LETTERS: I have a unit in an office building in Kuala Lumpur. We pay a premium to have a parking space there.
The rule is that we must pay upfront and even if there is a one-day delay, we are unable to enter the premises. The car park operator is quite efficient in collecting fees.
However, the operator did not assign anyone to look after the tenants' and owners' cars parked in the building, or to resolve problems that may arise.
If visitors park in our paying spot, as they often do, the building management does not do anything about it. They say they cannot help it and that we should report to the car park operator.
I learned that the operator, a foreign company, is paying premium rental to the building management as it owns the car park bays.
So the management has the right to tell the car park operator to provide fundamental services to the owners and tenants who pay for monthly parking.
My estimate is that it collects up to RM150,000 a month from the car park bays. Why then is there such poor service provided to the people who pay for it?
The management evades questions on why the car park operator refuses to hire someone to oversee maintenance and services. They tell us to email to the operator.
But the emails to the management and car park operator have gone unattended for three years.
I think the authorities should look into this matter seriously.
Issues involving the building management and car park operators should be ironed out immediately.
Car park operators should be service-driven and not just charge a fee to provide a parking space. They should be responsible and ensure user comfort and safety, and not rely on a cashless system.
Perhaps it is time for the government to license car park operators similar to how security companies are licensed by the Home Ministry.
All car park operators should be local companies that are accountable to the people. There are five foreign car park companies, and they are also the biggest. Let Malaysian car park operators take the forefront.
MARIA LEE
Kuala Lumpur
The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect those of the New Straits Times