£445 fine for parking for 35 minutes My car has been towed from private land by a licensed firm. I parked at 22.30, it was clamped at 22.39 and towed at 23.05. On its website the firm says vehicles will be towed if they have been "left unattended for a considerable length of time." I think we can argue that 35 minutes does not fulfil this criterion. Furthermore, I was in my friend's designated bay. They are charging an extortionate £445 for this "service." I am prepared to play a clamp fee, but cannot accept the towing without viewing it as an excuse to charge a further £185. Any advice? They were licensed to do this by the last Labour government. From October 2012, when clamping will be banned under the Protection of Freedoms Act, some of the same people will be licensed to extract much more money in smaller bites as Civil Parking Penalties from the registered keepers of cars parked on private land. There will be an appeals procedure set up by the British Parking Association, but that won't be in place until October. In the meantime, anyone aggrieved by the behaviour of a private parking enforcement company should use www.britishparking.co.uk/AOS-Enquiries.