‘Cowboy’ parking squads hired by High Street firms are hitting hundreds of thousands of drivers with £100 ‘fines’ and using threats to make them pay up. The companies – employed by fast food chains, retailers and railway operators – issue what appear to be official penalty notices, similar to those used by council traffic wardens. They then extract huge sums from drivers who are sometimes just a few minutes late in returning to their cars. However, the tickets do not have the same legal standing as official fines. Many are being issued unfairly and – in some cases – without proper legal authority. Full story >>
VOCABULARY
A cowboy is someone in business who provides goods or services that are of very bad quality. • Up and down the country, cowboy builders are causing devastation and dismay.
