Hougham resident’s Lincoln County Hospital parking fine dropped by Parkingeye following Newark Advertiser intervention

A 90-year-old can now breathe a sigh of relief as a large parking fine was finally cancelled “as a gesture of goodwill”.

In January, Robert Scott, of Hougham, received a penalty notice following a visit to see his wife at Lincoln County Hospital despite being a blue badge holder.

Robert’s badge was also registered with the United Lincolnshire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, which entitled him to park in any of their hospital car parks for free.

An appeal was made immediately after receiving the notice — however, the family did not receive a reply and the original £70 fine was later upgraded to a high of £140 and a court appearance threatened if they failed to pay.

When The Advertiser contacted Parkingeye, the company which monitors the hospital car park, we were told that there was no record of an appeal and that it appeared to have been lost.

Now, the saga has finally come to an end with the cancellation of the penalty charge.

Parkingeye has confirmed that it has decided to cancel the charge “as a gesture of goodwill”.

The company added: "We understand the good intentions of the motorist to follow the standard appeal process and the mishap of getting their appeal lost.

"I hope that this resolution brings them peace of mind and relieves any stress and inconvenience this may have caused."

Parkingeye also stated that it is still unaware of why the appeal was not received.

Robert’s son, Phillip Scott, of Newark, said that it feels like a “huge weight has been lifted” and thanked the Advertiser for the assistance.

He joked: “Hopefully now this will stop him [Robert] from worrying, but he will still probably find something new to worry about.”

The Scott family also sought advice and support from the Citizens Advice Bureau and the Patient Advice and Liaison Service who could raise concerns on their behalf.