Pensioner, 74, claims 'car left at airport meet and greet driven 178 miles'

An airport meet and greet customer has claimed his car was driven for 178 miles when it was meant to be parked up. Ashley Hopkins handed his s Toyota C-HR over to East Midland Airport's Meet and Greet service on September 9.

He then headed off on a week-long trip in Majorca. But the 74-year-old was left confused when he returned from holiday and claims his car's mileage had 'gone up and his fuel was low'.

But East Midlands Airport has denied any of its workers misused the car. Instead, it said that tracking and CCTV proved the car was not moved from a secure storage space.

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Mr Hopkins remains unconvinced, NottinghamshireLive reports. He said: "I only use it for piddling about and it had almost a full tank when I dropped it off, but when I came back it was at just over half.

"They say there's no evidence to support what I am saying, but my odometer and fuel tank can't be wrong. It must have been taken off the premises, unless the car was just driven around the car park or the storage area is just miles away."

Mr Hopkins, from East Bridgford, claims his mileage appeared to have increased by 178 miles when he returned to the UK on September 16. He knew there had been a change in mileage as his wife had prompted him to make a note of the number on the car's odometer before they jetted off to the Spanish island.

The car's battery went flat and was not charging shortly after getting the vehicle back, Mr Hopkins said. He said this was 'strange' as the four-year-old vehicle had never had problems before.

Mr Hopkins complained to EMA's customer services but said he was told that if he wanted to take it further he would have to inform Leicestershire Police. He said: "They told me to go to the police so they could start a criminal investigation, but they'll just say it's a civil matter.

"It's about the principle of it all, I want to know why someone has been driving around in my car without my permission. Had they just said sorry I would have said fine and got on with it.

"They have just denied it and implied that I am a liar or reading something wrong." Mr Hopkins quizzed airport staff on how far the storage area was away from the drop-off point.

He also asked how the driver's key usage had been monitored. But he said his queries have not been answered by the airport's customer services department.

A spokesperson for East Midlands Airport said: "We have looked into the matter raised by Mr Hopkins and can find no evidence to support the suggestion that his car was driven 178 miles while he was away. We move hundreds of vehicles around our site every day and have systems that keep track of which vehicles are driven by which drivers, as well as recording all key movements and monitoring our site with CCTV.

"This shows that Mr Hopkins’ car was driven straight from the Meet and Greet area to one of our secure storage locations and remained there until he returned. His key was kept securely in a separate location throughout this time.

"We would like to assure customers that our Meet and Greet service is operated to high standards of integrity and security, offering peace of mind that vehicles are looked after carefully and safely while they are away."