What would you have done in this situation?

Post Reply New Topic

When I was leaving the mall and paying at the machine before going down to my car in the parking lot, the machine ate my card, didn't give me back any receipt or change, nor my money or the card. I went to the parking management, who said it was someone else's fault and not theirs. The someone else told me it was the parking management's fault and not theirs. In the meantime, I spent 40 minutes asking both of them for a solution, unable to take out my car and accruing more debt because more time was passing, and still with no solution in sight.

1. What would you have done?
2. What would an NT have done (if different from 1)?
3. What should I have done (if different from 1 and/or 2)?

Thanks in advance for any opinions!

I have been in situations where person#1 referred me to person #2 who referred me back to person#1. What did I do? I got angry. Really, loudly, yellingly angry. Other customers overheard and started cocking an ear to see what had gone wrong and what was happening. I'm not saying that making a scene is the right thing to do. But it is how I've honestly reacted in that particular scenario. The thing about making a scene is that it tends to get people to stop shrugging their shoulders and pointing you towards somebody else (who points you right back) and instead gets them to call their supervisors to deal with it. The supervisors tend to be a lot better at dealing with it. Especially when a curious audience of other customers is gathering.

Janissy, that's the course of action I decided to take, indeed. I tried to physically be at the places where my loudness would cause the most damage for both parties - namely with their customers and colleagues.

However, after 40 minutes of this, it had not helped, hence my questions...

I would have threatened to call the police -- they stole my card and were stealing time they would likely insist I pay for, and they were holding my car hostage. Someone needed to take responsibility for that! (Car theft is a crime, so is fraud, which getting extra money out of me by holding my car would be.) I suspect that once they knew the police would be summoned, the parking management would take whatever action they needed to to remedy the situation. Surely they have overrides for getting in and out of the parking lot in emergencies, or for them to go in and out on official business. "Get the guy with the master key here or I'll call the police" seems like a solution to me.

I think an NT would not behave all that differently in the situation. Everyone would have to find the most effective solution for them. Problem solving, IMO, is not necessarily an AS or NT thing. It's a creative thing.

I'm curious -- what did you do?

That's what I did, indeed. I threatened to call the police and told the parking lot manager that I was sueing him in court. I told them that even if they let me leave now, I wouldn't move without my change and I wouldn't pay the extra money for the 40 minutes parking caused by them. The parking manager shrugged, but the other party gave me my change. I went out and told the guy at the gate (who wouldn't let me out) that the parking manager had told me to tell him to call the parking manager urgently so the parking manager could give his ok to let me out (it was a lie, of course, but I knew the parking manager wouldn't dare tell the guy at the gate "don't let her out" because I was blocking the traffic out of the mall parking, and I was dialling the police). So the guy called, the manager indeed said "let her out" and I left.

However, I'm still interested in hearing if there were other courses of action possible, or better.

Had a similar situation once at a hall where I was picking up someone. They charged me 15 euros for 15 minutes parking (day fee), while the first half hour was free. I got really mad but decided to not engage in useless conversation and blocked the two exits (next to each other) with my car. I figured a discussion would not help and make me only more angry, with the danger of a meltdown. When there was a dozen cars waiting behind me, they decided to let me go... for free.

So the way to get out of these situations is make it the problem of other people... that is something that still annoys me, but it is the only way to work with half minded parking people.

And here I was thinking that these things happened only in the Middle East... I'm surprised about Holland!

Yes, blocking is a good idea, but I wanted my change back too and here security and the police don't allow you to block for money theft. You have to pay / leave without the money and later sue in court (which no one would do for a few dollars, so they're all nicely covered).

Out-lie-ing reasons topic

Why did you lie about what the manager said, Greentea? I would have just demanded to be let out. The claustrophobia would be causing me to melt down in a MAJOR way. You did not have to lie. You paid, and got your change. It was their fault, not yours. Their machines would have recorded your payment.

Last edited by sartresue on 13 Dec 2009, 3:19 pm, edited 1 time in total.

No, they didn't.

Bad recording topic

But the machine ate your card. The proof of your payment is in there. I would report these thieves to the cops. You should have gotten them to write you out a receipt. That is what I would do.

How would you have gotten them to write you a receipt?

Paid in full topic

Greentea, you paid for your parking. If the machine did not give you a receipt, these jokers have to write out one for you.

Yes, good point about the receipt. You could have pointed out that as the machine ate your card you would need some other proof of payment to get out the carpark and a hand written receipt would have achieved that. You could have asked the man who gave you the change to give you a receipt/note to the guy on the barrier.

I wouldn't have lied. I would just have explained what had happened and told him to phone the manager if he doubted it.

YIKES, I had this SAME sort of thing happen to me about 10 days ago, but my parking card just got lost! It was at the airport. My boss said to check with the state trooper. I spoke with the TSA agent, NOTHING! I spoke with the State Trooper, he said to talk with information. I spoke with THEM, and they said there was an attendant. I NEVER saw one at ANY of those places. There WAS this day. I ended up having to give my credit card, license, and car registration, and FINALLY got out. Of course, it VARIES!

If it eats your credit card, ****THEY**** are responsible! There is USUALLY a button on that machine to call for help. Push it, tell them what happened, and DEMAND that they retrieve your card. You are then in a SPECIAL position. There is NO reason to move you out of the way because the machine is out of order, and so they can't force you to move, but they lose a lane if you don't move. Their ONLY viable option is to HELP YOU! LET THEM KNOW! If there is a problem, call the police.

I wish you the best.

Of course, first thing I did was push the "help" button, for a long time, but no one answered. And as I said, there was no tel number on the machine.

Sue, I mean how would you have gotten them to give you a receipt?.

Had a similar situation in a parking garage once, except mine didn't involve people. Exit B said to pay the cashier at Exit A. Exit A said "No Cashier on Duty; pay at Exit B." As I was sitting in my car in front of Exit A mulling over what I should do, some other guy comes barreling up to a gate next to mine, gets out of his car, snaps off the breakaway wood of the gate, shouts, "This lane's open!" and drives through.

It was about the funniest thing I think I have ever seen in a parking garage.