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Best airport parking at Gatwick?

 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
I'm looking to book a week before Christmas, and my main concern is that should my car get damaged, whoever I use will pay for damaging it!

After using APH at Copthorne for years, I will never use them again after they badly damaged one of my alloys then denied all responsibility. That decision has cost them many hundreds of pounds as I will never use them again and warn everyone I know (who values their car) not to use them either.

I don't want to use the normal on-airport carparks, I want a firm who will look after my car, and pay up if it's damaged.

Who should I use?

Train/taxi are not viable options.

I do realise this has been asked before but companies come and go, and customer service levels change.
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
At the normal Long stay car park you park it yourself and keep the key, so no one is going to damage it, except someone running in to it - but you take that risk all the time anyway.
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 Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
But if your car is in the care of a parking company, it's their responsibility to look after it.

I'm sure I've heard of one parking firm who check your car when you arrive and when you get back you sign a form if you agree it's undamaged. I just don't know who they are!

After a bad experience I just want someone reputable.
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@HoneyBunny, I've used this lot at Heathrow for several years, about 30 times a year and never had a problem. http://www.starparking.co.uk/ Always polite and efficient. Some of the drivers check the car more carefully than others but you can always insist they do it properly. They also operate from LGW. Ring and speak to Simone on 0208 897 4075. They are a meet and greet service and usually cheaper than Long term parking. Never know why anyone uses long-term parking.
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 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
@HoneyBunny, sorry to come over all cynical but it seems to me that what you want is to pay a proper fee for a proper service from someone who accepts liability for their actions and omissions.

I am very much with you on that, but IME sadly business in the UK doesn't work like that any more, everything is done down to the lowest possible price and whoever you use, you are likely to find small print exclusions and a "so sue me" mentality if the worst happens.

My own recommendation is BCP, used them at various airports (although not Gatwick) and never had a problem. Never tried (or needed) to make a claim, though, either.
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@foxtrotzulu, many thanks, will look into them.

@sanman, yes, I want to pay for my car to be looked after. There must be at least one firm where you can sign some sort of agreement? FWIW I used APH for many years, but now they've destroyed my trust (and cost me a lot of money) and I've since read about many other bad experiences with them.

If not, I will just have to pick someone who is well-recommended on here and hope for the best.
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 Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
We always use Maple Manor meet and greet. Usually a good price and great service. They look over the car and take photos when you hand it over, especially looking for any pre-existing damage so that you cannot blame them.
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 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
@HoneyBunny, could you not take photos at the point you hand it over? I also had a bad experience with a meet and greet company - they had clearly driven my car into something as there was significant cosmetic damage to the front of it - but just denied it and said I had to 'prove' the damage wasn't there when I handed it over, which I couldn't do. Since then, I avoid driving to airports or use long stay and try to park out of the way. However, if you took photos all around the car on your phone as you were handing it over, and emailed them straight over, wouldn't that prove the condition they accepted it in and leave them liable for any subsequent damages? Or am I being naive?!
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 You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
@Big Dave, that's what I'm after! Thank you

@Gämsbock, possibly - however how many people who leave their cars do that? I naively assumed they'd take responsibility for damage while it was in their care, but no. Not even when pointed out before you leave.

I now take taxis unless I'm travelling alone, which this time I am.
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 Ski the Net with snowHeads
Ski the Net with snowHeads
@HoneyBunny, probably just people who've had a previous bad experience, meaning they don't pay for most damages. I had also assumed they would accept responsibility :S. It's definitely what I would do if I had to use a M&G in the future, and also what I now do with all hire cars (though I don't email, just extensively photograph).
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 snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
They aren't all shysters by a very long way. A previous company I used managed to scuff the front spoiler. Well, one of their drivers did. I noticed it about a week later and sent them some photos. The boss rang me back, apologised and had the car completely fixed the next time I dropped it off with them. I'm 99% sure the driver wouldn't have reported the tiny crunch that caused the accident so I doubt the boss knew about it. Just good customer service.
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 And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
@foxtrotzulu, well that's good to know. I'd kind of hoped that APH might have been the same as I'd used them for many years.
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 So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
Has anyone used Tudor Rose? They take photos of your car, or you can pay an extra tenner for a full inspection (might do that)..

http://www.tudorrose.co.uk/passingover.aspx

http://www.tudorrose.co.uk/FullInspection.aspx

Think I might give them a try, but if anyone has any better ideas (or bad experiences!), let me know.

