I left my Mercedes with an airport parking company only to find they’d LOST it – we had to go home in a taxi

A DRIVER came back from holiday to discover his Mercedes was lost by an airport parking company.

Paul Swift, from West London, paid £114 to a meet and greet parking firm in Gatwick to look after his vehicle.

The dad from Ealing claimed he booked the parking service through My Parking Limited before going on a week family holiday.

Once Paul landed at London Gatwick airport, he was told by the staff to wait for his Mercedes to arrive.

But after more than three hours, an attendant told him the keys couldn't be found and asked him to look for them around the car park.

The shocked car owner then decided take a cab home with his wife and kids - splashing more than £150 in taxi fees.

Service operators promised him that his family vehicle would be dispatched to his home in Ealing the next morning.

However, when the alarmed car owner called the next day, My Parking Limited workers couldn't find his vehicle on the system.

Mr Swift told : "[I spoke to an employee] who was completely unaware. She couldn't find my booking.

"She said she believes it's in the compound somewhere. She's trying to find it for me." 

Seeking desperate help, Paul decided to file a report to the Metropolitan Police.

The tech platform worker decided to take matters into his own hands and miss a day of work to back to the airport.

After two days of exasperation, Paul finally found his vehicle.

He explained: "At first they couldn't find the booking, then they couldn't find the key, then they couldn't find my car.

"Then [one of the employees] physically went out and found it."

The fuming driver is now slamming the parking company for the "incompetent" service.

Paul said: "I don't think anything has been intentionally done wrong, but not returning the car is an escalation of complete incompetence.

"Everyone else has been completely incompetent."

My Parking Limited continues to provide the meet and greet parking services at the airport.

The firm has a shocking 1.1 rating on Trust Pilot with hundreds of negative reviews from angry drivers.

Fellow car owners took to the reviewing website to share their experience and said to "never use this company" branding the firm "awful".

A spokesperson for Gatwick Airport said they have "no relationship with these rogue ‘meet and greet’ parking companies, even though many of them have ‘Gatwick’ in their company name."

They added: "Legally rogue firms can operate on the airport as long as they do not break our by-laws."

But urged passengers to "be vigilant when booking through third-party operators".

The Sun has approached My Parking Limited for comment.

Have you had issues with airport parking companies?Email jacob.jaffa@news.co.uk or call 0207 860 1129

It comes as the same company left another holidaymaker fuming after returning from a holiday break to discover her car had an extra 200 miles on the clock.

Lynn Stone, 69, from Linconlshire, paid £108 to the meet and greet valet parking firm at Gatwick Airport to park her car for two weeks.