Southeastern Parking

Frequently Asked Questions

Permits FAQ

How do I renew my permit when it is due for renewal?	back to top
Simply go to the Southeastern parking website and follow the step-by-step instructions. If you have given your email address or registered your details online with Meteor, we will send you a reminder to renew your permit 14 days prior to the date of expiry.

I have changed my car/address. How do I amend my personal details?	back to top
Simply log in to www.southeasternparking.co.uk or call our call centre on 0845 603 6197 to amend any details. If you are changing your vehicle details whilst your permit is still valid, you will have to contact Meteor so that a replacement can be re-issued. Please contact us via email here (queries@southeasternparking.co.uk), or call 0845 603 6197.

I need a VAT receipt for my purchase, how do I obtain one?	back to top
If we have an email address for you, a receipt is emailed automatically to you. If you are making your purchase via our call centre, please request a receipt at the time of purchase. Alternatively, you can log into your account online and select “View Receipt”.

I wish to cancel my season parking permit, how do I go about this?

Please log in to your account on the Meteor Permits web site. Under the 'Registration Details' menu, you will see a list of all of your purchases. Any current permits will have a 'cancel' link next to them, please click this. An estimate of the refundable amount will be displayed, and a link to a cancellation letter is provided. Please return your permit by post after completing the form. Your permit will be cancelled on the date that it is received by Meteor, and any refundable amount returned to you. Please note that if you made your purchase by credit / debit card, the refundable amount will be returned directly to that account.

How many cars can I have on my permit?

The maximum number of vehicle registration numbers you may display on your permit is two. You will require a permit holder for both cars - these are available by request. You will be required to place your season permit into the permit holder of whichever car is being parked at the station. Failure to display your current permit in the windscreen of your vehicle may lead to a Parking Charge Notice being issued.

I’ve bought a weekly ticket from the Pay and Display machine in error, how do I obtain a refund?	back to top
Please contact Meteor Customer Services by email or phone 0845 603 6197 for further information on submitting a refund request.

I purchased a ticket for today and due to serious disruption to my train service was unable to travel, how do I obtain a refund?	back to top
Please contact Meteor Customer Services by email or phone 0845 603 6197 for further information on submitting a refund request.

What are the call centre opening hours?	back to top
Meteor’s Customer Services are open Monday to Friday from 0630hrs to 2030hrs by calling 0845 603 6197. Outside of these hours, a full range of parking tickets and permits is available to purchase from this site.

What is a season permit?	back to top
A season permit for parking allows its holder to park for between 1 and twelve months subject to its validity at the car park specified on the permit. The permit can display up to two vehicle registrations but must be displayed in the windscreen of the parked vehicle at all times. Season permits offer better value versus paying for your parking daily or weekly.

What is an E-ticket?

E-tickets are a new easy way to paying for parking. The tickets can be purchased online in advance or on the day you park. E-tickets can be purchased from the comfort of your home or via a smart phone*. Simply select your station from the dropdown on the Purchase Page and follow the instructions to purchase a Day or Week E-ticket.

E-tickets have the same validity as those purchased from the station ticket office or vending machines. A Day E-ticket is valid until 0400hrs on the day after purchase; a weekly ticket is valid for seven days from the date of purchase. Further details on E-tickets are available on the Product Types page

*functionality may differ by phone model

What type of tickets are available as E-tickets?	back to top
E-tickets are available for daily or weekly tickets. If you wish to park for two or more consecutive days, please purchase two or more separate E-tickets to cover the duration of your stay.

When can an E-Ticket be purchased?	back to top
Tickets can be purchased on the day, or up to 30 days prior to the required date. Purchases made on the day must be within 30 minutes of parking to avoid receiving a Parking Charge Notice.

Where can E-tickets be purchased from?

E-tickets for can be purchased via the Purchase Page up to and including the date that you park. Simply select the car park at which you wish to park from the drop-down menu and the E-ticket prices will be clearly displayed. Click the ‘Purchase’ button against your chosen product to proceed with the purchase.

In the event of any issues, tickets can also be purchased via our call centre on 0845 603 6197, available Monday to Friday 0630-2030hrs.

Does an E-Ticket have to be displayed in a car?	back to top
An E-ticket is a ‘virtual’ ticket and does not have to be displayed within the vehicle. Your vehicle registration number will be automatically recognised after entry to the car park.

How much does an E-Ticket cost?	back to top
E-tickets are priced exactly the same as standard pay and display tickets, be it a daily or weekly ticket. The full daily rate is applicable to all E-tickets, for example the daily Saturday E-ticket rate will match the daily cash rate. No-off peak tickets will be available as E-tickets for parking.

