ComplaintsforBird Dog Parking

• Initial Complaint

  03/13/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  On February 29, 2024, I was issued a parking violation by Bird Dog Parking LLC. I was parked in a lot that is next to a closed down dress shop. On the signs of the parking lot it clearly states in bold, the lot is for the use of patrons of the **** *** ******* building. I parked, tried to pay, the app would not allow it so I assumed the website wasn’t working. I proceeded to go and eat at a restaurant located in the **** *** ******* building complex. I have receipt proof and photos. And then came out to a ticket for $40. I went back to the restaurant and spoke to both the manager and the building manager. Both walked around to look at the signs and said I should have been able to park in those spots but that their system would not allow for validation because Bird Dog Parking did not give them a code to validate. If the sign clearly states it’s for patrons of that building Bird Dog needs to stop issuing tickets for this lot. Also I emailed, and called twice in the past 2 weeks to try to get the problem resolved and no one called back or even responded to my email. $40 is a very high ticket to pay for following the rules, and it goes up to $60 in 2 weeks. I went ahead and paid because I don’t want to be charged more since no one has called me back, and I don’t want to be sent to collections. I’d love for this issue to be looked at further and for my charge to be reversed. The company needs to change their signs. Thank you.

  

  Business response

  03/13/2024

  Greetings,

  Thank you for reaching out and I hope you are well today. Just let me know the last 4 digits of the credit card you used and the date that you paid so I can reverse that charge for you. Email me at ************************ please.

  Best Regards

  Customer response

  03/13/2024

  The last 4 digits of the card used are ****. Please let me know if you need any other information! Thanks for your help. 

  February 29, 2024

  

  Business response

  03/14/2024

  The charge has been refunded and you should see it back on your card within 7 business days.

  Customer response

  03/14/2024

  
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ********* *** *** ****

• Initial Complaint

  02/08/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  On 1/21/2024 I parked in the ** Hotel parking lot to go in and ask about renting a room from them. There were no signs that said “No Parking” and no attendant in sight. After trying to inquire about room rates and availability, I decided not to get a room because it was a Sunday and their line was very slow moving. The wait time to speak to someone was too long. Then I went back to my vehicle to find a ticket. Another guy found one on his car also and was very upset because he agreed, there were no signs that we could see. I think this is a terrible scam and I can’t believe they get away with it. I see many complaints on BBB and I am very disappointed at these business practices. The ticket number is ***********.

  

  Business response

  02/08/2024

  Greetings,

  Thank you for reaching out and taking the time to explain your situation. I have waived the citation for you and no further action is needed on your part now. Have a pleasant day.

  Best regards

• Initial Complaint

  01/08/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Parked at 8 p.m. at night in a bank parking lot. Didn't see the signage for the birddog parking because it is not lit and and is not prominent. Received a parking violation. After looking at the signage later, it includes no method of payment other than scanning a QR code. This would not have been possible as I didn't have a mobile device with me at the time. There is no address on the signage to make a payment even if you were trying to pay.

  

  Business response

  01/08/2024

  Greetings,

  Thank you for taking the time to reach out through the BBB and we appreciate your time. We are sorry you missed the signage and received a citation for not paying for your parking visit. However, we will not be waiving the citation for you. 

  Best regards.

• Initial Complaint

  12/18/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Bird Dog parking uses sketchy business practices including poor signage to show which areas require payment, difficult to use payment methods, and is unresponsive to attempts to communicate. These factors led to me being charged a fine for parking and also make me skeptical to trust them with my payment information going forward. In my opinion they are not only sketchy but unethical and predatory in their practices.

  

  Business response

  12/19/2023

  Greetings,

  We are sorry you have had a negative experience. Thank you for your input and taking the time to voice your concerns.

  Best regards.

  Customer response

  12/19/2023

  
  Complaint: ********
  
  I am rejecting this response because it is half-hearted and makes no attempt to address the original concerns.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ***** ****

  

  Business response

  12/20/2023

  Good day,

  We are sorry you rejected our response to your issue. We wish you well and have a pleasant day.

  Best regards.

