MOTORISTS are being advised to avoid using a Barrow retail park as a ‘thoroughfare’ after a driver was given a penalty charge notice.

A Barrow motorist told Tesco on Twitter he had driven past the Tesco Extra store twice, eight hours apart, and received a penalty from Horizon.

He said: “Received a parking fine at Barrow Tesco for simply driving past your store eight hours apart.

“Can’t be right, get it sorted.

“Two pics of my car driving through, not parked.”

One motorist responded: “Cornerhouse Retail Park is not a thoroughfare. It’s private land.

“People use it as a shortcut from the Abbey Road roundabout to the one near the Dock Museum which is a pain for Tesco customers backing out into the ‘road’ people have created alongside Iceland.

“Sounds like they’re now facing consequences.”

Tesco replied to the motorist: “As the fine has been issued by Horizon you’d need to query with this directly with them in order to appeal.”

Cameras were put up throughout Cornerhouse Retail Park in Barrow in July 2018 to automatically capture the registration of all vehicles entering the site.

Cameras are positioned at the entrances and exits to the car parks within the retail park which includes Tesco, B&M Bargains, Pets At Home and Halfords.

Any vehicle which does not leave the site within the three-hour parking limit will automatically be sent an invoice for £80.

As with most parking management companies operating in the UK if the invoice is not paid within a set time it is usually then sold onto a debt recovery firm.

If a parking management company is a member of a trade body they can access a vehicle’s owner’s details via the DVLA.

The request for payment, which is an invoice and not a fine, is deemed to be a reasonable charge for breaching a contract and using the car park for longer than the maximum length of time.

Motorists can appeal directly to the parking management company or via the independent Parking On Private Land Appeals organisation.