If I purchase or pre-book an e-ticket, will this guarantee me a space within the car park?	back to top
No, we do advise that you secure a bay prior to purchase as the car park operates on a first come first served basis.

Why is there a waiting list in operation at my station?

We have to balance the needs of all car park users when deciding how many season permits to release at each location. It is our policy to do our utmost to ensure that all season permit holders can always find a parking space up until 0930hrs Monday to Friday. In order to assist us to achieve this, the number of season permits in circulation has to be limited to a set number. This means that if all season permits within this quota have already been purchased, a waiting list will be created. Customers on the waiting list will be contacted automatically upon a season permit being surrendered by another customer. The person at the top of the waiting list will be the person who has been waiting the longest and the next to be contacted when a season permit becomes available. Meteor constantly reviews the number of season permits available for purchase and more are made available where we feel capacity will allow this.

How do I park for more than one day

If you wish to park for up to four days, you should purchase the relevant number of daily tickets to cover the number of days you will be parked. Place all the tickets in sequential order in your windscreen to park for more than one day. If you plan to park for more than four days, you are advised to purchase a weekly ticket as this will be the cheapest option. Alternatively, daily e-tickets for the duration you wish to park can be purchased from this site.

Why does a parking ticket expire at 0400 hours regardless of when I purchase it?

Similar to day train tickets which expire at close of service on the date purchased, a parking ticket expires at the end of the parking day. The parking day closes at 0400hrs hence all tickets will expire at 0400hrs on the day following purchase regardless of the time it was purchased. In recognition that customers purchasing a ticket later in the day do not receive the same duration of parking, we have introduced a part-day ticket from 1400hrs which offers a discount on the full daily rate.

Why can’t I purchase daily and weekly tickets by mobile phone?	back to top
Meteor and Southeastern are currently evaluating a number of options to make paying for your parking easier and we have recently started selling Day and Week E-tickets online. Please visit this site or the Southeastern website on a regular basis for any updates in respect of this.

What are the benefits of a season permit?

Our valued season permit holders benefit from:

• A reduction in the cost of parking versus paying daily or weekly
• Exclusive access to dedicated season permit holder areas at some car parks
• Reduction in the time taken to park each day
• No need to find change for the pay and display machines everyday
• An automatic reminder for permit holders 14 days before the expiry of their permit (where the holder has supplied a valid e-mail address)

Furthermore, Meteor may, from time to time, offer exclusive deals for season permit holders at other Meteor operated car parks e.g. airport parking.

Parking Charge Notices FAQ

How do I pay my Parking Charge Notice?	back to top
Simply click 'here' and you will be redirected to Meteor's Parking Charge Notice payment site. Please make sure that you have your Parking Charge Notice serial number and registration number details to hand.

Do I get a confirmation that my Parking Charge Notice has been paid?	back to top
Yes, as long as an email address has been supplied, a receipt is emailed to you automatically.

How do I challenge a Parking Charge Notice that has been issued to my vehicle?

If you believe that a Parking Charge Notice should not have been issued to your vehicle, you can appeal to Meteor. The appeal must be received by Meteor in writing within 14 days of the Parking Charge Notice being issued.

Appeals should be sent to our appeals team. Alternatively, your appeal can be sent to: Southeastern Parking, Meteor Parking Ltd, PO Box 475, Sevenoaks, TN13 9JS.

Please do not telephone, as we are unable to process Parking Charge Notice appeals over the phone.

I have appealed a Parking Charge Notice, what if I disagree with the decision?

In the first instance, all appeals against Parking Charge Notices must be made in writing following the instructions shown on the Parking Charge Notice.

If you have received the decision regarding your appeal and are still not happy, this can be appealed once more to Meteor for review by a manager.

If after both these steps you are still unhappy with the handling of the complaint, you can contact the independent rail passenger watchdogs: Passenger Focus or London TravelWatch. Full details concerning these independent bodies can be found at:

www.railpassengers.org.uk
www.londontravelwatch.org.uk

What is the charge for a Parking Charge Notice?	back to top
The cost of a Parking Charge Notice is £90 but this is reduced to £45 where prompt payment is received within fifteen days of the Parking Charge Notice being issued. Failure to pay a Parking Charge Notice within 30 days will result in further action being taken which may add further administration costs to the Parking Charge Notice value.

Car Parks FAQ

Are there any other ways I can pay for my parking?

Parking tickets can be purchased from the pay and display machines within the car parks, station ticket vending machines or station ticket office. Alternatively you can purchase a pack of scratch cards in batches of 10, 20 or 30 days worth of parking. These are simple to use, just scratch off the day, date and month you intend to park and display in your windscreen. These can be purchased online here. Parking can now also be booked in advance with an e-ticket for parking which are available on this site.

