Parking Code of Practice Consultation 2025 - now let's see what happens

Nellymoser

Oh these type of machines are available. The one I used 4yrs ago in a city centre hotel 50 space car park actually brought up a pic of my car parked in the car park and asked is this your car? Confirm YES or NO.

daveyjp

Nellymoser said:

Oh these type of machines are available. The one I used 4yrs ago in a city centre hotel 50 space car park actually brought up a pic of my car parked in the car park and asked is this your car? Confirm YES or NO.

Same as the system on a local school near a city centre that I was at about 10 years ago.  Start typing the reg and your car appears on the screen.

Le_Kirk

I came across a similar but enhanced version of one some years ago at LHR terminal 5, where it not only asked if this was your car but told you on which floor, row and aisle the car was located.

Coupon-mad

delabc said:

I assume that PPCs get paid by the landowner for doing their day job, 

Nope. Almost unheard of.

They rock up and present a 'free ANPR solution' (protection racket) to retailers and landowners. Sometimes paying the landowner a cut.

Nellymoser

@delabc have a read of parking companies websites see the various management systems they offer to clients. It all sounds wonderfully efficient on PAPER sadly it's not what we see or experience in practice.

I strongly advised the MHCLG to do this in my response. Suggesting it would not only enable MHCLG to see various system options to manage landowner's car parks it would also enable them to see the data operators already collect. The MHCLG in the consultation had implied no data was available and that's untrue.

I struggle to understand why residents even need parking permits when landowner/agent/MC seem to have direct access to make changes to the 'exemption list' and it's gobsmacking PE the biggest requester of keeper details can say "In rare instances where a customer is issued with a Parking Charge, it should never be a battle to request a cancellation, although we’ll always offer advice on setting precedents for certain scenarios" then go on to spout about 'ethical enforcement' boasting an impressive 82% success rate with POPLA (the industry average is 49.4%).

This link appeared in a recent Google parking search. 

https://www.smartparking.com/uk/latest/2025/september/parking-at-a-golf-club-make-it-easy-for-your-members/

Kaizen2024 said:

Well, it’s either the terminals fault or the user; and the terminal will only do as it’s told… it’s clear who’s fault it is.

Is it clear?? The terminals in the two videos in this bbc article DIDN’T do as told by motorists. They did their own thing OR what the terminals had been programmed to do.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cdeln2ly1z0o

And the 4 pics of tickets with one vehicle Reg letter printed looks to me like there's not even enough space on these tickets Reg. line to print a 7 character vehicle registration. 

If anyone still has to submit a response do put forward your suggested solutions to address the problems. IMO this MHCLG has failed to come to grips with private parking problem and Ministers are repeating the same mistakes that were made with the Post Office....believe everything the company bosses say.

kryten3000

As requested, here are a couple of fake PCN images to post on Social media.  

Coupon-mad

kryten3000 said:

As requested, here are a couple of fake PCN images to post on Social media.  

Thanks!

Here's your direct link to the main image:

https://us-noi.v-cdn.net/6031891/uploads/editor/sy/3h7k01ywyw8e.jpg

These are a great eye-catching message to send by post, email or on Social Media to the MHCLG, the National press and various authorities that should be involved in the consultation.

This is an extra fightback - please share!

This is a new idea for a simple campaign to keep this matter current, to alert Martin Lewis and Watchdog, National press, the Financial Conduct Authority and Competition and Markets Authority, etc.

We need to encourage LOTS of people to send this by email or post, to agencies such as these but ideally,  please include a covering note or email BRIEFLY referencing the issues, the Consultation, the Code):


- your own constituency MP

- the MHCLG - by post: Parking Team, 2 Marsham Street, London, SW1P 4DF, United Kingdom

- the DVLA - by post: Head of Complaints, DVLA, Swansea, SA6 7JL

- the FCA - https://www.fca.org.uk/markets/market-abuse/how-report-suspected-market-abuse-individual

- the CMA - https://www.gov.uk/guidance/contact-the-cma

- Martin Lewis (he is MartinSLewis on X and martinlewismse on Instagram) and to the Money Show, by email: martinlewis@itv.com

- Watchdog at the One Show - https://www.bbc.co.uk/send/u23123288

- The Consumers' Association: which@which.co.uk

- CAB E&W: (include explanatory note): Citizens Advice, 3rd Floor, 1 Easton Street, London, WC1X 0DW

- CAB Scotland: (include explanatory note): Broadside, 2 Powderhall Rd, Edinburgh EH7 4GB

- Transport Scotland:  5th Foor, 4th Floor, 177 Bothwell Street, Glasgow, G2 7ER

- Transport for Wales: https://tfw.wales/help-and-contact/get-in-touch

- StepChange: admin.team@stepchange.org

- Money Advice Trust: 21 Garlick Hill London EC4V 2AU or Email: info@moneyadvicetrust.org

- National newspapers, and/or the Press Association

- Transport Extra, Fleet News and similar publications



- ...and where else? Any ideas?

This campaign COULD make a difference as these will catch attention.

Particularly if anyone fancies putting a few in an envelope and posting them snail mail to land on desks.

Even after the Survey closes. Let's push these!

ChirpyChicken

Really good @kryten3000

grassmarket

Re Which? - I’m tempted to say: don’t waste your time! 

But for any masochist who wants to try their luck - the CEO’s email is anabel.hoult@which.co.uk. 

Despite private parking charges being one of the most widely-perpetrated consumer scams out there, the self-appointed ‘Consumer Champion’ simply isn’t interested. 

The latest Which? article in May is worse than useless. Not only do they still conflate PCNs with private tickets. their ‘advice’ only extends as far as how to appeal to BPC & IAS for reasons that (it is well documented) will be instantly rejected. 

Which? say nothing of any worth about debt collection & quasi-legal letters - let alone court. 

IMO they’re not interested unless they can sign people up to Which? Legal.  

https://www.which.co.uk/consumer-rights/advice/how-to-challenge-a-parking-ticket-asBzj3e9xtIj

For years now, I’ve been trying to persuade Which? to take seriously the systemic abuse of consumers by many private parking companies. 

In July I wrote to CEO Anabel Hoult, asking her to alert members to the Consultation via magazine & website. 

Ms Hoult replied:

“We continue to offer free advice on how to appeal parking tickets for the very reasons you raise. The Small Claims Court process carries a genuine risk that consumers could lose and be held liable not only for their own costs but also those of the parking company. Our guidance sets out the full range of options available to consumers, including how to respond to debt collection demands. We are considering how we can promote this advice further.

We remain concerned about the private parking code and the conduct of private parking companies. My team is considering what further action we might take to hold these companies to account as part of our work on tackling consumer rip-offs, and what a route to change might look like. With your permission, I will write to you again once these discussions have concluded.”

Needless to say - she hasn’t written back & they’ve still done nothing - despite my repeated requests since then. 

They’ve utterly failed to use their public platform to alert anyone to the Consultation. Still they stick their heads in the sand.

Car1980

Waste of time. Leave them to their day job - testing washing machines.