When your car takes a walk

When your car takes a walk
Deccan Herald

Thirty-one-year-old Tarandeep Singh Pahwa was in for a shock on Thursday night when he found his Honda City (DL-3-CV-9125) missing from the valet parking lot of the Bangalore Central shopping mall.

For most, valet parking at malls and hotels is a welcome luxury — you are spared the need to fight for parking space, even as a smiling parking attendant parks your vehicle for you. But amidst all this pampering, have you missed spotting the “at owner’s risk” board? If you have, it is time to wake up and take notice.

Thirty-one-year-old Tarandeep Singh Pahwa was in for a shock on Thursday night when he found his Honda City (DL-3-CV-9125) missing from the valet parking lot of the Bangalore Central shopping mall. Pahwa, a Richmond Road resident, fumed when the mall authorities “denied” the theft.

“No one is willing to take responsibility for the theft. I had paid the parking fee, handed over the keys to the parking attendant and even had the relevant card with me. Despite this, the authorities are washing their hands off the case,” Pahwa told Deccan Herald.

Siddharth Sahgal, Manager (Operations), Bangalore Central, maintained that cars are parked only at the owners’ risk.

“We only provide parking facility for our customers. However, we cannot be held responsible for the safety of vehicles, as there are risk factors involved in parking at public lots. The police are investigating the case. If any of our employees are found to be involved, we will take action,” he said.

“This is the first time such an incident has occurred. We will be able to provide more details once the investigations are completed,” he added.

However, Subbiah, an employee of Esteem Security Agency, which handles mall security, accepted that there had been a security lapse at the valet parking section. Hazrat Naidu, the attendant who had parked Pahwa’s car, has been questioned by the police.