How can I find out useful information about parking facilities at my local station?	back to top
Simply log on to www.southeasternparking.co.uk and click on the selected station car park to obtain general information of parking facilities available at that particular station. Alternatively please call 0845 603 6197. Further information on stations and other Southeastern services are available at www.southeasternrailway.co.uk. Useful links are also available at www.southeasternrailway.co.uk.

I hold a Blue Badge; where do I park?

Dedicated spaces for blue badge holders are provided at all Southeastern’s car parks operated by Meteor. The spaces are designed to be in the most accessible parts of the car park and are generously sized to make life easier.

In the event of all the blue badge holder spaces being occupied, a valid blue badge holder may park in any other space by displaying their blue badge (excluding Premier Parking at Tunbridge Wells)

I hold a Blue Badge; do I have to pay to park?	back to top
There is no charge for blue badge holders to park at Southeastern stations subject to the blue badge holder using the railway.

Who can use the season permit holder bays?

A number of car parks carry dedicated parking spaces for season permit holders only before 0930hrs Monday to Friday. These bays are indicated by surface markings and/or signage displaying the restriction.

Within the restricted time period, these dedicated parking spaces can only be used by Meteor parking permit holders displaying a valid permit for the station at which they are parked. For clarification, holders of: daily & weekly tickets, scratchcards, e-tickets or tickets purchased from the station itself are not permitted in these designated parking bays until after 0930hrs Monday to Friday. Outside of this time restriction, anyone displaying a valid ticket, scratchcard or permit may use the bays.

What do I do if a car park Pay and Display machine is not working?

We do our utmost to ensure that the car park pay and display machines are operational at all times. However, if a fault is present on the machine you are using, please use an alternative pay & display machine (where present), the station ticket vending machine or the station ticket office. Alternatively, if you have a smart phone, you can purchase an e-ticket for parking from this site so long as the purchase is made within thirty minutes of parking at the station.

If you do encounter a problem with one of our payment machines then please let us know on 0845 603 6197 or queries@southeasternparking.co.uk and we will arrange an engineer to attend to the problem.

What is the Park Mark scheme?

The Safer Parking Scheme is an initiative of the Associations of Chief Police Officers aimed at reducing crime and the fear of crime in parking facilities.

Safer parking status, Park Mark®, is awarded to parking facilities that have met the requirements of a risk assessment conducted by the Police.

These requirements mean the parking operator has put in place measures that help to deter criminal activity and anti-social behaviour, thereby doing everything they can to prevent crime and reduce the fear of crime in their parking facility.

For customers, using a Park Mark® Safer Parking facility means that the area has been vetted by the Police and has measures in place to create a safe environment.

Southeastern currently has more than half of its car parks formally accredited to the Park Mark standard and are actively working to increase this number.

What are Meteor’s responsibilities?

Meteor Parking Limited are the appointed car park management company for Southeastern. Meteor is responsible for the day-to-day operation of more than ninety station car parks across Southeastern.

Meteor’s core responsibilities are as follows:

• Processing payment for parking
• Keeping the car parks clean
• Patrolling the car parks
• Provision of information in the car parks

Southeastern as the leaseholder and Network Rail as the landlord, also carry various other responsibilities. However, Meteor are always interested in hearing any feedback in relation to the car parks and will pass on issues outside of their control to the relevant parties

Do the car park pay and display machines take debit and credit cards?	back to top
The car park pay and display machines accept Visa, Visa Debit and MasterCard cards for the purchase of weekly tickets. Unfortunately, the car park pay and display machines will not accept any form of card payment for a daily parking ticket. From Autumn 2010, this is being phased out but you can now purchase an e-ticket for parking instead from this site or via your smart phone.

Is the Road Traffic Act 1988 applicable within Southeastern car parks?	back to top
No, the Road Traffic Act 1988 is not applicable in Southeastern car parks. All enforcement activity is carried out under the private conditions of parking as displayed and the Railway Byelaws under Section 219 of the Transport Act 2000.

Why is the Road Traffic Act 1988 not applicable to Southeastern car parks?	back to top
Southeastern car parks are deemed as ‘private’ land but are also railway property so the Railway Byelaws under Section 219 of the Transport Act 2000 also apply.

Where would I find a copy of the Railway Byelaws?	back to top
The Railway Byelaws under Section 219 of the Transport Act 2000 are a piece of legislation available via all the regular channels for legislative documentation.

How do I pay to park in the Torrington Road Multi-Storey at Tunbridge Wells?

Torrington Road Multi-Storey is managed by Tunbridge Wells Borough Council. Purchases made online entitle you to park in the Torrington Road Multi-Storey car park up unti 10:30am.

Please use the Council Pay and Display Machines after 10:30am at this car park.

A limited amount of parking for rail users is available in the multi-storey car park, please ask at station for further details