Recent News
What the media has to say about our work
24th February 2010 - Daily Telegraph, by Caroline Gammell
'Unfair' parking fines system should be overhauled - campaigners
The parking fines system should be overhauled to stop councils benefiting financially and forcing motorists to pay often trivial fines, a coalition of campaigners has said.
Road signs should be simplified, any profit returned to the Treasury and motorists should be compensated if they are given an incorrect penalty notice.
In addition, the number of mobile CCTV operators should be reduced and investigations should be held into areas where fines are “statistically excessive”. Read the full story
23rd February 2010 - Express & Echo
Councils' parking tribunal evidence probed by Exeter police
POLICE are investigating allegations that a council employee falsified details on a map which was given as evidence at a tribunal.
The probe was launched after concern was raised by Peter Harry who was given a penalty charge notice after he left his car parked in Southernhay East, Exeter, in March last year. The 67-year-old from Dawlish appealed against his fine and took the matter to a tribunal. He claimed the markings on the road were not legally correct.
An adjudicator ruled against him but after obtaining evidence from the tribunal, held in Manchester, Mr Harry went to the police with his concerns prompting a criminal investigation. Read the full story
22nd February 2010 - Express & Echo
Hospital parking fines to be repaid by council
THOUSANDS of pounds raised in parking fines at the Royal Devon & Exeter Hospital will have to be paid back to motorists.
Cash-strapped Exeter City Council will have to find around £35,000 paid by motorists in fines between May 2008 and October 2009.
The council, which patrols the car park on behalf of the hospital, has accepted it used the wrong legislation to enforce parking penalties since May 2008. Although the hospital benefits from the charges and fines, the parking scheme at the hospital is managed by the city council. And because of its mistake, the authority is liable for the refunds. Read the full story
19th February 2010 - Times Online, by Lauren Thompson
London councils sue themselves for parking offences
Critics say the practise "illustrates everything that is wrong with unaccountable parking enforcement in the UK"
London councils routinely take themselves to court over disputed parking tickets their wardens issue to their own vehicles, it has emerged.
In one case, Islington Council not only issued a parking ticket to itself, but then pursued itself at the Parking Adjudicator and then asked for costs against itself. Read the full story
17th February 2010 - Burton Mail, by Samera Khatoon
Motorist gets ‘illegal’ ticket
TOWN Hall officials have been left with red faces after handing a driver an ‘illegal’ parking ticket.
East Staffordshire Borough Council slapped the unnamed motorist with a £70 fine — which can be reduced to £35 if paid within 14 days — for parking in Hawkins Lane, Burton, on Friday.
However, an investigation by Internet advice group the Motorists Legal Challenge Fund has since revealed the penalty is ‘illegal’ because it tells credit card users they are liable to pay a 1.6 per cent levy — a move outlawed in March 2008. Read the full story
1st February 2010 - BBC News, London by Ed Davey
London councils' three-decade parking error revealed
Five London councils may have to repay millions of pounds of parking fines to motorists after a BBC London investigation proved hundreds of their parking bays have been unlawfully operated for decades.
There are 346 diplomatic parking sites in the city, reserved for foreign embassy staff.
But because they are not "standard" bays, councils have to get permission from the secretary of state for transport before installing road signs. Read the full story
30th January 2010 - BBC News
Supermarket parking limits 'breach' disability laws
The UK's big supermarkets are breaking disability laws by having strict time limits in about two-thirds of their car parks, charities have told the BBC.
Private firms run some of the parking areas for Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury's and Morrisons and customers face penalty charges for overstaying.
But under the Disability Discrimination Act, businesses need to make extra allowances for disabled people. The supermarkets say they will review their policies on disabled parking. Read the full story
22nd January 2010 - London Evening Standard by David Williams
New parking restrictions ‘will earn Westminster £7m a year’
A secret internal memo from Westminster council reveals it will make more than £7 million a year from new parking regulations.
The Standard revealed yesterday how the council wants to scrap free evening parking across much of the West End.
Under moves being considered by officials, visitors would not be able to leave cars on single yellow lines and be forced to use pay and display machines until midnight instead of 6.30pm. Read the full story
21st January 2010 - BBC News
Westminster Council parking plan 'designed to net £7m'
A council's claim it aimed to raise parking fees solely to cut congestion has been thrown into further doubt after a BBC investigation found it carried out detailed costings to assess how much money it could raise.