  Customer response

  12/20/2023

  
  Complaint: ********
  
  I am rejecting this response because: its the same as the first response. Still no attempt to resolve.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ***** ****

• Initial Complaint

  12/06/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  I parked in a birddog parking zone- there was a valet there I verified with the associate that if I paid to park I would be good to go, I pointed at my vehicle, showed him where I was so he could “not ticket you in case the system didn’t update yet”. A disgruntled tenant came out and began berating the valet asking what “their associates were supposed to do” and “people shouldn’t be parking there”. As my wife my children and myself were walking away the valet approached us asking if we had already paid which we had and told him. The associate told us never mind don’t worry about it we were fine. After our event concluded we returned to our vehicle to be the ONLY vehicle in the entire lot with a ticket for $50. On $8 parking. The ticket was placed 10 minutes after we had left the parking lot. The ticket was slated for improper parking and photo of my vehicle reversed into its spot was attached. However, I began checking other windows within the parking lot and realized I was the only one given a ticket. So, I appealed it and was denied my appeal with zero explanation. I paid for my parking, verified with a BirdDog associate and was given a ticket minutes after leaving. If I was given a ticket to appease the tenant because I so happened to be the one walking by, then that’s horrendous business. For a company that says they strive to provide customers with exceptional service and experience this is by far, far from that. There’s no phone number to contact the company only ANOTHER form to fill out. However the ticket goes up to $70 if not paid within a certain time frame. It took almost a week to hear back on my appeal to begin with. This is not about the ticket, it’s about the lack of reasoning behind the ticket and zero communication. If I needed to leave the parking lot I should have been refunded or asked to leave so the tenant could be happy. Not charged to park and then ticketed for an additional $50. I have photographs of other vehicles parked exactly like me.

  

  Business response

  12/06/2023

  Greetings,

  Thank you for reaching out and I hope you are well. I can understand your frustration and I will waive the citation for you. I have attached a copy of the waived citation and have a pleasant day.

  Best regards.

  Customer response

  12/06/2023

   
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me. I appreciate the assistance in the matter and the resolution. It goes far when a business fixes a situation. Thank you.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ******* ****

• Initial Complaint

  12/05/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  We went to the trade center for the Chattanooga holiday Markert on Sunday 11-3-23. We attempted to pay and the first time it said I didn't have enough numbers after putting in my card info. So I repeated the steps again and once again it said I was missing Information. At that point I said forget it i will take my chances. Then I check my account and they had charged my card twice. Plus to top it off they only give you one option fir the length of time staying there which is 12 hours. We stated two hours and had to pay $10.00 or that's what we thought. We got charged $11.74 each transaction plus $2.00 in pending fees. While those dissappear the next day the extra charge didn't. I've sent them 2 emails to remove the second charge but it's still there. I'm hoping it goes away but if it doesn't I will pursue the charge further.

  

  Business response

  12/05/2023

  Greetings,

  Thank you for your time and I am happy to help. If that second charge does not fall off feel free to contact me directly to help.

  ************************

  Thank you.

• Initial Complaint

  11/22/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I really feel like I have been scammed by this company. Based on all of the BBB complaints, I can't believe this company is still allowed to operate! I was in downtown Chatanooga for the first time to eat dinner at a restaurant. It was dark when I arrived at this parking lot and did not see ANY signs that said I needed to pay. I looked around everywhere in the parking lot. There were no numbers on the parking spots, no booths to pay, nothing. It was so dark and the only signs I saw said "reserved parking". I went to dinner and came back and got a ticket on my car. I didn't see anyone! No attendant, nothing. I even asked a couple that was walking into the parking lot where I was suppose to pay. The lady said I needed to scan a barcode on the sign. I found one small sign that was so hard to see off to the side in the dark. There was no barcode on it!! I even held my phone up thinking the picture of the dog was the barcode and nothing...that didn't work! I felt extremely frustrated. I was walking around this dark parking lot alone with my 8 year old daughter. When I got back to my hotel, I disputed the charge of $40. I said I would pay the regular price to park, but, I requested the fee to be removed. They rejected my dispute! I went to file another one and their website wouldn't let me. There is no phone number, no one to talk to, nothing! This is a horrible way to operate a business and to handle customer service. I want my money credited back to me. I will pay for the regular price of parking, but, not the ridiculous $40 fee. I paid today because I didn't want this sent to collections and damaging my credit. This is straight up fraud. There is no posting of these fees anywhere. There wasn't even a posting or sign to show how much the parking was. Seriously, how is this business allowed to operate like this?

  

  Business response

  11/22/2023

  Greetings,

  Thank you for reaching out through the BBB and we appreciate your time. Since you parked in a paid lot and did not submit payment the violation still stands. We will not be issuing a refund for the violation payment made. 

  Best regards,

  Customer response

  11/27/2023

  
  Complaint: ********
  
  I am rejecting this response because: this parking lot did not have adequate signage to notify people that they needed to pay. The only sign that I finally found (after I received the ticket) was not visible from the parking lot and it didn't even have a barcode to pay. There are no postings of fees or rates for the parking. I will pay the regular price for the parking space that I used, but, I will not pay the violation fee. You can not charge me a violation fee that I did not know about before hand. That is scamming and fraud. I will pay for what I used, which is the parking spot, at the regular price. 

