hildenborough station, how do i get camera evidence?

[caymanred]

hi guys,

noticed last night that some idiot has hit my car yesterday at some point whilst parked at hildenborough station, and shock horror, driven off...2nd time in about 6months!

whats the best way to go about getting evidence of this, i'm pretty sure hildenborough has cameras.


thanks

[bqf]

caymanred said:

hi guys,

noticed last night that some idiot has hit my car yesterday at some point whilst parked at hildenborough station, and shock horror, driven off...2nd time in about 6months!

whats the best way to go about getting evidence of this, i'm pretty sure hildenborough has cameras.


thanks

I'd be amazed if the camera is actually recording. I left my car overnight at Paddock Wood carpark and it was broken into - there were 2 cameras focussed on my car, but after enquiring with SouthEastern I was given the bare truth - they aren't actually filming anything, they are just 'there as a deterrent'.

Fairly sure they aren't all like that but SouthEastern Customer Services are the best place to start. The British Transport Police just laughed at me, and said 'even if the cameras were working do you think we've got time to search through 24 hours of footage to see who broke into your car and stole an iPod Shuffle?'. It's a frank response, but I have to say I wasn't expecting it. I did enjoy filling out their 'victim survey' afterwards though.

[caymanred]

bqf said:

caymanred said:

hi guys,

noticed last night that some idiot has hit my car yesterday at some point whilst parked at hildenborough station, and shock horror, driven off...2nd time in about 6months!

whats the best way to go about getting evidence of this, i'm pretty sure hildenborough has cameras.


thanks

I'd be amazed if the camera is actually recording. I left my car overnight at Paddock Wood carpark and it was broken into - there were 2 cameras focussed on my car, but after enquiring with SouthEastern I was given the bare truth - they aren't actually filming anything, they are just 'there as a deterrent'.

Fairly sure they aren't all like that but SouthEastern Customer Services are the best place to start. The British Transport Police just laughed at me, and said 'even if the cameras were working do you think we've got time to search through 24 hours of footage to see who broke into your car and stole an iPod Shuffle?'. It's a frank response, but I have to say I wasn't expecting it. I did enjoy filling out their 'victim survey' afterwards though.

looks like i'm spending 30mins looking for a car with bright red paint on it then! good colour for it.haha

[Hol]

Sorry to say that the cameras wont help. Not with SE trains.

The wifes car was used as an impromptu ladder by some peeps that wanted to climb a wall next to it, rather than walk round it at Rainham station a few years back. It was right after they had increased the prices to include the cameras and included those said cameras on the terms and conditions board next to the pay machines.

Totally uninterested when we asked for a copy of the footage and said that even if the Transport police asked, the files are overwritten very quickly.

[HughG]

My other half had a bike stolen from Hildenborough in October and they used CCTV to find and convict them. They knew that it had been put into the back of a van so presumably more than just the platform cameras working so might be worth a shot. That was all kicked off from a report to the police, you dont say what the damage was but maybe a bit extreme depending on the level of damage.

[Chris_]

I've given up with parking there. Over the years I have had a car stolen, another broken into, plus door dents. Given what they are now charging, it is no surprise that it is half empty these days.

Try the allotments, only £300 p.a. (and it has CCTV)

[caymanred]

Chris_ said:

I've given up with parking there. Over the years I have had a car stolen, another broken into, plus door dents. Given what they are now charging, it is no surprise that it is half empty these days.

Try the allotments, only £300 p.a. (and it has CCTV)

thanks, i may have a look into it! its bloody 100 pounds for 1 month at the station

[Chris_]

caymanred said:

thanks, i may have a look into it! its bloody 100 pounds for 1 month at the station

That's what swung it for me. Four times the cost vs. two minutes extra walk. The downside is that it's muddy and a bit bumpy. There are also no marked spaces so you can give yourself a bit of extra room. Most of the Porsches that were at the station are now up there, so you will be in good company.

[Gixer]

I very rarely work in Southeastern Stations however I spend a lot of time working in stations throughout Essex, London, Cambridgeshire etc. They all have CCTV and it always appears to be on and recording at all the stations I have to attend.
Last summer the CCTV guy was at Wickford station when I got called out there for a job. He was going through weeks of footage as there had been a load of bike thefts and smash and grabs out of cars in the car parks of various stations in the area. By doing this at each station he pinpointed the van that was being used and eventually the shot he needed of the reg number and their faces. It was then passed over to BTP........ Probably to be forgotten about......

Are you not allowed access to any footage under the freedom of information act?

[marshalla]

Gixer said:

Are you not allowed access to any footage under the freedom of information act?

FOI is about getting information out of public bodies (e.g. about budgets, spending, expenses etc.)

Data Protection Act covers CCTV and prevents victims of hit & run getting access to the footage because it identifies the person who did it, not the victim. There is an exception in DPA for prevention & detection of crime, but it needs a strong case or law enforcement involvement for it to be invoked.


ETA link : http://www.ico.gov.uk/for_the_public/topic_specifi...

Edited by marshalla on Wednesday 22 February 23:08

[Gixer]

Another law that helps protect the tossers in society, oh well.

[caymanred]

unfortunately an update....think im looking for a new parking spot! came back today to find my whole passanger side door caved in.....really not my lucky month! at least this time the person left a name and number....

[Gixer]

Get yourself a £200 st box for the station run, that's what my brother in law used to do after similar luck to yours.

[Red Devil]

Hildenborough has had a vandalism problem over many years. The BBC transmitted a documentary program several years ago entitled Rail Cops.
I am sure I recall one clip where PC Gee was investigating some nefarious activity at the railway station car park.

[Ice27]

You need to report each incident to the BTP. Each crime will be logged and they will then see that there is an ongoing problem at that particular station. You'll also need a crime number for your insurance.

[Redwing]

Hildenborough did have a problem but there was a police "sting" where they hid in the car park all day. This happened several times and they managed to apprehend the appropriate halfwits. I have been parking in the main station for 10yrs and never had so much of a scratch so I guess it must be luck of the draw......which part of the car park are you in?

[cps26]

I'm going to be moving to the area soon and probably using Hildenborough station for commuting to London.

To the OP who have parked at the allotments - were you able to become a "member" there fairly easily or was there a waiting list or anything like that?

Thanks!

[5pen]

I can't answer the questions, but this is the website for the allotments -
http://philpotsallotments.com/ - the contact for more info' is [e-mail]

[Luke.]

Completely off topic, but I see your car most days. You've got a little PH sticker on the back.

Edited by Luke. on Wednesday 2nd May 16:30

[Titchywitch]

The cameras in these car parks do have film in mostly, however they are, as someone said overwritten after 7 days usually. The rail network nor the BTP will surrender them usually, although if you have reported it aMaynard a crime number you may be lucky.....