Fast food -- and also fast eating -- is expected at this KFC in Wolviston, England. Mark Howie and his family went to have lunch at the restaurant and left with a bill three times higher than expected.
The reason? They took too long to eat their food. Fast food service to go along with your fast food consumption!
Howie received a penalty from a private parking company, Civil Enforcement Ltd., for parking over the one-hour time limit by 19 minutes.
Howie told GazetteLive: "The one thing that struck me was how they say you can have to eat a family meal in under an hour, but when you have kids, that definitely isn't always possible. I felt mistreated as a customer."
Initially, KFC refused to help Howie's case, saying they were not in a position of power to act because the parking company is privately operated. Instead, they suggested Howie appeal to the parking company directly.
Long after the ticket was due for payment, KFC backtracked saying because Howie provided proof of purchase to the chain, they could help him act against the parking lot firm. This was good news for Howie and his family considering the parking company threatened an additional $120 for not paying the ticket on time.
Howie advises others to act quickly and persist if they ever find themselves in a similar situation. "There always is something that can be done -- they will always try and fob you off," said Howie. "But if push comes to shove they will find a way."
VICE Munchies reached out to a KFC spokesperson to find out what happened about Howie's case.
The spokesperson said: "Although we don't run the car park at our Wolviston restaurant, our fans are important to us, so we worked with the parking company to get Mark's fine overturned. Time restrictions on parking are there for the benefit of our customers, so there's space available for them to park while eating. We've taken the feedback on board and are looking at how we can make the system better."