STANDARD REPLY Template or simply lazy?

After more than a month, I finally received a reply for my appeal against a park offence at the bottom of my block, i.e. the "Loading and Unloading Only" lots.


It was the night before the hubb's birthday chalet (on 19 July) and we had returned home to grab the BBQ stuff for the chalet. The whole trip took us about 5 minutes and we returned to the car to find

I send in an Appeal on Parking Offence Notice stating the following:

"I hope you'd consider wavier of the offence by vehicle number SKGXXXXB parking at NO WAITING signing. The vehicle was stopped at the Loading & Unloading Lot at the time of offence as I was loading items into my vehicle for a chalet that very day. I was up at my unit moving items down when I return to my car to find the parking ticket. The whole process took less than 10 minutes.

It was with no intention to be parking at the lot for long as I was loading items into my vehicle, just as the lot was designated to be used for. I have attached an invoice for the chalet booked under my husband's name for your reference.

Kindly assist to look into this and I hope to receive a favourable reply from you."


I only received a reply more than a month later. Best thing is, the reply was (in my opinion) rubbish.

With a standard reply template, the replying officer simply cut and paste a non-related reply to validate his reason for NOT waiving off the fine.


2 All Motorists, including season ticket holders, are required to observe the parking rules and regulations prior to parking their vehicles at the HDB car parks. We wish to inform you that HDB takes a serious view of motorists’ illegal / indiscriminate parking in HDB car parks, access roads to the car parks and along the service roads. If such parking behaviour is adopted by every motorist for whatever reason at the point of offence, it will lead to an undesirable parking situation in the housing estates. HDB has to take stringent enforcement action against the recalcitrant motorists who fail to obey the parking rules in HDB car parks.

3 We have considered your case carefully. However, we regret to inform you that we are unable to cancel the above Notice. Please settle the composition fine as stated in the Notice within 14 days from the date of this letter so as to prevent the escalation of the fine amount. For your convenience, you may settle the parking fine at any AXS Machine, HDB Branch Office, SingPost or online at http://www.hdb.gov.sg/parkingfine.


It's not about paying the fine here. I'd have paid off the fine if I was really violating the parking rules and regulations by illegal / indiscriminate parking in HDB car parks, access roads to the car parks and along the service roads. But now, my vehicle was stopped in a LOADING and UNLOADING ONLY Lot. Are you trying to tell me that only commercial vehicles such as Lorries and Vans are allowed to Load and Unload while private vehicles do not require the use of such lots? Then why have the lots there in the first place?


I'm utterly disgusted by the reply that did not take into consideration that residents are allowed to use the lots for its designated purpose. The worst thing is that the same day I got my reply, I got the RED slip of letter stating that I only have 14 days to pay up or risk being taken to court. Seriously? Why do I feel like I'm being victimised by the incompetence of the Town Council? Is it my fault that they took more than a month to reply my appeal?

I've had enough. This is my final email and I better get a reply fast.

With reference to my Appeal on Parking Offence Notice, dated 28 July 2013 15: 07PM, I have clearly indicated that "The vehicle was stopped at the Loading & Unloading Lot at the time of offence as I was loading items into my vehicle for a chalet that very day." I was using the lot designated for loading and was NOT "illegal / indiscriminate parking in HDB car parks, access roads to the car parks and along the service roads" as stated in your standard reply below. 

I had attached an invoice for the chalet to validate my purpose of loading, yet you had reject my reasonable appeal. If the vehicle lots at the bottom of my block was NOT to be used for Loading & Unloading purposes, why should HDB or Town Council even label it as one in the first place? Perhaps I should discuss this with my MP, Dr Amy Khoo and suggest that the lots are to be removed since it is not to be used for the purpose that it is labelled for. 

It is not to my intention to refuse to pay the composition fine, but isn't there is a flaw in the system that restricts residents from using a lot that is designated for a sole purpose? I look forward to a favourable reply, rather than a standard reply used for all appeals against park offence.


Someone with the brains better reply my email because I'm sick of getting standard reply by lazy officers who don't bother to read my appeal properly!