How to avoid an airport parking nightmare
It was a case of sun, sea and secret speeding for Jemma Whitfeld and her husband Scott who, whilst away in Italy, were unaware that the airport parking firm they’d entrusted their Tesla with wasn’t exactly looking after their £55,000 vehicle.
Using the car’s feature-filled app, they discovered it had been taken for an unwarranted spin, reaching speeds of up to 113 mph and had been kept in an unsecured location. With booking providers shirking responsibility, Jemma joins us to tell her story, alongside Alice Beer who’s sharing her car safety advice while you’re on holiday.
What can we do to protect ourselves when booking airport parking?
Alice says: "If you are booking through a price comparison site or a third party like Ryanair, they will have terms and conditions that specify that they are only responsible for the booking element of the contract. The company that parks and keeps your car is legally responsible for what happens to it, so you need to check them out before you hand over the keys to your expensive car.'
Key questions to ask yourself when booking airport parking
Where will your car be stored?
Does the receipt or confirmation show a proper registered company with a registered address?
Does the car park have a park mark award?
Does the company have insurance to drive your car?
Does the company have a proper stand at the airport, or is it just a case of meeting up with them and handing over the keys?
Can you pay by credit card?
What do customer reviews say?
And check the T&C's regarding responsibility for damage.
What should you do as you park your car?
Take a quick video in the car park showing the condition of the car, a photo of mileage on the clock and the amount of petrol in the tank.
Tell the company that your car is not insured if they disable any dashcams.
What about when you collect your car?
Even if you are tired from travelling, take 5 minutes to inspect the car.
Take a photo of the mileage whilst they are there.
If you notice something is wrong with the car, deal with it there and then - a good company will take responsibility and deal with any damage themselves.
Should we leave tracking devices in the car?
Alice says: “You can monitor your car's whereabouts with the car's software (as in Jemma's case) or by placing a device like an Apple Airtag (as cheap as £29) in the boot or glove box. But if you have taken all the correct precautionary measures above then you shouldn't need to be wasting precious holiday time worrying.”