Westminster Council - which already makes more from parking than any other London borough - is proposing to charge drivers to park in central London until midnight.
It argues other less-congested boroughs have extended their parking controls and said the authority aims to balance the interests of residents and visitors to Westminster. Read the full story
21st January 2010 - The Bolton News
Parking ticket row hits High Court
PARKING tickets issued in Bolton are to be scrutinised by the High Court after an appeal was lodged about their lawfulness.
Campaigner Barry Moss will try to prove tickets have been issued outside of government guidelines, by the borough’s parking wardens.
If he wins the case thousands of motorists could be in line for a refund from Bolton Council.
20th December 2009 - News of the World by Tom Latchem
GREEDY councils are exploiting motorists by raking in almost £2 BILLION a year in parking fees and fines
Last year drivers paid a record £1.9bn to town halls in England - 8 per cent up on the previous year and TREBLE the £638m for 1997/98 when Labour came to power. That means around £60 a year is going straight from the pocket of every motorist into town hall coffers.
Experts fear councils are ripping off car owners to plug gaps in their finances as the squeeze on public spending tightens. Read the full story
10th December 2009 - St Albans & Harpenden Review by Manisha Mistry
St Albans District Council under fire again for parking blunder
A REVIEW into the district council's parking enforcement which came under fire in October after a shocking blunder was revealed has discovered more flaws in the system.
The car parking working party, which met last night, discussed a report undertaken by the chief finance officer. In October the Review revealed how the council's Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) was deemed invalid by an adjudicator at a Traffic Penalty Tribunal forcing more than £24,000 worth of unpaid fines to be waived. Read the full story
10th November 2009 - Basingstoke Gazette by Patrick Knox
Parking tickets not valid
DRIVERS were wrongly issued with fines after experimental parking controls were found not to be valid. Motorists were issued with tickets, totalling £1,375, for parking in controlled areas in the Penrith Road area of Brookvale, Kings Furlong and North Whitchurch. But officers in Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council introduced the controls under the wrong legislation – meaning they could not be lawfully enforced. So far, no driver hit by a fine has been reimbursed.
Councillor Clive Sanders, Cabinet member for community safety and development, made the disclosures after being quizzed by Whitchurch borough councillor Keith Watts at a full council meeting on the total value of the fines. Cllr Sanders said: "The professional advice available was that there was a possibility that the orders could be flawed and it was inappropriate for the council’s enforcement officers to continue issuing the fixed penalty notices." Read the full story
27th October - St Albans & Harpenden Review by Manisha Mistry
St Albans District Council forced to refund penalties following blunder
DRIVERS given parking tickets by St Albans District Council could be entitled to a refund following a massive admin blunder. The authority came under fire this week after a Traffic Penalty Tribunal investigating one man's £50 fine deemed all enforcements since March 30, 2008 invalid. It was on this day that the district council's Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) - which is updated every year - came into force, however, the legal wording was not amended in line with new details in the Traffic Management Act 2004 (TMA). Read the full story
21st September 2009 - Herald Express
Motorists could be in line for parking fine refund
MOTORISTS in Teignbridge who have received parking tickets could be eligible for a refund after a surcharge on payment by credit card was deemed illegal. Penalty Charge Notices that were being issued by Teignbridge District Council stated that the recipient would incur a 1.7 per cent administration charge if it was paid by credit card. However, this meant the penalty exceeded the amount prescribed by law and rendered the notices unlawful. Read the full story
18th September 2009 - BBC News
18,000 drivers had illegal fines
Manchester City Council's cameras were not certified until May 2007.
More than 18,000 fines handed to motorists caught driving in bus lanes in Manchester were illegal, the local authority has admitted. The drivers were all caught out by cameras between October 2006 and May 2007 - before they were approved for use in bus lanes. Manchester City Council believed the cameras could be retrospectively certified - but lawyers ruled it out. It could now face a payout of more than £544,000 to drivers who were caught. All bus lane cameras in the city have had Department for Transport approval since 24 December 2008. Read the full story
17th September 2009 - Daily Echo by Julie Magee
Are hundreds of Bournemouth parking fines set to be refunded?
HUNDREDS of motorists stung by parking fines after being caught on film by Bournemouth council’s camera car could receive refunds after a landmark legal ruling. A tribunal has ruled that unless local authorities have put up signs warning drivers the ‘spy cameras’ are in operation, tickets are invalid. A camera car scheme was launched in Bournemouth on June 17 to target drivers who park at bus stops and outside schools. Warning signs were not erected. In the past seven weeks 370 drivers, including disabled Southbourne man Roger Ryder, were caught parking at bus stops. Eleven motorists were captured on camera parking at school entrances. Each received a £70 fixed penalty notice through the post.
