Private motorists across Britain received an unprecedented 4.3 million parking penalties during the second quarter of this year, new data has revealed.
This marks a sharp 24 per cent rise from the previous year's 3.5 million tickets and translates to approximately 48,000 penalties distributed each day by private parking operators.
With individual penalties reaching £100, motorists could be facing collective costs approaching £4.8million every day.
The penalties relate exclusively to privately managed car parks, including those at retail centres, entertainment venues and motorway services.
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The number of parking tickets issued at private car parks has increased by 24 per cent compared to last year
|GETTY
Ministers have pushed back the deadline for their review of private parking regulations by three weeks, with the consultation now set to conclude on September 26, rather than the original September 5 date.
Experts have warned that this delay represents the latest setback in efforts to establish statutory oversight of the sector.
Parliament approved legislation enabling a comprehensive code of practice more than six years ago, when the relevant Bill gained Royal Assent in March 2019.
The framework was meant to be operational throughout Britain before 2024 began. However, the previous Conservative administration abandoned the proposals in June 2022 following a legal challenge mounted by parking operators.
Once the new laws are passed, drivers will be given a grace period to avoid fines if they arrive at their vehicle after their ticket has expired
| GETTYThe current Labour Government has now reopened discussions about reforming the industry through its extended consultation process.
Private parking operators face criticism for employing deceptive signage and pursuing motorists with forceful debt recovery tactics. One campaigner alleged that payment terminals are "set up to trap people", contributing to the mounting number of penalties.
The data reveals that 184 parking management firms sought vehicle keeper details from the DVLA during the April-June period.
Steve Gooding, who leads the RAC Foundation, said: "Not all motorists are blameless, but what we don't understand is how this scale of keeper data release can be needed unless something is badly awry in the business of parking management."
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The abandoned framework would have introduced a £50 ceiling for most parking infractions, representing a 50 per cent reduction from current penalty levels.
Plans also encompassed establishing more equitable procedures for motorists to contest penalties and prohibiting intimidating language on penalty notices.
These consumer safeguards were scheduled for implementation across Britain by late 2023, but parking operators successfully mounted a legal challenge that prompted the Conservative administration to withdraw the entire regulatory package in June 2022.
The British Parking Association and International Parking Community released their own voluntary standards in June 2023, though motoring organisations dismissed these measures for omitting crucial elements like penalty caps and debt recovery fee restrictions.
The Government is expected to provide details on the Private Parking Code of Practice soon
| GETTYThe BPA maintains that 99.6 per cent of the estimated 40 million daily parking transactions proceed without penalties being issued.
A spokesperson for the Association said: "The BPA welcomes the Government's consultation. We believe the proposals set out are pragmatic, and as a sector we are working constructively to respond."
A Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) spokesperson added: "We inherited a dysfunctional private parking market that lacks transparency and protection for motorists.
"Our private parking code of practice will stamp out unfair charges and drive up standards in the industry - the consultation on this closes next week and we’ll work quickly to bring in these changes."