Two business professionals have been awaiting retrieval of their van for over two years since they parked it in an automated parking facility, following equipment failure.
Mark Lucas left his electric Vauxhall Vivaro van at Rathbone Square car park in downtown. London In December 2022, to deliver certain furniture items from his company, HCS Furniture based in Buckinghamshire.
However, several hours later, he returned to get it—but was informed that he wasn’t allowed to take it home due to an undisclosed mechanical issue with the parking system. The facility uses a mechanism that stores vehicles in large shelves via lifts for automated parking.
He has not laid eyes on it since then.
Over two years have passed since then, and the van remains parked there, officially decommissioned. Neither Mr. Lucas nor his business associate Steve Davies has any clue about what became of it.
In his conversation with MailOnline, Mr. Davies mentioned that the Vauxhall, barely six months old, had merely been parked at Rathbone Square, which is located in the heart of Facebook 's UK office location — for a brief period until the concierge mentioned that the van couldn’t be fetched.
He remembered them saying, "'The parking lot is busted—it doesn’t function anymore,'" he recounted.
We had to return home using public transportation. I believed it would only take a few days for them to resolve the issue.
'Soon, days became weeks, and we continued receiving calls stating, "it will be the following week." Can you believe it?'
Mr. Davies calculates that he and his business associate have invested approximately £40,000 in total. This includes leasing a van at £800 per month as well as securing a loan to purchase an additional vehicle, all while continuing to pay off the outstanding amount for their stuck Vivaro.
Worse still, Rathbone Square hasn’t informed them about precisely what issues have occurred in the parking lot that render their van un retrievable.
The system is manufactured by Klaus Multiparking, a German company, and introduced into the UK market through DoubleParking Ltd.
The statement indicates that the system is "adequate to accommodate vehicles like the small transport Sprinter class" — often used synonymously with vans similar to the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter—implying it ought to manage these vans effortlessly.
A promotional image on the Double Parking website showcasing their facility depicts a van parked in one of the higher spots, seemingly to make the case.
Double Parking has set up several comparable automated parking installations in some of London's most upscale neighborhoods: Canary Wharf, Westminster, Mayfair, and Fitzrovia.
Mr. Davies also stated that he thinks the system could be easier to resolve compared to what parking management officials are suggesting.
It was over a year ago when he anticipated that the repairs would occur in May 2024, however, the blame for the failure had not been assigned yet.
I'd assume these stacking systems are designed with modules and made in large quantities; it’s unlikely that finding replacement parts would be difficult.
I believe this situation revolves around the insurance companies. These issues shouldn’t require two and a half years to resolve, and my suspicion is that they're struggling to determine who should bear the cost.
'Till they make up their minds, we’re being extorted.'
Rathbone Square is owned by Rathbone Place Jersey Ltd., a company incorporated in the Channel Islands and ultimately controlled by WestInvest Gessellschaft Für Investmentfonds (WestInvest Investment Fund Company).
In 2017, it acquired the freehold of the complex — which was appraised at £100,000 — from developers GPE for £435 million.
Double Parking Systems told BBC News It was unable to comment because it had signed a non-disclosure agreement.
The company told the Daily Express The system is now completely functional after being fixed. MailOnline has reached out to the company for additional remarks.
A MailOnline correspondent attempting to contact Rathbone Square spoke with a security team member who stated that the management was unavailable for comments.
Automated parking systems, utilizing platforms and rotating discs to store vehicles in stacked warehouse-like racks, are gaining traction in densely populated urban areas with significant automobile usage.
They are selected as substitutes for multi-story car parks due to their compact dimensions - as they require no walkways, inclines, or spaces intended for pedestrian use.
Nevertheless, they have faced numerous issues — such as the well-known Woolwich Auto Stacker, which was inaugurated in 1961 by Princess Margaret and shut down shortly after.
In 2019, according to SVT reports, an automated parking facility in Stockholm, Sweden experienced a power outage that resulted in 18 vehicles being stranded there for several months.
Once Italian engineers arrived in Sweden to address the issue, the vehicles were released and the parking area was closed down.
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