I used a 'meet and greet' service at Gatwick airport and was left lumbered with ... trends now
A woman was lumbered with a £600 bill after a 'meet and greet' parking company failed to collect her car from a short stay car park at Gatwick airport.
When Jo Timson jetted off to visit friends in Malaga on February 3, she was hoping for a relaxing getaway after the breakdown of her marriage.
But when she returned to the UK she was greeted by a nightmare, after firm Drive, Park and Fly failed to collect her car from the airport.
Furious at being duped out of the £78.99 fee, Jo then discovered she could be facing a £600 parking ticket - a bill over six times the amount she paid for her holiday.
Standing in the Gatwick Parking Office after the ordeal, Jo broke down explaining she felt humiliated, embarrassed and 'a complete fool'.
!['I just felt humiliated, and when I stood [in the Gatwick parking office] I became upset I just felt completely embarrassed. I felt a complete fool,'Jo said (pictured: Gatwick Airport car park)](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/05/02/09/84217895-13370263-An_urgent_warning_to_be_wary_of_meet_and_greet_car_parking_scams-a-34_1714639759325.jpg)
'I just felt humiliated, and when I stood [in the Gatwick parking office] I became upset I just felt completely embarrassed. I felt a complete fool,'Jo said (pictured: Gatwick Airport car park)
Jo had paid Drive Park and Fly £68.99 to valet her vehicle, whilst also paying £10 to cover the parking tickets so the company could collect the car (pictured: Short stay car park at Gatwick)
Explaining how she originally found the company, Jo revealed she was directed to them via a search engine after booking her flights to Malaga.
'When you look at their [Drive Park and Fly] wesbite, it looks like a legitimate bookings site, five star reviews - everything seemed fantastic,' she said.
After confirming her booking, Jo rang Drive Park and Fly half an hour before she arrived - just as she had been instructed.
Jo Timson (pictured), 58, was nearly left £600 bill after a meet and greet parking company failed to collect her car from a short stay car park at Gatwick
But when she reached the short stay car park located in the North terminal, no one was there to greet her or collect her car.
According to Jo, when she phoned the 'meet and greet' company they instructed her to leave her keys in a designated spot so she wouldn't run the risk missing her flight.
‘I should have thought something, perhaps was off. But I didn't have a clue. I'd never use this kind of thing before,' she said.
‘Other people parking were saying we have been told the same. There was nothing to suggest it was anything other than legit.’
However, shortly after landing it dawned on Jo that something was awry.
When she hit the tarmac at Gatwick airport at around 1.30am on February 9, she attempted to phone Drive Park and Fly to inform them she was at baggage claim.
But 12 phone calls later and the company did not answer, leaving her vulnerable and alone late at night.
'Again it was an unsociable time of day, so there was no public transport to get me home,' Jo said.
Eventually, she managed to get through to Drive Park and Fly, who