Thanks all for help thus far.
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
We've used Tudor Rose the last 5 years .We've never had a problem ,so dont know how they are if there was one ???
You give them a quick call just before you drop the car off and another when you are in immigration to collect again. They are always there when drop off/pick up
My friend always take a photo of the mileage and theres never been a problem.
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 Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
@HoneyBunny, Try not to get too neurotic over it. All these M&G companies handle hundreds of cars a week and the number of problems is extremely small. Don't forget that you are probably even more likely to get your car damaged during the 20 minutes you leave it parked outside a supermarket. Have faith and chillax Cool
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 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
We have used ABC Gatwick M&G several times now, and never had any problem. Always very prompt and polite. Normally you get a very good rate when booked through Stress Free Parking.
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
HoneyBunny wrote:

I'm sure I've heard of one parking firm who check your car when you arrive and when you get back you sign a form if you agree it's undamaged. I just don't know who they are!


I have used Meteor quite a lot and I'm pretty sure they do this.
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 Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
DCG wrote:
HoneyBunny wrote:

I'm sure I've heard of one parking firm who check your car when you arrive and when you get back you sign a form if you agree it's undamaged. I just don't know who they are!


I have used Meteor quite a lot and I'm pretty sure they do this.


Meteor certainly do it, but they are expensive. Very expensive IME.
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 You need to Login to know who's really who.
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Generally these companies are quite good, since prices are pretty low and there's a lot of competition they make a living based on reputation. That said, things do sometimes go wrong. A colleague parked his company car, a very plush AMG SL, with an "off-site" parking company when going on a month long business trip (I don't recall the name of the company). When he picked it up, he noticed that the petrol tank was full even though he had left it with under half a tank -- a good thing, you'd think, but somewhat suspicious, so he checked the mileage and it had 1400 miles more on the dial than when he left it! He had had the MOT done two days before leaving (since it was due to expire while he was away), so he had a record of the mileage. The company dealt with it very well -- launched an internal investigation and it turned out that one of their employees had 'borrowed' the car for a trip to France with his girlfriend! At the end of the joyride, the guy didn't remember how much fuel there was when he took it, so he just filled it up assuming that the owner would be happy, but it proved to be his undoing. The employee was fired (and I think reported to the Police) and my colleague received a substantial settlement by way of apology, luckily there was no damage to the car itself.

That said, we recently used Purple Parking at Gatwick and I have to say they were very good -- efficient, quick processing (two minutes waiting time both at drop off and pick up despite big queues at peak times), and less than half the price of taking a cab to the airport.
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 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
@foxtrotzulu, normally I'd agree, but having had a bad experience with a supposedly good company, I want to avoid another £100 repair bill.

Also, I park MILES from the door at supermarkets to avoid my car getting damaged by people throwing open their doors.

I'd rather pay an extra £20 to have peace of mind, so recommendations do help Smile
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 You'll need to Register first of course.
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Agree with @FionaG, Always use ABC Gatwick (and discount code through Stress Free Parking) and they check car on arrival with them. They have been consistently good over a number of years now. They are also one of the few companies which can still operate from in front of the Sofitel (north terminal) rather than having to use the terminal car parks.
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 Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
@HoneyBunny, The other one to consider is Gatwick's own valet parking. It can be reasonably competitive and I presume that they would deal with problems appropriately as they are the "official" supplier.
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