The £100 fine was issued to a Walkford man waiting to pick his wife up from Forest Arts Centre

A MAN has won his fight against paying a £100 fine sent on behalf of a popular New Milton venue after having to wait in the car park to pick up his disabled wife when a show overran.

John Langridge, from Walkford, received the demand from a civil enforcement firm which manages the car park for Forest Arts in Old Milton Road.

He told the A&T he arrived on time but had to wait 20 minutes after the advertised 4pm finish of the presentation that his wife, Kate, had been to see with a friend on 24th November last year.

Mr Langridge said he would not pay up, adding: “The fact that the lecture ran over was out of our control.

“Kate and her friend did not want to be rude by leaving the theatre before the session was completed and did wait for 20 minutes before they exited.

“What I find alarming is that there are many elderly people using this facility.

“Whilst parking is an issue for the centre, any transgression should be viewed with sympathy and understanding if there are genuine reasons.”

Forest Arts said the car park often filled up with vehicles not using the centre and it had brought in the system to protect spaces for genuine customers.

Visitors do not have to pay for parking but must register their number plate, it said.

It had agreed to reduce the charge against Mr Langridge to £20 but later dropped the fine altogether.

Mrs Langridge said she was “delighted” at the result, saying: “It should have never have been given in the first place.

“It was not our fault the event ran over.”

Mr Langridge claimed the show had not started on time because the person hosting the event was late and had trouble setting up a laptop and visual aids.

He explained: “The presentation started 30 minutes late. Unfortunately, my wife could not let me know that as she was already inside the theatre.

“I did not read the parking signs at the centre because I was not parking.”

A £100 fine arrived later from a civil enforcement firm, and Mr Langridge said: “I found the contents quite threatening. It stated that if the charges were not paid, our name and address were known and that they had the right to recover the amount owed.”

John Creedy, general manager at Forest Arts, told the A&T: “Our aim is to offer our customers the best possible experience, which starts with their arrival at the centre.

“Unfortunately, we have frequently had problems with our car park being used by people who are not coming to Forest Arts, with the result that our customers have been unable to park here for their performance, class or workshop.

“Our new parking scheme is proving to be very effective in ensuring that our customers are now able to park here when they need to.”

He added: “As with any new system, there have been a handful of teething problems, including those experienced by Mr Langridge, but we understand that this is now being brought to a satisfactory conclusion.”