Retired businessman Mr Ryder, 65, didn’t realise his red Jaguar had been photographed on July 7. He said: “I popped into the Co-op store in Tuckton for a newspaper – there wasn’t anywhere else near the shop to park. "I was shocked when the fine notice dropped through my door. I paid it within a couple of days so it cost me £35 instead of £70, which is the penalty if you don’t pay within 30 days. I’ll definitely be appealing, now I know what has happened elsewhere. There weren’t any signs saying the camera car was operating in the area and I think that is wrong. Motorists should be warned." Read the full story
11th September 2009 - Halifax Courier by Michael Peel
4,700 could get parking rebates because surcharges broke the rules
AROUND 4,700 motorists who paid parking fines using credit cards could be entitled to a rebate. They account for 10 per cent of the 47,000 drivers fined since 2006.
The Courier reported last month how the 2.6 per cent surcharge on credit card payments contravenes Department of Transport guidelines and was recently scrapped. Figures obtained under the Freedom of Information Act show that since the council took over responsibility for parking enforcement in November 2006, it has raised £1,278,000 in fines.That follows the issuing of 47,000 parking contravention notices. Read the full story
18th August 2009 - The Times by Ali Hussain
Local authorities breach parking guidelines
Consumer group Which? says motorists are being penalised unfairly when issued with parking tickets
Six local authority councils have been accused by the consumer watchdog Which? of breaching Government guidelines by setting targets for the number of parking tickets issued by their wardens. A freedom of information request by Which? found that the councils - Basildon, Richmond upon Thames, Lewisham, Bromley, Shropshire and Carmarthenshire - all "expect a certain number of tickets to be issued."
Setting such targets is against Department for Transport guidelines. The Department for Transport said: "Our guidance to local authorities is clear that they should not set targets for the number of penalty charge notices they issue. Parking charges are a tool to manage demand for road use and they should not be used as a revenue raising measure. Local authorities are expected to comply with our guidance and are accountable to their electorates, auditor and the courts. Any concerns about the operations of local councils should be raised with the council leader or local ombudsman." Read the full story
10 Aug 2009 - The Telegraph by David Millward, Transport Editor
Motorists set to recoup parking fines after credit card challenge
Motorists who have paid millions of pounds in parking fines are in line for refunds after a test case ruled that town hall surcharges imposed for paying by credit card are unlawful.
An estimated eight million drivers, around one in four of the total number on the roads, receive a parking ticket every year, paying an estimated £1 billion in fines. Millions choose to use a credit card to settle the debt either by paying online or via a telephone service.
Related Articles:
- A mess over illegal parking tickets
- Councils to use cameras to catch drivers
- Illegal parking fines cost drivers millions
- Motorists see £12.5m increase in parking fines
- How to get revenge for your parking ticket
7th Aug 2009 - Parking Review Issue 209
Residents were let down by ‘flawed consultation’
Ealing failed to stress the risks of CPZ parking displacement, says Ombudsman
Ealing council’s consultation exercise for a controlled parking zone (CPZ) failed to make residents aware of the risks of displacement parking, according to the Local Government Ombudsman. Tony Redmond said the scheme had caused parking problems for residents left out of the CPZ. The questionnaire sent to residents by the council did not give enough information to enable them to make an informed decision, stated Redmond. The local authority committed "maladministration leading to injustice", he said. Ealing resident ‘Mr Shah’ (not his real name) took the case to the ombudsman. The resident lives on ‘Sheffield Road’, which was excluded from the scheme. The council said that 86% of questionnaire respondents on the street were opposed to the scheme. However, just 13% of residents on Sheffield Road had responded to the survey. Read the full story
4th August 2009 - BBC News
'Periscope' parking fines quashed
Rachel Johnson argued that there were no warning signs to tell drivers they were being filmed.
Motorists issued with parking fines after being caught out by so-called "spy cars" may now have grounds to appeal after a legal ruling. Rachel Johnson, 32, challenged three £60 fines issued by Wirral Council using evidence gathered by Smart Cars fitted with periscope cameras.
A tribunal upheld her claim that the Penalty Charge Notices were invalid because there were no warning signs.
