At the end of May, the four council-employed parking inspectors finished up their duties.
During the past few months, The News has been contacted by many in the community who have shared their stories of unfair infringements.
Shepparton woman Lucy* received a fine on August 2 at the car park in Rowe St, Shepparton.
"I went into town to pick up my glasses but when I walked over to the parking meter it spat out my two dollars and I realised it was out of order," she said.
"I didn't have a pen on me but I decided to take a picture just in case."
After carrying out her errands and returning to her car, Lucy was disappointed to find a fine on the window.
Even more concerning was the fact that the infringement time seemed to be earlier than the time she had taken a photo of the broken meter.
"The fine says the offence time was 10.49am, but I only took the photo at the meter at 10.55am," she said.
Frustrated by the situation, Lucy visited the council offices immediately after returning to her car.
Here she was told she should have telephoned to let them know the meter was out of order.
"I was a bit annoyed and I just wanted to explain," she said.
"I got told I had to go home and do it all online, but I just wanted to handle it while I was there."
Following the process, Lucy waited 10 to 14 business days for the council's response to her dispute.
Although relieved to find out the infringement had been waived, she was surprised and concerned by the number of community members who had experienced issues with the new service.
"They sent me a letter and told me to disregard the fine but I still reckon what they did was wrong," she said.
"I've heard a lot of people complaining about getting fines.
Lucy also said it was disappointing that the council decided to hire a third-party service, taking jobs out of the municipality.
"These are not even local people, so maybe they are out to make more money," she said.
"I think it's wrong and I want there to be more awareness."
*Lucy asked to not have her last name published in the article for privacy reasons.
