Too close to the corner
Dear Claudienne
I parked my car downtown Kingston on February 10, 2011 and returned to see it being pulled into the road by a wrecker. I intervened but I was told by a KSAC officer that my car was parked about four feet from the corner and the minimum allowed was 12 feet.
I asked for the violation ticket and was told that the car had to be towed to the KSAC pound. I objected to the latter and went to sit in the car. The wrecker lifted the car (with me sitting in it) and deposited ‘us’ at the KSAC pound. I was charged both the pound fee of $1,900 and the wrecker fee of $2,100 .
I wrote to the Town Clerk on March 4, 2011; indicating my willingness to pay the violation fee but not the wrecking fee. The original letter was mailed and a copy was signed for at the KSAC office on April 5, 2011. To date there has been no response. My telephone enquiries in late 2011 and early 2012 did not help.
I am therefore seeking your kind assistance to resolve this matter.
GM
Dear GM
The Town Clerk said that he could not recall having seen your letter written on March 4, 2011. The town clerk replied to Tell Claudienne as follows :
“It is rather unfortunate that the complainant has waited for over a year to follow up. Notwithstanding, I have checked the records, and the fact is that a breach was committed. The vehicle was towed becuse it was parked too close to the corner thereby causing an obstruction which is an offence under the Road Traffic Act. Motorists can be prosecuted and vehicles towed for this offence. The policy is that whenever a motorist arrives on the scene before the vehicle is hooked up, the motorist should be warned and a traffic ticket issued.
“In this case, I am advised that the motorist arrived on the scene after the vehicle was hooked up. Again, if the complaint was lodged on the very day that the offence took place, we would have been in a better position to assess the situation.”
In the future, before you park please ensure that you are not in breach of the Road Traffic Act.
Good luck.
Dear Claudienne
On Saturday July 21, 2012, at approximately 2:00 pm a wire from the JPS line broke, causing a power outage in my district in Hanover. The JPS crew visited but did not do repairs. They returned on the Monday and light was restored late that night. However, during their work a leg from my line was broken and I had low voltage which was not rectified until the Tuesday morning. During this time items in my refrigerator had gone bad. The items included six pounds of fish, five pounds of cow cod and three pounds of tomato.
After the restoration I realised that my refrigerator and tape system no longer worked.
I made a report to the JPS office in Lucea and was told to put it in writing. I wrote to them from July 7 but they have not replied.
Please see what you can find out for me.
DB
Dear DB
The JPS advised Tell Claudienne in October that an investigation was done and a report sent to the Legal Department for them to make a decision. On December 5, we again called the JPS and they said that a letter was sent to you on November 29 requesting you to submit the repair bills for the appliances, as well as the cost of the food items that were spoilt.
Good luck.
Have a problem with a store, utility, a company? Telephone 936-9436 or write to: Tell Claudienne c/o Sunday Finance, Jamaica Observer, 40-42 1/2 Beechwood Avenue, Kingston 5; or e-mail: edwardsc@jamaicaobserver.com. Please include a contact phone number.
