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The Independent UK

National

Emily Atkinson

Revealed: Areas of UK where most parking fines are handed out

United Kingdom London Birmingham City Council Cardiff Council Churchill Motor Insurance

More than 19,600 parking fines a day were handed out by local authorities in the UK in 2022, new figures reveal.

Penalty Charge Notices (PCNs) are issued when motorists break regulations, such as by parking on double yellow lines or on a single yellow line at a prohibited time – costing up to £130 in London or £70 outside the capital. The penalty is usually halved if a driver pays within 14 days.

Data collected by Churchill Motor Insurance suggests fines were handed out by local authorities at a rate of 19,631 a day in 2022, which represents a 12 per cent rise on the year previous.

The increase bumped council revenue to an estimated total of £777,287 per day last year, up £35,113 from 2021.

The revealing analysis was based on data provided by the 230 UK councils that responded to Freedom of Information requests.

Islington Council in north London issued more fines than any other local authority, with a daily average of 1,012.

Birmingham City Council (373), Southampton City Council (313) and Cardiff Council (279) issued the most parking fines outside London.

Nicholas Mantel, head of Churchill Motor Insurance, said: “Motorists across Britain are regularly being caught out by increased and sometimes complicated parking restrictions.

“We would encourage drivers to always check parking signs carefully to ensure they avoid any expensive fines.

“If motorists do receive a parking fine, they have 28 days to pay it or appeal to an independent tribunal.”

It comes after analysis by the PA news agency found that the number of parking tickets issued by private companies in Britain reached an average of nearly 30,000 a day between April and June last year, up 50 per cent from the same period in 2021.

Steve Gooding, director of the RAC Foundation, said: “Whichever way they turn and wherever they decide to stop, on-street and off-street, drivers are faced with the threat of parking sanctions.

“Between the 20,000 tickets issued by councils daily and the 30,000 dished out by private parking companies, motorists are seemingly facing a positive flurry of fines and charges – around one every two seconds.

“Parking rules are there for a reason and should be respected but at a time when household budgets are under such pressure these numbers beg the obvious question of whether millions of drivers are really risking a big bill for poor parking, or whether over-enthusiastic parking enforcement is putting other objectives, like revitalising our post-pandemic high streets, at risk.”

A spokesperson for the Local Government Association, which represents councils in England, said: “Income raised through on-street parking charges and parking fines is spent on running parking services. Any surplus is spent on essential transport projects, including fixing the £11 billion road repairs backlog, reducing congestion, tackling poor air quality and supporting local bus services.”