A Wiltshire mum feels “discriminated” against after she was issued a parking fine while tending to her autistic daughter.
On August 14 last year, Chippenham mum Mica Motto parked at The Arc climbing centre on Westmead Lane because her daughter Elaya, 4, desperately needed the toilet.
On the way into the centre, Elaya fell and injured her knee causing her to become more distressed, and she then spent an hour patching her up.
Ms Motto did not have any money or bank cards on her at the time and says she was unable to pay for parking during the stressful situation because the RingGo App required her card details.
The 32-year-old has since been slapped with a fine, which has risen to £160 after an unsuccessful appeal.
When approached for comment, the Climbing Academy, which operates The Arc, says it was “completely unaware” of the fine issued to Ms Motto, and her situation, and has now stepped in to try and have it scrapped.
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But this decision will be down to Euro Parking Services, the firm which manages parking at the site and recently threatened Ms Motto with court action over the unpaid charge.
While Ms Motto accepts she did not pay for parking, she feels she has been met with a lack of empathy or understanding over her situation.
She said: “I feel discriminated against, I have a non-verbal child on the spectrum and we’re talking about a £1 ticket.
“They’re trying to charge a single mum £160 over that… I don’t have that kind of money.
“I don’t think I’m exempt from paying for parking, but I want them to understand this was just an extreme situation I was stuck in.
“They could really ruin my future over a one-time thing, I have been to The Arc since and haven’t had any problems.”
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Ms Motto is currently receiving carers’ allowance because she is unable to work, due to her child’s needs.
She explained that looking after a child with autism can sometimes make situations that are simple for others very challenging.
She added: “When you have a child on the spectrum, especially when they’re non-verbal, it can be very unpredictable.
“She can get frustrated very easily and have a meltdown and she might hurt herself, when that happens my main concern is to diffuse the situation and I’m not thinking about a parking ticket.
“She had physically injured herself by falling over and I was very concerned, trying to calm a child in that state of mind down is really difficult so it was a nightmare from start to finish.”
Euro Parking Services previously rejected Ms Motto’s appeal because, while the firm “sympathised” with her situation, the parking charge notice was issued “in accordance with regulations”.
The Climbing Academy said The Arc’s staff can intervene to cancel fines, when they are alerted to special mitigating circumstances, and have now done so for Ms Motto.
A spokesperson said: “In special circumstances staff at The Arc can intervene and cancel fines, when issues are brought to us in a timely manner.
“We typically resolve no fault issues very quickly.
“We have just contacted Euro Parking Services to ask if this fine can be cancelled.
“They have the ability to cancel fines if they have not yet gone to judgement.
“They are looking into this now and if possible they will cancel it based on our request.”
The Climbing Academy added it would “love” to offer free parking at the facility but is unable to do so because of the conditions of its planning permission.
Euro Parking Services did not respond to an approach for comment.
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