  
  Sincerely,
  
  ******* ******

  

  Business response

  11/28/2023

  Greetings,

  Thank you for taking the time to respond and I hope you are well. Since you did park in a paid lot and did not submit payment the citation will not be waived for you. 

  Best regards

  Customer response

  11/29/2023

  
  Complaint: ********
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  I will be filing a complaint with the attorney general's office and I will be contacting the city council member responsible for this area. I have already contacted the attorney general's office and they are sending me a copy of all the complaints filed against you, which is many since 2022. The way you are conducting business is appalling. This parking lot did not have adequate signage to notify people they needed to pay for parking. The only sign that I eventually found (after I got a ticket) was small, it was dark, off to the side, and it was facing out towards the street. I did not see it when I pulled into the parking lot and there were no signs at all in the parking lot where I was parking. Even after I found the sign, there was NO BARCODE on it! I have already agreed to pay for the regular price of the parking spot that I parked in. You will lose absolutely nothing if I pay for that spot that I used. But, that is not good enough for you. You are being greedy and taking people for their hard earned money and charging insane fees that were never disclosed to them before hand. There was no sign that said "if you don't pay, this is the fine". Even the city government posts their fees for citations. You are disgrace to this city and to the businesses that are trying to thrive around your parking lots. This was the first time I have been to this area and I really never want to come back because of this experience. I will be sure to research all your parking lots and make sure I stay clear of them. I also would like to know...how many other people has this happened to? How often do you do this to people? How much have you made in "violation fees"? You have many complaints filed against you with both the BBB and the Consumer Protection Agency. It seems like a perfect scam to me...one that you have obviously gotten away with for a long time. I'm sure the attorney general's office and possibly a lawyer will help me with some discovery. 
  
  Sincerely,
  ******* ******

• Initial Complaint

  09/18/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Customer Service Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  In August I received a letter from Bird Dog Parking dated July 25. It stated that we parked in their lot and didn't pay on April 22 and that because we were past the 21 days to pay, we now owed $45. I was not aware that the parking lot was a paid lot nor was my 16 year old daughter. I attempted to contact Bird Dog to see about paying the fee without the added fine. They have been impossible to contact, no phone numbers, they do not answer their contact us online form, etc. I finally sent a dispute request where I politely explained that my 16 year old parked where our family has always parked and would not have looked for signs. She met friends to take prom photos. I agreed to pay the amount she should have paid. The only reply back I received is attached here. It simply said, dispute denied. I have yet to get a response from an actual person. They also make it hard to pay by charging $4 additionally online. I do not believe we should have to pay all these fees, especially when it took them over 3 months to contact us about this parking error. By then we couldn't even defend ourselves, was the sign even posted in the entrance she used?! I don't know that they were but 3 months passed before they told us. However, I am an honest person and I have been polite and willing to pay an appropriate amount.

  

  Business response

  09/18/2023

  Good morning,

  Thank you for reaching out to us and I hope you are well today. The lot in question is paid parking after business hours and on the weekends. There are large orange QR code signs at each entrance with instructions on how to pay with a mobile device. Since there was a late fee applied, I went ahead and updated your citation to the original amount of $25.00 for you. I hope this helps and thank you for your time today.

  Best regards.

  Customer response

  09/18/2023

   
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory. I will mail a check #**** in the amount of $25 to Bird Dog Parking LLC, *** ***** ****** ***** **** ************ ** ******
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ****** ******

• Initial Complaint

  07/02/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I do not believe this is a constitutionally protected company. There was no signs anywhere stating we had to pay for parking we have been using for years. They are not a governmental agency, there for they have no authority issue so called citations. I do not believe this is an honest company, they are scammers charging 40 dollar citations. They’re not law enforcement, they have no legal standing to issue citations. I do not recognize their authority, as to which they have none. This is the same thing with red light camera they are unconstitutional. This company needs to be shut down! They are not a legitimate business.

  

  Business response

  07/03/2023

  Hello,

  We appreciate your thoughts and opinions on this matter. Since you parked in a private paid parking lot and did not pay you were given a parking citation. Thank you for your time and have a pleasant day.

  Best regards.

• Initial Complaint

  07/02/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Worked a fundraiser for local nonprofitserving veterans at the ******** in *** ****. Had to try 3 times to get website for parking to come up on phone. Entered 15 minutes and code from business as a patron as instructed. Still received a $40 parking violation. Not the first time having difficulty with this parking app. Very disappointed. Would much rather have donated the money to fundraiser than lining the pockets of a business who has made parking a nightmare in this area of town. This will definitely cause us to reconsider patronizing businesses in this area and relocating our community events.

  

  Business response

  07/05/2023

  Greetings,

  I can waive the citation since you were a patron of the ********. Just email me the citation number and have a pleasant day.

  ************************

  Thank you.

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