Holidaymakers returning from abroad, who had booked their cars through what appeared to be a legitimate service, were distraught when they returned home to find the vehicles gone11:59, 02 Jul 2026Dozens of Brits were left stranded at Gatwick Airport for up to eight hours after falling victim to a "dodgy" meet-and-greet service booked through a price comparison site.‌The holidaymakers, who had booked spots at the major airport while they were away, returned home to find their vehicles had seemingly disappeared. They later discovered that their cars were either in a junkyard, at a hotel site, or abandoned in Gatwick's short stay car park, after a frantic search.‌Some victims claim they had items stolen, such as blue badges and vehicle documents, and the vehicles were left dirty and low on fuel.‌Lauren James, 35, from Worcester, had just got back from Bordeaux, where she stayed two days for a wedding, only to be left "in a panic" and in tears on her return to London. She said: "We were all ringing the police in a panic. I was in tears because I thought our cars had been stolen."It was just a very traumatic and stressful situation with a lot of people involved. I won’t be doing a meet-and-greet again." Lauren booked through a website which she says is high up on Google when you search 'Gatwick parking'.‌The mum-of-two says the service, which cost £50, had seemed legitimate until she landed back in the UK at about 11am - and the company started dodging her calls. She and her friend spent an hour waiting around before the two decided they'd try to find the vehicle themselves.At the same time, she said, there were between 30 and 40 people doing the exact same thing "in a panic", among them a woman who claimed to have been there all night.‌The group started a chat to share any other information they could scrounge up, and one member was able to eventually track their car to a carpark at a nearby hotel. Some of the anxiously awaiting car owners then took an Uber to the site, where they found a police officer standing with four men and a car boot filled with hundreds of car keys.Lauren said her Volkswagen Tiguan was covered in mud and about a quarter of a tank of diesel had been used. She added: “You just don’t expect it. I want to raise awareness about these people and try to do something to stop them.”‌Dani, 34, from Tunbridge Wells, Kent, was away in Milan, Italy, for a long weekend with her husband when she returned to similar circumstances. She had booked through a different company advertised online - but using the same comparison site - costing £75. But when she went to pick her car up at 11:30am it was not there.Her Skoda Kodiaq wasn't at the hotel, but at an abandoned junkyard miles away, with the glovebox emptied of all their documents.‌It took seven hours to get the car back and they are expecting to get fines for tailgating and speeding – as it had 100 miles racked up on it. The school worker said: “We had to walk past into a derelict junkyard and our car was there in the mud. It was pretty awful. We didn’t ever think that we were going to be in a scam."It was shocking. The scams have gotten very sophisticated in the last year from how they used to do it.” Damien Ford, 44, from Hayes, West London, had just arrived back from two weeks in Jamaica with his four-year-old daughter.‌He booked a £125 service for his Mercedes A-class, which he also found on the comparison site. After about seven hours of going back and forth from the sites to the airport car park in heavy traffic on a “wild goose chase”, the dad discovered his car was parked on one of the lower floors.They had left the key on top of his tyre, and all of his belongings from the glovebox were strewn across the seats – with his charger missing.Damien says he later found a ticket in his car for the short stay car park dated 12pm on June 14, meaning it had arrived an hour after he started searching. He said: “I had been on a 10-hour flight with my four-year-old and I was absolutely knackered. It was like trying to find a needle in a haystack."‌"I lost my temper a little bit. My daughter was asleep on my shoulder, and she was hungry and tired. It was an absolute nightmare. If it was just me and two or three other people I would think I was stupid to have fallen for a scam. But there were so many people that showed up after me."The group says several of them reported the issue to police, but they were informed that it was a civil matter as they voluntarily handed over their keys. Now, the holidaymakers are calling for Gatwick to do more to stop rogue parking firms.‌Dani said: “The police and Gatwick in these times don’t help you. They are turning a blind eye. We didn’t know whether we would get our car back and nobody would help. They are quite dismissive when you are in a crisis.”Damien added: “I just can’t believe that Gatwick don’t do anything about this. It was a horrible experience. I don’t want this happening to anyone else.”‌The comparison site did not respond a request for comment. Oli Bedford, Head of Car Parks, London Gatwick said: “We are aware of rogue third-party parking companies purporting to offer valet or meet and greet services operating at a number of airports."At London Gatwick we are actively addressing this issue by working closely with the police, Trading Standards, the British Parking Association (BPA) and our car park operator; as well as frequently running awareness messaging and advice."Article continues below“We would always recommend passengers book official London Gatwick parking for peace of mind, and there are other reputable companies who also offer alternatives. We encourage all passengers considering using an off-airport meet and greet parking provider to do their research."Comparison sites can be a valuable resource, but it is imperative passengers thoroughly check out any company they are considering using before booking parking."