A woman faces repeated fines due to cloned plates. She fears ongoing issues and feels let down by authorities.
Leanne Sheehy, 33, got a parking fine for £100 from Euro Car Parks. She is a fitness instructor from Swinton. Leanne thought she made a mistake at first, but she soon realized she never went there.
Leanne appealed the parking fine successfully and sent police correspondence to Euro Car Parks. However, another letter came a week later, as reported by the Manchester Evening News.
Shell said she left a garage without paying on Kingsway in south Manchester. They wanted £40 for fuel plus £30 for admin.
Leanne realized her car was cloned. Car cloning is vehicle identity theft where thieves copy plates from similar cars. Dishonest drivers get fines while the real owner pays.
Leanne thinks she knows the culprit’s identity and is struggling to get help right now.
Leanne got a parking fine in January for £100 at a Cheshire pub. She panicked, wondering where she parked. She thought she learned a lesson, but something seemed off, as Cheshire is far from where she drives.
She asked her partner if he used her car. They Googled the address and had never been there. Leanne explained this to the parking company and showed police confirmation, resulting in the fine being rescinded.
She thought the problem ended. Then, she got another letter a week later, saying she drove off from Shell without paying. It included £40 of petrol plus a £30 fee. Her initial reaction was disbelief at the £70 total.
This happened after the parking fine incident. Earlier that month, she started to panic, wondering if she drove off too quickly. She always pays at the pump normally, which made her wonder had she made a mistake accidentally?
She read the details and knew she wasn’t there. It became an ongoing issue for her, and it had to be the same person involved who hadn’t been caught yet.
Leanne contacted Shell and the police but has not found a solution yet. CCTV footage showed someone else using her plates, highlighting she was dealing with an ongoing problem.
Leanne saw a video clip of the person and saved the video as evidence. She felt targeted and wondered why her, as the thief is brazen and uses her plates often. He wants free petrol and parking everywhere.
He should keep a low profile, but he doesn’t. She hopes the letters will incriminate him, but he can get away with things now. She pays all taxes and insurance fees and feels let down by the police, wondering what she pays them for currently.
Her life is very boring usually, just drives to work and back. Her partner said thieves clone similar cars. The thief has no tax or insurance either, and she worries about hit and runs being blamed on her.
A Shell spokesperson said they will review her case. The Manchester Evening News contacted the police.