angle grinder and inverter in the boot in the car.

I have a couple of euro in the ashtray to pay for parking. Far more convenient I find.

Dankoozy

TJJP wrote: »

I have a couple of euro in the ashtray to pay for parking. Far more convenient I find.

a disc costs less than that and will take off a fair few clamps

car is also less likely to get robbed when clamped as the 'security' at these places are only to protect the car park itself. they already have a disclaimer up saying they take no responsibility for anything that happens your car there so no incentive at all to prevent it from being robbed

holyjoe

Dankoozy wrote: »

that would be nice but there's no space in dublin unfortunately. give the fecker a nice fine. but leave his car alone and be sure to come knocking for the fine if he won't pay up.

also get rid of private parking companies like NCPS, they're a shower of ***** and they have far too much to gain from clamping people.

hold on,you already admitted that should you get clamped instead of paying the fine you would go to the extremes of carry an angle grinder around to cut off the clamp to avoid payment but yet if they let you off and tried to collect it at a later date you would no bother paying??
that would not work simply becuase people would not pay the fine and they hardy go to the trouble and expense of taking it to court.

whatever about NCPS, if you park legally what have you to worry about?

Dankoozy

holyjoe wrote: »

hold on,you already admitted that should you get clamped instead of paying the fine you would go to the extremes of carry an angle grinder around to cut off the clamp to avoid payment but yet if they let you off and tried to collect it at a later date you would no bother paying??
that would not work simply becuase people would not pay the fine and they hardy go to the trouble and expense of taking it to court.

whatever about NCPS, if you park legally what have you to worry about?

if i got clamped i would refuse to pay some shagger to remove a piece of metal from my own car. getting people to pay fines works fairly well for the guards so i don't see why a private company should be allowed to interfere with my car like that.

carrying the grinder + inverter around is not extreme. i use them both for other things so might as well store em in the boot.

i tend to avoid places that use clamps on principal, well try to park on free spots if i can. i don't park without paying on paid spots but i'd really hate to be at the mercy of the clampers..

rex-x

Its something i never understood, its like saying ok you cant park here so i will make sure you stay here! how does that solve the problem In my college grounds the parking is nuts and if someone parks blocking someone in they get clamped there, the mind does wonder :rolleyes:

Anan1

Whatever ones opinions regarding the rights & wrongs of clamping, it seems unarguable that it does work. Am I the only one who remembers trying to find on-street parking in Dublin before clamping?

schoolbag2

some people find it hard to understand the point of clamping(well the original one, its turned into a revenue exercise for some).

It is a detterant against people parking illegaly

How many people have parked correctly because either 1.they have been clamped in the past or 2.they see a car clamped

Fact is it works.

Eoin

rex-x wrote: »

Its something i never understood, its like saying ok you cant park here so i will make sure you stay here! how does that solve the problem In my college grounds the parking is nuts and if someone parks blocking someone in they get clamped there, the mind does wonder

There's a difference between parking where you shouldn't, and not paying where you're allowed to park. If a car is parked where there is no parking, then it should be towed. If they do clamp a car when it's parked where it shouldn't be, then that's just stupid.

I would be slow to take an angle grinder to a corpo clamp as opposed to a private clamp.

stealthyspeeder

I would never cut off or damage a clamp that was put on by a firm authorised and contracted by a public council, but any private firm clamping on private ground, im taking it off. (I have in the past, with a pic posted on another calmping thread a couple of months back)

When I was clamped, I obeyed the unofficial, non legally binding posted rules of the area I was parked in, I was clamped anyway. I took it off and have heard nothing since (I was filmed on cctv, confronted by the area's security guard and told that NCPS and the guards had been informed while I took it off). If they clamp like cowboys, they will act like cowboys if you try and get money back off them. I wouldnt risk my cash for these private extortionists!

Anan1

eoin wrote: »

There's a difference between parking where you shouldn't, and not paying where you're allowed to park. If a car is parked where there is no parking, then it should be towed. If they do clamp a car when it's parked where it shouldn't be, then that's just stupid.

I agree in principle, but it's far more expensive, slower, and time-comsuming to tow a car than to clamp it.

biko

I think a quicker and easier way to sort out bad parking is a hammer to the windscreen, this way the clampers don't have to carry heavy clamps and repeat offenders would dwindle.