New online parking permit: IT shambles

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SouthLondonDaddy
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New online parking permit: IT shambles

Postby SouthLondonDaddy » Mon Jul 30, 2018 10:21 am

I don't know how new it is , but Wandsworth has a new IT system to manage online parking permits. It must have been put together by the same team that worked on the IT transition at the TSB bank, because it's an absolute mess! It took us 8 attempts with 4 different email addresses before we managed to register an account (yes, we checked the spam folders).

A temporary permit application sent 10 days has still not been processed, even though the council says on its site it should take 2 working days.

The new online system no longer lets us access it, and the 'reset password' doesn't work, either.

Tried ringing the council, but "there is no one available to take your call, goodbye". The recorded message did however inform me that they're aware "a number of users have been experiencing issues due to the high number etc etc" (and not to the ineptitude of those who designed the IT system - surely the council knew how many users to expect, Wandsworth's population hasn't doubled overnight).

Maybe this is why Wandsworth has one of the cheapest council tax? :)
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vlm79
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Re: New online parking permit: IT shambles

Postby vlm79 » Mon Jul 30, 2018 11:06 am

I agree - similar experience still not resolved. Absolutely shocking!
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SouthLondonDaddy
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Re: New online parking permit: IT shambles

Postby SouthLondonDaddy » Mon Jul 30, 2018 12:02 pm

I retried and had to wait 70 minutes to speak to someone. I had a headset on while I was doing something else! It turns out the temporary permit has been approved, however their new shiny IT system has not sent me any notification!

The call centre person has also supposedly reset my password, however, again, I have not received any email, so the account is still inaccessible and we cannot apply for the full permit unless we spend another 2 hours on the phone or take a morning off work to apply in person, where the sensible folks behind this excellent IT migration would even have the courage to charge £20 more (which by the way would make sense, IF the online thingy worked, which it doesn't).

The new IT system went live on May 16th ( http://www.putneysw15.com/shared/conpar ... ine001.htm ) but, after 2 months and a half, they have still not managed to get it to work properly.
 
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sloaney donkey
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Re: New online parking permit: IT shambles

Postby sloaney donkey » Mon Jul 30, 2018 10:21 pm

Right royal bungle

I applied for a pass and it took 6 weeks

Kept getting rejected for nit-picking reasons

I think they transferred the contract somehow and applications got on top of them

People on the end of the phone were most helpful and right in the ball:-

“wait a minute ... just wait ... oh, my computer has frozen ... oh, let me use my colleagues ... what was your number again ... can’t find it ... oh, yes I can ... you’re application is in progress ... can’t tell you how long it will take ... not as long as one year ... should be less ... you are covered... no, those parking wardens won’t ticket you ... well, I don’t think they will ... have a nice day”

:D
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SouthLondonDaddy
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Re: New online parking permit: IT shambles

Postby SouthLondonDaddy » Tue Jul 31, 2018 9:54 am

Sloaney Pony wrote: Mon Jul 30, 2018 10:21 pmRight royal bungle

I applied for a pass and it took 6 weeks

Kept getting rejected for nit-picking reasons

 

Such as?
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movingsouth
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Re: New online parking permit: IT shambles

Postby movingsouth » Tue Jul 31, 2018 10:57 am

Took me over a month to get a new 1 year resident permit, most of which was spent waiting for them to review documentation that complied with what was requested but they found reasons to reject. Each time the review of re-submitted docs took a week. My favourite one as a new resident to the area was : "your utility bill can't be your first/opening bill"

In the end someone on the phone agreed it was getting ridiculous and gave me a free paperless pass that ran until the permit application team agreed that I actually do live here.
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SouthLondonDaddy
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Re: New online parking permit: IT shambles

Postby SouthLondonDaddy » Tue Jul 31, 2018 11:11 am

Now you're scaring me!

We sent the V5 log to the DVLA to have the address updated and have kept a PDF scan of the V5 with the old address. I just hope that the DVLA will send the updated V5 before the one-month temporary permit expires, or that the council will accept the scan of the V5 with the old address.

