Signs of the Crime – Bed Business Busted for Fly Posting
Signs of the Crime – Bed Business Busted for Fly Posting
A company based in Telford has been fined for illegally putting up a number of signs advertising a bed sale.
Pineapple Leisure Ltd appeared before Shropshire Magistrates sitting in Telford yesterday (Monday 27 Jan) in the first case of its kind brought by Telford & Wrekin Council.
The court heard the company had fly-posted signs on lamp-posts and grass verges at various locations in Halesfield in May, June and August last year promoting a bed sale under the name of “Pineapple Beds”.
Before the case came to court, the company had received more than 45 Fixed Penalty Notices (£150 each) from Telford & Wrekin Council but it continued to put up signs up.
The owner of the business, Andrew Ford pleaded guilty to four charges under Section 132 of the Highways Act 1980.
Pineapple Leisure Ltd. was fined £800, ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £30, costs of £785.61 and compensation of £95.14
Councillor Richard Overton, Telford & Wrekin Council’s Cabinet Member for Enforcement, said: “Fly-posting is an environmental crime that blights our borough.
“Our enforcement officers work with businesses and organisations to make sure any advertising does not become or perceived to be fly-posting. They can give advice, including where they may be placed to make sure they do not distract drivers.
“Issuing fines and taking cases to court are acts of last resort. It does, however, serve as a warning that fly-posting, as with all forms of environmental crime, is not acceptable.”
Hello I am the owner of Pineapple Beds from Halesfield
Firstly my family and the staff that work at Pineapple Beds would like to thank the public for there support on this embarrassing matter.
I would have kept a dignified silence on this matter however I feel the councilors comments make us out as criminals and the statements that were made in court about us.
We do not consider ourselves guilty,the cheapest and quickest way for us to end this nightmare was to plead guilty as this threat of prosecution has been hanging over our heads and causing my wife great stress and sleepless nights worrying about this for nearly 18 months,if we would have pleaded not guilty we would have gone to trial and it would have cost us tens of thousands of pounds so therefore by not doing that helped us to keep our staff in a job .
I have some questions for the councilor
1. It was brought up in court that our signs that were in the ground by 2 inches in depth put the whole of halesfields utilities at risk as we could of hit pipes and cables,will you be checking that all the utilities are buried at the correct depth as I am sure that legally they cannot be 2 inches below ground?
2. Will you now be removing all the very small hard to read signs that are on many of your traffic islands that you charge companies between £3500 and £10000 per year to advertise on as I am sure you will agree my signs that were at stationary junctions in Halesfield are a lot safer than yours where we have to read them as we drive around a circle,change gears and have cars on either side of us while we try and take the details in our minds of the said advertisers?
3. Can you tell me how I can gain permission to have several hundred orange and black bed sale signs up in Telford as Top brand beds did from Rugby last year? as I was told in writing by Richard Walmsley enforcement officer that they had gained permission twice under the arrangement of them being a travelling circus/fair after visiting there bed sale at The Park INN Telford I saw no lions,tigers or elephants just beds ??Do they pay you £10000 of business rates every year like we do.unlike council tax,you actually get nothing for business rates not even your bins emptied!!
4.Why was it that I was told by members of the council I could have signs on Halesfield but not on main highways outside Halesfield,also when putting this in writing it was never denied back to me.
5.Why when asked if I could have a meeting with department leaders reference this mess (in writing again) why was I denied this on several occasions ? as I also stated I believed I was being victamised by Richard Walmsley enforcement officer.In December 2018 the council closed on 21st DECEMBER and this guy went out on Christmas Eve in his own time collecting 40 signs that had been put out ready for our boxing day sale to try and keep us in business,i also used to receive emails from him at night and when we were asking for the case to be dropped emails would nearly always appear from him on a Friday night so to worry my wife all weekend, I pointed this out and they still were sent then.
6.I paid to use the councils electronic signs at Christmas 2019 (£400) guess what ?they did not work correctly for 4 days out of 7???
7. It was also stated in court that not all fixed penalties had been paid WHEN THEY HAVE ALL BEEN PAID,why was this lie stated in a court of law.
I am ex military and when I got out of the Army I had no where to live,we started this business with £1000 i work 7 days a week 365 days per year,i have never had a day off sick ever I am a normal non educated chap with a job of looking after my family and my staff,and to have been treated in a way like we have that we believe is unfair and unjust.
This though as a family and a business makes us all more determined than ever to succeed and carry on .
Again we thank you for the kind comments
Regards
Andrew Ford
Pineapple Beds Halesfield 9