‘It’s basically extortion’: Calls to ban aggressive wheel clampers who wait for clueless motorists to park on private land before swooping
- Mayor Mark Irwin slammed wheel clamping as ‘extortion’ and ‘intimidation’
- He claims private companies look out for opportunities to clamp vehicles
- He has urged for wheel clamping to be banned or regulated within the council
- Mayor Irwin said the act would punish clueless motorists for an innocent mistake
Calls have been made for wheel clamping to be banned, with some slamming the practice as ‘extortion’ and ‘deliberate intimidation’.
Private contractors in Scarborough and Doubleview in the City of Stirling, Perth are allowed to use wheel clamps to deter cars from parking on their property without permission.
Mayor Mark Irwin said the act would force clueless motorists to fork out hundreds of dollars to release their car for an innocent mistake.
He claims to have seen private companies deliberately watching their parking spaces being occupied by the public, before waiting for motorists to walk away so they can clamp their wheel.
A Perth mayor has urged for wheel clamping to be banned and slammed the act as ‘extortion’ and ‘deliberate intimidation’
‘I don’t have an issue with people regulating private carparking or public carparking,’ Mayor Irwin told 6PR.
‘What I have an issue with is the detaining component of it; where someone may innocently go in to get a cup of coffee or may innocently go into a yoga class and come out, whether it be at 8am to take their child to school or come out at 8pm to go home to their family, and they’re detained by a wheel clamper.
‘It’s close to extortion. They’re then asked to pay a couple of hundred dollars to be able to release a wheel clamp to get home to their families.’
Mr Irwin added motorists who can’t afford to pay the fine on the spot will have to resort to getting their vehicle towed and would cost $400 to $600 for it to be returned.
He said some private business owners take advantage of wheel clamps as a way to rake in hundreds of dollars.
‘They sit in a car … and as soon as a person parks their car, there’s no opportunity to go up and say ”hey you’re not allowed to park here”,’ he said.
‘They wait til they leave and then come and clamp the car.’
He claims to have seen the private owners dress like police officers, demanding innocent motorist to pay the fine upfront.
One Perth resident said he had to pay hundreds of dollars to get his car back, after parking in a spot owned by a private contractor
One Perth resident said he had to pay hundreds of dollars to get his car back, after parking in a spot owned by a private contractor.
‘Yes cost me $420 to get my car back! Plus $5.20 for my take away coffee for just 5 minutes of parking,’ he wrote on Facebook.
‘Let em tow the car, then ring the police and report it stolen. Cause lets face it that is what they have done if they tow your vehicle away,’ another wrote.
One added: ‘Never been clamped but to be honest this isn’t something that a private company should be allowed to do.
‘There needs to be regulations in place for this kind of thing otherwise you’ll just get cowboys trying to rip off normal people who f***ed up where they parked.’
Mayor Irwin submitted a notice of motion to the council’s July 30 meeting to investigate either banning wheel clamps or regulating their use.
Western Australia does not have laws or regulations in relation to wheel clamping practice but relies on a voluntary code of practice.