Heathrow Airport: Travellers told to check Meet and Greet companies

On June 8, Aviation Policing Heathrow issued a statement to warn travellers to check the Meet and Greet companies ‘carefully’.

Crime Prevention Officer Mike Smooker from Aviation Policing said: “I have been liaising with ‘meet and greet’ companies at Heathrow for some time.

“Many are reputable and offer a good level of service that deliver to customer expectations.

“However customers are sometimes disappointed with the service received by some meet and greet companies.”

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Mr Smooker explained vehicles have been returned to travellers with damage, are dirty and some have added mileage on the cars.

He warned people to check their terms and conditions before booking.

Mr Smooker added travellers who intend to leave their vehicle with Meet and Greet to do their research before deciding which company to use.

And he explained customers should look on both TripAdvisor and Trust Pilot.

He said: “The British Parking Association website can also offer a degree of guidance with regard to such companies.

“Be aware if you book through a booking agent online, the car may be allocated to one of a number of companies on their books.”

Residents across Colnbrook and Langley have voiced their concerns about holidaymakers' cars being dumped along their roads.

And many of them reported they believe it is the Meet and Greet companies taking customers’ cars and leaving them in residential streets and not secure car parks.

Just some roads that have been affected by this are Colnbrook Bypass, Linden House, Tamar Way, Lakeside Road, Crown Meadow and Seacourt Road.

Councillor Madhuri Bedi (Foxborough) also shared her frustrations for residents stating it had been going on since travel restrictions were lifted.

And most recently, Slough Observer heard from a business along the Colnbrook Bypass where the owner said he was “going to give up soon” if nothing is done about it.

The cars on Colnbrook Bypass

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He has CCTV footage, seen by The Observer, of the company using the lay-by along the bypass to prove it is happening multiple times throughout the day.

The video showed cars stopping in the road, someone getting out of the car with paperwork and hopping into another car to take it out of the lay-by.

Then minutes later another car will arrive and pull into the lay-by, someone gets out the car also holding some form of paperwork, and then is picked up by another driver.

Slough Borough Council has previously said the issue has been reported to the airport, but no action can take place due to no parking restrictions.