Private Car Park Fines Cap

Former_MSE_James_F

Private car park operators will no longer be able to set fines above £50 in the majority of circumstances, under new proposals set out by the Government. The move, if approved, will cut fines in half and push operators to better display pricing policies as well as their terms and conditions.

Read the full story here:
'Private parking fines to be reduced by half to £50 under new proposals - here are all the details'

Click reply below to discuss. If you haven’t already, join the forum to reply.

Jenni_D

You snooze, you lose

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/6333036/breaking-news-government-has-announced-the-statutory-code-of-practice-and-enforcement-framework

Le_Kirk

............... and they are NOT fines!

Fruitcake

Duplicate (and inaccurate) thread.

Please ignore.

fisherjim

Private car park operators have NEVER been able to set "fines" of any value!

Coupon-mad

Actually this thread should not be ignored because it is the 'official' thread leading from an MSE article about the new Code of Practice.

Very important that posters who don't normally stray to this parking board know about our contribution and efforts.

People do call them fines so I don't have a problem with that as long as Government know the difference in reality (and they do).

I did email Martin Lewis about it.

Not sure that MSE Towers realise how VERY closely involved some of us were in shaping this great new Code.

@MSE_James_F and @MSE_Martin, we (the regulars here) were instrumental in various ways in this achievement. 

 @bargepole did tireless groundwork and much more, and still does.   Regular posters responded with knowledgeable responses and evidence to both Consultations.

And I spent 18 months attending every Steering Group meeting, representing consumers and helping to influence the whole thing to create a fairer playing (driving?) field for motorists.

The Government listened!

GraceCourt

MSE_James_F said:

Private car park operators will no longer be able to set fines above £50 in the majority of circumstances, under new proposals set out by the Government. The move, if approved, will cut fines in half and push operators to better display pricing policies as well as their terms and conditions.

I came here to congratulate the author of the original article in not referring to "fines" at all, only to find that the introduction refers to it twice! As previous posters have stated, these contractual penalty charges are not fines, which cannot be levied either by private parking companies or even by local authorities - only by criminal Courts. End of.

That said, all of the advice in this thread and in others in relation to challenging unfair invoices for penalty charges is good advice.  I won't bore anyone with detail but a friend of my daughter had his car (worth £500) towed away and "held hostage" for over a year before winning his claim in Part 27 proceedings in the County Court and being awarded over £5,000 in damages and for "loss of use". The District Judge was scathing about the parking company, its tactics, and the lack of preparation by the Defendant's solicitor for the hearing.

Unusually in Part 27 proceedings, the Defendant - who had had a judgment by default for £500 against it set aside - appealed: it was unsuccessful.

rarrarrar

Its very good news, but there must be some car parks in very expensive areas where the capped penalty with the 50% early payment provision would be cheaper than the actual Parking Fees due . Or have I missed something ?

The_Slithy_Tove

Coupon-mad said:

...

People do call them fines so I don't have a problem with that as long as Government know the difference in reality (and they do).

...

Not sure that MSE Towers realise how VERY closely involved some of us were in shaping this great new Code.

Even the Ministerial foreword refers to "fines" a couple of times.

Your fingerprints are all over the COP, identifying issues that pop up all the time here, but may otherwise have been overlooked. And even the term "double dipping" gets an appearance. I'm sure that term was first used here :-)

The_Slithy_Tove

rarrarrar said:

Its very good news, but there must be some car parks in very expensive areas where the capped penalty with the 50% early payment provision would be cheaper than the actual Parking Fees due . Or have I missed something ?

London does have higher charges, along the same lines as council PCNs. But you're right, outside London £25 could be cheap compared to what you might have to pay in a car park. But most occasions where I have stayed in very expensive car parks, e.g. airports, railway stations for multiple days, at events, the parking has been barrier controlled, so the scope to do as you suggest is limited.

Umkomaas

rarrarrar said:

Its very good news, but there must be some car parks in very expensive areas where the capped penalty with the 50% early payment provision would be cheaper than the actual Parking Fees due . Or have I missed something ?

Yep, you've missed the fact that under the new arrangements the PPC can pursue for the full tariff if it exceeds the standard parking charge. 

So, as it seems to me, don't pay a day's £45 parking tariff (easily run up at an airport short term car park, for example), the NoPC won't be £50 discounted to £25, it will be £45, no discount.