Right now we still cannot access the account, nor can we reset the password. We'll try the call centre from hell again...
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SouthLondonDaddy
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Re: New online parking permit: IT shambles

Postby SouthLondonDaddy » Tue Jul 31, 2018 11:17 am

[rant mode on]
By the way, the whole concept of "proofs of address" is unheard of in most of continental European countries because they tend to have a population register. Europeans are rightly puzzled at the whole concept of having a "proof of address" or "registering to vote". This is also why something like the Windrush scandal would have been impossible in continental Europe. 
The problem is that every institution seems to have different criteria on what constitutes a valid proof of address, and these criteria are often subject to the capricious interpretation of the minion who happens to process your file!
[/rant mode off]
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ElleBelle
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Re: New online parking permit: IT shambles

Postby ElleBelle » Tue Jul 31, 2018 11:21 am

I am currently on hold to them - 43 minutes now. I’ve been waiting 7 weeks to get a permit renewed. I’ve sent 14 emails and received 0 replies. I can’t log into the website (apparently anyone with a gmail address is locked out). All documents have been sent back but they lost the permit. When you do get through there is always a new reason for rejection as the previous poster says. It’s the worst IT upgrade I have ever had to experience. Terrible experience.
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SouthLondonDaddy
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Re: New online parking permit: IT shambles

Postby SouthLondonDaddy » Tue Jul 31, 2018 11:53 am

Can this be sorted by showing up at the council in person? It would be annoying, but maybe less so than wasting hours on the phone. 

Also, capriciously rejecting applications is, I guess, down to the humans processing them, not to the IT system (however shambolic the upgrade). I wonder if workers have received directions from the top to reject most applications; this is usually how these things go (think of Windrush).

Who can we complain to? Local councillors?
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SWC123
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Re: New online parking permit: IT shambles

Postby SWC123 » Tue Jul 31, 2018 4:58 pm

It is a TOTAL disaster.  No emails answered, and like other posters it is impossible to get through.  I have finally managed to get into my account- by going through different menus in the phone directory (they all go to the same people!)
If you have a gmail account you cannot reset your password- apparently the system has blocked gmail (!?!?!).
It didn't work for me but you can try to use your username and reset password option with another email address if you have one.
In any event, not being able to get in to the system caused a guest to be ticketed so I have contested the ticket... no doubt they will never respond to that either!!!  
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SouthLondonDaddy
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Re: New online parking permit: IT shambles

Postby SouthLondonDaddy » Tue Jul 31, 2018 6:46 pm

I didn't register with a gmail account. I can't reset my password because the system does not recognise username and email. I spoke on the phone with someone who said they had reset the account on their end, but nothing has changed.

What do you mean that you managed to get into your account via different menus in the phone directory? That you spoke to someone who reset your account?

Wandsworth councillors can be found here: http://www.wandsworth.gov.uk/info/20043 ... councillor

We should contact them to complain. 
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SouthLondonDaddy
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Re: New online parking permit: IT shambles

Postby SouthLondonDaddy » Tue Jul 31, 2018 7:18 pm

SWC123 wrote: Tue Jul 31, 2018 4:58 pm In any event, not being able to get in to the system caused a guest to be ticketed so I have contested the ticket... no doubt they will never respond to that either!!!  

You may already know it, but this forum is an excellent source of information for how to challenge unfair tickets: http://forums.pepipoo.com/

 
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SouthLondonDaddy
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Re: New online parking permit: IT shambles

Postby SouthLondonDaddy » Wed Aug 01, 2018 12:58 pm

Quick update: I haven't been able to speak to a human being today, either.
So I registered another account, with a different (non-gmail) email address, logged out, verified I could log back in, and submitted my application for a 12-month parking permit from there. I explained in the notes why I was forced to register another account with a different email address.

I tried from a PC and I couldn't submit the application (an error occurred while processing your request). I retried from my mobile and this time it worked.

Now fingers crossed!

Also, when you start the application process, the site tells you the permit costs £166 in person and £146 online, but then it asks you for a £181 payment! That is the cost for a 2nd permit at the address; maybe the previous occupant had a permit and the system doesn't know we are now the only occupants? In an ideal world I'd contact them to get it sorted, but in the real world these people are uncontactable. Unfortunately I had better get the permit sorted first, and ask for a refund later, because I need the permit now.
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chorister
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Re: New online parking permit: IT shambles

Postby chorister » Wed Aug 01, 2018 4:14 pm

This is all really odd - may be I have been lucky but I have had a completely different experience.  About 4 months ago we changed cars, and the whole transfer of the parking permit went very smoothly even though I forgot to remove the old one from the old vehicle.  I have also been able to buy and activate visitor permits without any trouble.  I wish I could think of something I may have done that made it work, but I can't.

One tip when calling - ring the main switchboard, choose option 0 or say 'Operator' and you will get a real, human receptionist. Say you want to speak to a real person in parking.  If you get an automated message, ring the main switchboard again, and repeat.  You will probably the same receptionist.  Eventually they twig that unless they find a real person for you you will drive them mad!
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