About 30 councils across England and Wales are believed to use the cameras. Read the full story
1st August 2009 - Express and Echo
Drivers wrongly fined in traffic order mix-up to get money paid back
THOUSANDS of pounds collected in parking fines are set to be paid back to city drivers, the Echo can reveal.
Penalty tickets were issued to drivers in three large parking zones in the city before the council discovered that the areas weren't covered by the relevant traffic order. The mix-up, first highlighted by the Echo, means Devon County Council will now pay back the cost of fines dished out to drivers in Pennsylvania, Duryard and the Regent's Park residents' parking zones between May, 2008, and February this year.
The problem came to light after an investigation by Percy Prowse, county councillor for Pennsylvania and Duryard, who found that the correct traffic orders were not in place. Cllr Prowse said: "I am pleased that drivers are to get the money back and the county council is duty bound now to write to the residents, every permit holder, and rectify the situation. I think the money to be repaid will run into thousands of pounds." Read the full story
29 July 2009 - Sunderland Echo by Tim Booler
Payback for parkers
Thousands of motorists could get refunds from city centre parking tickets, it was claimed today.
Campaigner Neil Herron says up to 5,500 individuals and businesses could benefit after penalty charges in Sunniside and Park Lane Shopping Village, Sunderland, were scrapped by an independent adjudicator. Mr Herron represented estate agent Brendan Hackett, who won his appeal against Sunderland Council after parking attendants incorrectly slapped £40 tickets on his car in a pay- and-display area near his office in Frederick Street, on four occasions up to February. Read the full story
25th July 2009 - BBC News
Traffic wardens 'made to ticket'
Unions claim some traffic wardens miss out on perks if they miss targets
Parking enforcement officers face "humiliation" if they fail to meet their targets for issuing parking fines, their unions have claimed. The unions Unite and Unison say wardens often have to meet targets to qualify for overtime and other perks.
Parking attendants have told the BBC this means some tickets are issued when there is no real justification. The British Parking Association said ticket-targeting was "unacceptable" and it was trying to stop the practice. Read the full story
19 Jul 2009 - Daily Telegraph by Philip Johnston
How to get revenge for your parking ticket
You can turn the tables on councils that play fast and loose with the law, says Philip Johnston.
Yes, I know: it's only a parking ticket. Perhaps I should not be in such a lather about it, but I am and I am not alone. Not by a long way. It is not that we cannot afford £60 (or £30 if we go quietly, which we won't). It is the sheer injustice of it. This ticket was placed on our car not in the town centre or on a busy urban highway but in the street outside our house where we already pay £90 a year to park in a Controlled Parking Zone (CPZ), which a majority in our road voted against having in a referendum. We live in a quiet avenue in London with no problems of congestion or of obstruction. Read the full story
3rd July 2009 - The Times by Hugo Rifkind
Highway robbery. And that’s official
They took my car away. I am powerless
Away on holiday, and the bastards stole my car. I’ve spoken to the police but they can’t help. These bastards, you see, they’re connected. They’re the biggest, meanest, most chiselling bunch of organised crooks from WC1 to N3. They’re known by all sorts of names, many of them unprintable. To most, though, they go by the moniker of "Camden Council". Read the full story
9th July 2009 - BBC News by Tom Symonds, Transport Correspondent
Private clamping 'legally shaky'
The clamping of cars by private companies in England and Wales is legally shaky and could breach human rights, the RAC Foundation has claimed.
It says sometimes "exorbitant" fines are demanded without legal process and it wants to see laws changed. Clamping cars also prevents drivers from putting right the obstruction they caused, the motoring body argues. The Home Office is carrying out a consultation and intends to tighten the regulations governing private clampers. Read the full story
1st July 2009 - Newcastle Journal
Judge questions disabled parking badge case
A JUDGE has branded the prosecution of a disabled former policeman for displaying an out-of-date parking badge a complete waste of taxpayers’ money.
David Athey was taken to court after not paying two parking fines imposed when he mistakenly displayed a disabled badge that had expired. He appealed against the decision but it has taken four years for his case to come before a crown court judge and is estimated to have cost the taxpayer up to £10,000. Read the full story
11th June 2009 - BBC News
BBC reports Camden's parking tickets unlawful
Is this the most expensive parking ticket blunder in history? The ruling also applies to the London Boroughs of Merton, Kingston and Harrow. Watch the Video
24th June 2009 - Leicester Mercury
Drivers may get tickets refund over parking bay errors
Drivers given parking tickets may be able to claim a refund after it emerged the wrong measurements had been used for parking bays.
