"Bully boy" clampers rapped for aggression at Blockbusters

“These scumbags clamp 'on spec'. I was one of their victims in 2005. I parked in Maplin's car park and went into Maplin. When I came out, I discovered that I had been clamped. It was suggested that I had taken too long in the store, even though I was only in there long enough to buy what I had gone in there for. I had to get the manager of Maplin to come out and order the clampers to remove the clamp. Apparently (according to a local security guard who was watching the whole affair) the clampers tended to come and go from time to time, as they had another site to 'police', so if I hadn't come out of the store at that time, I could have been waiting for ages for the clampers to bother to come back; and the store was about to close, so the manager would have been going home. This must have happened to other people, and they may have had a worse outcome than I did.”

“If I was to park my car in someone else's garden and walk off to the shops, then I would not expect to be very welcome on my return. The owners of this property have provided parking spaces as a convenience for the people who use the shops. If all the spaces are taken by people who are not using the shops, then this is taking unfair advantage of the owner's hospitality, and may ultimately mean that patrons of the shops - who may well have large, heavy or bulky objects to take away - would be denied this facility.
Now, if people did not take unfair advantage of this free parking, then the landlord wouldn't need to hire clampers. Simple as that. People who are caught parking in a space they are not entitled to park in are not "victims" - they are just chancers who are unlucky enough to get caught. There are ample public car parks in Albion Street (Beechwood shopping centre), Sherborne Place and Grosvenor Terrace.
On the other hand, I don't think the rules should apply to all occupants of a vehicle. For example, if I wanted to pop into the wine merchants on my way home from work, and gave one of my colleagues a lift into town, I wouldn't expect my car to be clamped just because my colleague walked off into town and didn't go into the wine merchants as well (this kind of thing has happened to someone, I seem to recall).
I've always found Messrs Bennett and Muir to be perfectly polite and affable, but then I've never had occasion to cross them.”

“Why do you think they give their home address as Blackpool? These people are so detested they would not be safe in their own community, so they ply their dirty trade far from home.”

“Clampers like others in the security industry need to be licensed by the Security Industry Authority.

If these two clampers are convicted of common assault and using words or behaviour to cause alarm, harassment or distress then surely these licenes if they are to have credibility should be revoked?”

“And why do people keep putting 'victims of Clampers' if you was caught speeding would you be victims of speed cameras'?? The signs are in that car park very clearly, just like the road speed signs are there telling you of the speed limit and if you break the rules you will get fined simples.”

“Don't get theese Clampers mixed up with the Clampers behind the brewery. They are 2 different company's. I find it very funny when people moan about being clamped because its their own fault for parking where they did so its their own fault!! Has anybody maybe heard the abuse given to the Clampers from people who have been clamped? One thing the echo forgets to mention. End of the day they are 2 people doing a job. They don't ask you to park there and walk off!!! I feel sorry for the shops will loose trade when clamping is made illegal. I don't know the Clampers but I've been shopping in maplin in the past when one of them came up to me and asked excuse me sir but do you have a red mondeo outside? Which I said no, so then he said very sorry sir have a nice day. Abusive? Rude? Far from it,”

“You see these scabby scumbags sat on the steps of the building opposite Blockbusters Car Park every day. Surely the only job satisfaction they CAN get is from catching unsuspecting motorists. Watching them sit there makes my blood boil. I've never actually been caught by them myself because I don't want to give them the damn satisfaction. What a career,perhaps they should get a promotion to pushing shopping trollies around supermarkets. Makes me SICK!”

“i witnessed an incident at the car park at morrisons in NAILSWORTH,in which a pensioner,who was clearly with poor mobility,was abused i front of other shoppers,whilst no notice was taken of motorists who were parked in the disabled bay,who did not have badges.when this was pointed out to the enforcer,his reply was that he was going to make his life a misery.he then slammed the car door into this poor mans leg,with such force that the poor man yelped.i gave the poor chap my name and address in case of any action and would advise anyone to do the same.”

“Question:

I'm not familiar with the car park in question, so can someone tell me what the regulations are there? What I mean is this:

Is the car park meant to be free for customers of the shops there? I believe that 2 of the shops are Blockbusters & Majestic Wines, so am I correct in saying that customers of those shops are allowed to park there free of charge?

If so, how did these blokes know (and indeed prove) that the cars they clamped belonged to people who hadn't shopped at the shops in question?

Wouldn't they have had to have filmed the people getting out of their cars and NOT shopping at the shops in question?”

“I know one sure way to stop the bully boy actions of these two morons,ban them from operating anywhere in Cheltenham.”