A 54-year-old woman who was resuscitated after a cardiac arrest in a supermarket car park in Orewa, New Zealand, subsequently received a parking fine for exceeding the time limit.
Incident at New World Supermarket
The woman suffered a cardiac arrest outside a New World supermarket in Orewa on July 26. A passerby discovered her, realised she had no pulse, and performed chest compressions until an ambulance crew arrived. Staff at the scene set up screens for privacy. The stranger, whose identity is unknown, left before anyone could thank her, according to the woman's father, Keith Wilkinson.
Following resuscitation, the woman was taken to North Shore Hospital. Her car remained in the 90-minute limit car park for five-and-a-half hours.
Parking Fine and Appeal
Smart Compliance Management issued an $80 (£34.70) parking fine. The company stated in an email: "Smart Compliance Management has been contracted to provide fair and equal opportunity for parking at this car park. This is why a maximum stay time limit applies. Customers are entitled to 90 minutes of parking. Your vehicle was parked for 341 minutes."
After an appeal, the company upheld the breach notice, writing: "Having considered your appeal in detail we have decided to uphold the Breach Notice as we believe that it was correctly issued in accordance with the terms and conditions advertised within the area concerned. Due to the circumstances resulting in this Breach Notice, we are able to reduce this to a $30 (£13.02) administration fee." Keith confirmed his daughter agreed to pay the fee.
Apology and Aftermath
Steve McClean, owner of New World Orewa, contacted Smart Compliance Management and issued an apology. "This was a deeply distressing situation for the customer and their family, and I'm sorry this caused them additional stress and inconvenience," he said.
Smart Compliance Management also apologised for the "additional stress caused to this individual following their medical emergency" and admitted they did not "appropriately take into account the circumstances of the case." A spokesperson added: "We have since reinforced our processes and provided further guidance to our team to support consistent decision-making in exceptional circumstances."
McClean commented: "It's important that parking rules are applied fairly and with common sense. Given the circumstances, I completely understand why the customer and their family were upset, and I'm pleased the right thing has now happened."
