Y-plate cars popping up in Lidl supermarket parking lots

Drivers of Y-plate cars are using the parking facilities of Lidl supermarkets to park their vehicles in what appears to be a way of circumventing existing rules.

It is unclear whether the drivers have lease agreements with the supermarket giant on parking slots in these facilities. Lidl Malta did not reply to this newspaper’s questions.

However, MaltaToday is informed that cars left overnight in Lidl parking lots are charged €60 per night.

A private garage facility or off-street parking is required by all Y-plate operators since vehicles cannot be parked on the street and in public areas when not in use.

However, last October, Transport Malta (TM) announced new regulations aimed at operators who have five or more vehicles in their fleet in a bid to curb abuse in the sector. These operators must keep their vehicles garaged in a commercial garage when not in use, not a residential garage.

Last year, MaltaToday reported that scores of operators within the cab industry were illegally parking their vehicles overnight in a variety of public locations across Malta. Others were also parking their cars in fields and supermarket parking spaces, a practice that does not conform to the law.

Operators must prove that the off-street parking space or garage used by them is reserved solely for their registered vehicles.

TM gave operators 12 months from the commencement date to abide by the regulations if they hold a valid operator licence or an application for the issuance of a licence is still pending.

MaltaToday understands that the Y-plate vehicles found in supermarket parking lots belong to various operators. Most of the vehicles belong to fleet operators with more than five vehicles.

Industry insiders speaking to MaltaToday said the “illegal practice” is unfair on operators who invested large sums to have the necessary infrastructure to garage their vehicles.

One operator who spoke to this newspaper on condition of anonymity explained that such a practice arises from negligence by fleet owners and the drivers of Y-plate vehicles.

He explained that even if large fleet owners own the required garaging facilities, they usually allow their drivers to take the Y-plate vehicles home, instead of requiring them to return them to the garages.

“They’d rather risk parking illegally to avoid a commute to the garage,” the operator explained.

The cab-hailing sector has seen a series of changes over the years with the number of drivers and operators experiencing a boom since authorities lowered the barriers of entry to the sector.

In 2018, the highest number of tags were issued by TM, with 4,425 driver tags issued.

Various operators are lamenting the oversaturated market resulting from such a driver increase, leading to many operators being squeezed out of business.