A fuming customer has hit out at Tesco after she was incorrectly charged for a ten hour stay at their car park.
Emily Smith, 47, was given a £35 fine after visiting her local store twice in one day - once for fuel and then again for groceries. She says she was 'treated like a criminal' after the system failed to register her leaving, and thought she had been parked for over ten hours, reports the Mirror.
Charity manager Emily said: “We are being treated like criminals, there is no innocent until proven guilty.
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"We have now found some proof because we use a tracking app with my eldest. It's bonkers, and trying to prove where we were is quite hard."
The £35 charge she was given doubles if not settled within 28 days, and the mum says the fears others could be frightened into paying the charge. She says she was even threatened with further enforcement action if she didn’t pay up to the enforcement company.
Now, Emily switched allegiances and will be visiting Lidl in the future after voicing her disappointment at Tesco for how they handled the situation. She added: “I am deeply disappointed in Tesco - I am not going to risk being their customer again.
“I’m worried that this is going to happen to other people who may just pay the charge because it is really quite frightening. When my husband called Tesco, he was told ‘our cameras do not lie’ - we were basically accused of lying.
“We had to give our time and energy to get this resolved when we did not do anything wrong. I think it is a money-making tool for Tesco and the parking company.
"Because you are told the fine is less if you pay within 28 days, most people will pay it because they don’t want the hassle. People need to know they have the choice to shop somewhere that will not fine them if they visit more than once in a day.”
A spokesperson for Tesco said: “We are sorry to hear about this and have ensured the charge is cancelled.”
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