Leicester City Council workers are remarking many of the 240 bays in the city centre. However, the authority has insisted it is only doing the work to make the bays clearer, and not because they are wrong. It comes after a driver successfully appealed against a ticket he was given in a loading bay in the city because, he said, the dimensions of the space did not meet legal requirements. The Leicester Mercury carried out its own checks on five random bays in the St George's area and found all were incorrectly marked out. Read the full story
16th June 2009 - Sunderland Echo by Jane O'Neill
High Court boost for Sunderland parking campaigner
Parking campaigner Neil Herron has been given a boost in his legal battle.
The Sunderland businessman claims parking restrictions in Sunderland city centre are unlawful and has taken the matter to London's High Court. Mr Herron, of The Westlands, is fighting a personal battle against a number of parking fines. He also runs Parking Appeals Ltd, a company which helps those who feel they have been on the wrong end of a parking attendant's decision.
Now a High Court judge has given him permission to continue his fight against what he claims are illegal parking restrictions. Speaking after the hearing, Mr Herron said he was ready for a "David and Goliath" struggle. "This is fantastic news, not just for Sunderland, but for UK motorists who are facing an uphill struggle against local authorities." Finally we have this matter before the highest court in the land and we are looking forward to a judicial ruling on matters that many, many motorists have complained about." Read the full story
11th June 2009 - BBC News
Many parking tickets 'unlawful'
Thousands of drivers in London may be affected by the ruling
Thousands of parking tickets paid by credit card could be cancelled after a council's charges were ruled unlawful. Camden Council has been charging 1.3% extra for tickets paid by credit card. But a firm claimed the extra charge is unfair - and the Parking and Traffic Appeals Service (PATAS) agreed, saying the entire ticket should be cancelled. The ruling could also affect the boroughs of Harrow and Merton, which also charge extra to pay tickets by credit card. Camden Council may appeal. Read the full story
14th March 2009 - The Journal by Paul James
Newcastle City Council parking loophole lets drivers off hook
LITTLE-KNOWN Government rules have led to a parking free-for-all in the region. Council officials last night admitted they are powerless to enforce regulations governing thousands of parking spaces in the North East. Read the full story
10th December 2008 - BBC News
Refunds after Parking Fine Error
Thousands of parking tickets are estimated to have been wrongly issued to motorists in a seaside town over the last two years after a mistake.
Ceredigion Council and Dyfed-Powys Police said people fined for parking in Aberystwyth town centre since November 2006 could apply for their £30 back. They are trying to trace those affected by the "systems failure". Read the full story
11th December 2008 - Ealing Times by Alex Hayes
Ealing Council could be investigated by police for fraud
POLICE could be called in to investigate Ealing Council for fraud after it refused to hand out refunds for cash taken on unlawful box junctions.
Cops are investigating a north London borough where 73 tickets were handed out by the local council on one unlawfully marked box junction. Read the full story
26th November 2008 - Ealing Times by Alex Hayes
Taylor apologises over Southall box junction enforcement scandal
A COUNCILLOR has apologised after it was revealed officials knew six box junctions were unlawful five months before they were removed.
Councillor Phil Taylor gave the "unreserved apology" after it was revealed a council official was told by email in June by the Department for Transport (DfT) the six box junctions were too big. However, thousands of tickets were handed to drivers until the DfT spoke to the council again at the beginning of November, and enforcement stopped. The amount taken in fines on four of the boxes in South Road and High Street, Southall over that time could amount to nearly £1m. Read the full story
24th October 2008 - Daily Mail
Motorists in line for £3million refund after councils admit handing out illegal parking tickets
Motorists are entitled to millions of pounds in refunds after several councils admitted handing out illegal parking tickets. The climbdown follows an investigation of local authorities around the UK which revealed the extent of unlawful parking restrictions. Now thousands of drivers who received fines as long ago as 2004 can get their money back after councils agreed to refund more than £3million in penalties. Motorists are set to receive up to £3million in refunds after several councils admitted handing out illegal parking tickets The decision comes after a landmark legal challenge over the use of parking tickets as a 'stealth tax'.
Last month, 'metric martyr' Neil Herron - who led the campaign to stop the prosecution of British shopkeepers who were using imperial measurements - lodged legal papers at the High Court challenging millions of parking tickets. Mr Herron believes that many are invalid because of flaws in the regulations which cover controlled parking zones. Read the full story