There's never a good time to get stung with an unexpected bill such as a parking ticket, but with the cost of living sky-high, a fine of up to £100 on top of the expense of already running a car can be the cause of enormous stress for many people already living on stretched budgets. Especially if you weren't even aware of violating the rules.
It's easy to fall foul of a new parking system at your local supermarket or leisure centre. With 8.6 million parking tickets issued by private companies between April 2021 and March 2022, that's around 23,000 every day, many of us have received them without being sure exactly what we did wrong.
Many motorists pay up for fear of incurring a more significant fine, but some suggest that certain types of tickets can be ignored. According to consumer and motoring disputes expert Scott Dixon, that could be a huge mistake.
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Bristol Live spoke to Scott, who has authored a book called How To Complain: The Consumer Guide to Cancelling Parking Tickets and Winning Pothole Claims, about some of the different ways consumers can fight parking tickets and why you shouldn't be discouraged if you're first appeal fails.
Penalty Charge Notice vs Parking Charge Notice
Scott explains that motorists often encounter two types of parking tickets, which sound very similar but are actually quite different. He said, "Local authorities issue fines called 'penalty charge notices'. They are for infringements on public highways, and they are legally enforceable.
"However private parking operators issue parking charge notices, it sounds similar, and there is a reason for that; it's to confuse motorists into thinking that the official fines whereas they're simply invoices for an alleged breach of contract for parking on private land."
So does that mean that a private parking ticket cannot be enforced? "Absolutely not," Scott said: "You can't ignore a private parking ticket. Because eventually, it gets passed off to debt collectors. And then, it goes to the courts, and the small claims court can issue a court judgement for failing to pay the invoice."
Scott says that if a parking violation goes this far, the driver could have to pay not only the fine but the court costs and if you've got a county court judgement lodged against you, it could stay on your credit file for at least six years doing severe damage to your credit score and stopping you from applying for loans and mortgages.
Appeal it immediately
With so much at stake, it's no wonder many people pay. But Scott says it's essential to take action immediately.
Scott recommends always trying to go directly to the landowner first. He said: "If you get a ticket at a supermarket car park, go straight to the supermarket direct to get it cancelled with a receipt to prove your visit and loyalty and get a confirmation in writing."
If that doesn't work, he claims you can appeal a private parking ticket in many different ways. Scott said: "For example, if you're just minutes out. You're allowed five minutes grace period under the British Parking Association Code of Practice to evaluate the terms and conditions.
"Can you cast reasonable doubt? You know, is the signage clear? Is it a little bit late? Signs need to be clearly visible day and night. Take photos, go on Google Street View.
"There's also a little-known piece of legislation called the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012, and this comes into play if the date of the invoice being issued exceeds 14 days after the parking incident. If the two dates are more than 14 days apart, it's invalid."
He suggests checking for issues with the ticket, such as errors in street names or if they allege that a badge or permit isn't displayed, but there is no photo evidence.
Scott says that even keying errors, such as if you've input your car reg incorrectly, can also be appealed because proof of payment is all that is required to show there has been no breach of contract. In fact, Stuart shared that the British Parking Association Code of Practice states that if "minor errors where up to one character has been entered incorrectly, or where the registration has been entered in the wrong order... leads to a PCN being issued and the motorist appeals, the PCN must be cancelled at the first stage of appeal."
POPLA
For most people, Scott says, the first appeal will always be unsuccessful, but he urges motorists to stick to their guns. He advises that when writing an initial appeal, firstly, not identify yourself as the driver, just the "keeper", but secondly, to ask that if the appeal is unsuccessful, it be issued with a POPLA code.
POPLA, or Parking on Private Land Appeals, is an independent appeals service for Parking Charge Notices issued on private land. If your appeal is rejected and the operator provides you with the POPLA code for the case, a further appeal can be heard by POPLA, which Scott says is done at the operator's expense.
Scotts estimates that there is ultimately a 50- 50 success rate with appeals. For 2021 the Traffic Penalty Tribunal, a government website that helps people appeal Penalty Charge Notices (not on private land), reported that out of around 7,000 who used the service, 63% of those appeals were successful after either being allowed by an adjudicator or not contested by the authority.
Stick to your guns
Although Scott may be on a mission to empower people and raise awareness of consumer rights, he still understands that the threat of court action will make many people anxious. He said: "People feel intimidated, and they pay off because they don't want to be taken to court, but it's just an invoice for an alleged breach of contract. It's not a fine. And people need to put this into perspective. And, equally, you can't ignore. You've got to be crafty about it, and you've got to stick to your guns."
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