Am I being unreasonable not to pay for his parking ticket?

[NormalityBites]

I had an electrician round this morning to do some lighting in the bedroom. I told him when he got here it was permit parking only outside my house (very long victorian terrace) and I did not have a permit free (one per house, and it's in my car) He decided to park there anyway and wrote a note to put on the windscreen saying where he was working. When he went out to get something he had a parking ticket. I went on the council website whilst he was here and appealed on his behalf, and gave him a stamped addressed letter to post to the council saying why he was parked there.

To be fair there is pretty much nowhere else to park, especially as he was bringing in ladders etc. He thinks I should pay his parking tickeet due to this. The amount is nearly as much as I paid him to do the lights again. I told him I would be in touch if they contacted me about the appeal, but I would not pay his ticket.

AIBU?

[Igglybuff]

We have a similar situation where you cannot park outside at set times.

When we've had builders we've applied to the council for a dispensation so they don't get a ticket. Usually only needs 24 hours notice.

So I'd say YABU - you could have checked for dispensation. It's only fair you pay the ticket - it's part of the cost of doing your works.

[diamondsandtiaras]

No YANBU. It was his decision to park there........he knew that he needed a permit and decided to ignore the issue. His problem IMO. Is there not some kind of temproary permit workmen can obtain for situations like this?

[mumblechum]

Go halvies?

[diamondsandtiaras]

x-posted........iggly knows more about the permit issue than me! If you could have spoken to the council and gotten dispensation then YAB a bit U and should probably offer to split the cost with him

[NormalityBites]

I did not know about special dispensation. I will find out for the future.

I really don't know if IABU - I can see both sides! So totally willing to go with the majority!

[doesthismatter]

Depends if you ever want him to do any work for you again I suppose. I can see his point if you didnt offer or advise any alternatives for him. What did you suggest or think he would do? Was he warned in advance about it? Is there some temporary permit scheme and who would normally get it - the workman or the houseowner?

If I wanted to keep the goodwill I would probably offer to pay most of it - perhaps with a small deduction. eg if it is £40 and his work cost you £50 maybe offer to pay £80 in total.

[NormalityBites]

He could have parked on the next street where the zone ends, I told him that, he didn't want to as he was bringing in the ladders etc. It is 2-3 minutes walk to the end of the terrace, but he did have to go out to the car several times for thing he didn't bring in.

Still torn

[Igglybuff]

diamonds I only know cos we had to do it.

I do think it was a bit silly of the guy to risk it but I would pay. I'd probably have offered to pay before he did the work TBH.

[SloanyPony]

I think YABU for not making sure you had a permit free when you knew he was coming - it doesn't sound like it was arranged last minute or emergency therefore you probably should have thought it through.

Its a bit unfair now having to pay is fine - but then again, its not realistic for him to park very far away when there are ladders and tools and various things being carted in and out.

He should have been more assertive with you and said, I'll need a permit and if you dont have one, I trust you are willing to pay the ticket? And if you'd said no, then he might have said, well, I'm not happy to risk it, or whatever.

It sounds like you both probably thought he'd be okay and didn't really consider what happened if he wasn't.

So YANBU but a little bit U for not pre-planning...

[Mingg]

It was his decision to park there so YANBU

[stoppinattwo]

I think that it his business and he should ensure that he is able to access areas correctly. He should have taken his gear out of the car and moved the car. At the point where you fore warned him about the parking restricitons he made a choice to stay there..., you didnt make the choice....he could have walked away from the job if he didnt want to park there. I think it is completely his responsibility as owner of the vehicle and you did all you could to for warn him. You are not responsibly for getting special arrangements from the council (i would reserve this favour for visitors) ...as a contractor he should factor all these things in when he is doing a job

[differentID]

yanbu.

You explained the situation, he still took the risk and ended up getting stung.

He should have unloaded his equipment and then moved the van to a different location.

[stoppinattwo]

like some people have said...it was his risk...not yours, you were not risking anything by him parking there....if he took the risk, by choice then he should be prepared to pay the fine...

If it had been your risk Im sure you wouldnt have taken that chance

[AMumInScotland]

I wouldn't pay it. He could have unloaded his gear - unloading is usually fine even when parking is restricted - then parked in the next street over. He chose to park there, so the ticket is his problem.

[callalilies]

Are you not able to buy visitors' permits where you are? When I used to live in a permit area we had to pay for permanent ones but could also purchase sheets of one-day visitors' permits, for people staying over, workmen, etc

I'd probably pay half.

[insertwittynicknameHERE]

Why couldn't you have parked you car in the next street where the restrictions end and given him your permit.
To have not lost your parking spot you could have waited for him to arrive pulled out of your spot given him your permit so he could park and then you park in the next street?

[maswera]

YADNBU - you told him the situation and gave him an alternative at the end of the street. He decided to park there anyway. 2-3 mins away to the end of the road is not "very far away" FGS. I wouldn't pay it.

[TubbyDuffs]

Exactly what I was about to say insert, so I won't bother posting now. Thanks.

[insertwittynicknameHERE]

Tubby great minds.

[GetOrfMoiLand]

I would pay half. You could have called the council to see what the rules were - he could have parked on the next street. It is nobody's fault, you both have a level of responsibility.

And find out the council restrictions - see if you can get dispensation or a sheet of visitors tickets as suggested above for future occasions.

[TastesLikePanda]

In our street, permits have license plate details on them to stop people nicking using other peoples.
YANBU - his car, his problem. You made him aware, he chose to risk it.

[stoppinattwo]

it is nice to be nice and im sure there are lots of things that OP could have done in hindsight....but the question is, isbu in not paying the parking ticket...

The owner of a vehicle is responsible for paying parking tickets....even if they wernt bliimin driving it at the time.

So if the electrician had roken an expensive vase in the hall way carrying his equipment into the house should the op pay for that....

Most contractors have a contingency allowance or insurance for such risk type events.

[SloanyPony]

Putting myself in his situation, I'd not be happy if I turned up at a job and I was not able to park in a free space outside the job because there was no permit. Its sort of a basic requirement for him to do the work for you, is having his van nearby and not having to worry about tickets or being towed. If there was any way around it (i.e giving your permit) then you should have, and on that basis, I guess you should really pay his fine though he shouldn't have taken the risk or should have clarified with you what happened if he got fined.

[stoppinattwo]

If that is the case sloany....he should have made it clear to the OP how near he would need to park to her house therefore giving her the opportunity to make suitable arrangements

She prossibly didnt realise until he got there that he needed to park so close

[Songbiirdheartsfootball]

I think yabu. You can be forgiven for not knowing about the temporary parking permit, but you should have moved your car the 2-3 minutes down the road and let him use your permit. Most people go to and from their car whilst working as they cannot always tell what they need.