Parking Code of Practice Consultation - now EXTENDED - closes Friday 26th September

Nellymoser

"Doing nothing achieves nothing"

says The Complaints Resolver 

https://thecomplaintsresolver.co.uk/new-parking-code-tighter-rules-for-private-parking-firms/

A helpful article, encourages people to speak up and suggests how to have your say on the parking consultation "Your experience could help others and bring pressure where it’s needed most."

Bad practices will only stop if enough drivers respond and force the private parking industry to change.

Consultation closing date now 26th Sept 2025

Coupon-mad

Parking charge levels – Should private parking charges stay capped at £100 (£60 if paid early) or come down? Are they proportionate?
Debt recovery fees – Should the extra £70 collection fee stay, be reduced, or scrapped altogether?

It's all very well but the proposals don't actually say this. The Options Assessment is terrible and only says they intend to kick both cans down the road and look at it 'when the Scrutiny Board has some data' (in a hundred years).

We are fighting against a flawed set of options which are shockingly tone deaf, in my view.

Le_Kirk

Coupon-mad said:

Parking charge levels – Should private parking charges stay capped at £100 (£60 if paid early) or come down? Are they proportionate?
Debt recovery fees – Should the extra £70 collection fee stay, be reduced, or scrapped altogether?

It's all very well but the proposals don't actually say this. The Options Assessment is terrible and only says they intend to kick both cans down the road and look at it 'when the Scrutiny Board has some data' (in a hundred years).

We are fighting against a flawed set of options which are shockingly tone deaf, in my view.

Agreed and the consultation doesn't ask the correct questions, so I've had to revert to the old MP's trick of answering the question that wasn't asked!

Scubanutta

bargepole said:

I've had a quick skim-read of this, and once again, it is a complete fudge.

The parking charge may be capped at £100, or a lower amount.

The debt recovery fees look like they will remain, but possibly at a lower level than the £70.

The discount for early payment may remain ay 40% or possibly 50%

They say they don't have enough evidence to make decisions on these issues, hence yet another consultation. The reality is that they have had shedloads of evidence over the past 7 years since the Act became law, but have dragged their heels, and have given far too much credibility to the lies and spin of the parking industry.

This consultation runs for 8 weeks, then probably another few months while they collate and analyse all the responses. Which means that it will probably be another 2 years before the statutory CoP is passed by Parliament, and the final version won't be vastly different from the existing BPA and IPC codes.

I really can't be bothered with this any more, it's much more satisfying to defeat the scammers in contested court hearings, where I win nearly every time.

I hope you don’t mind me asking for clarification on something: the advice to defendants seems to be, primarily, that DCBL almost always discontinues before a court hearing. Looking at your score, it would suggest that quite some number do go to court. Is the assertion that they’re “usually” discontinued correct, or misleading? 

Umkomaas

Scubanutta said:

bargepole said:

I've had a quick skim-read of this, and once again, it is a complete fudge.

The parking charge may be capped at £100, or a lower amount.

The debt recovery fees look like they will remain, but possibly at a lower level than the £70.

The discount for early payment may remain ay 40% or possibly 50%

They say they don't have enough evidence to make decisions on these issues, hence yet another consultation. The reality is that they have had shedloads of evidence over the past 7 years since the Act became law, but have dragged their heels, and have given far too much credibility to the lies and spin of the parking industry.

This consultation runs for 8 weeks, then probably another few months while they collate and analyse all the responses. Which means that it will probably be another 2 years before the statutory CoP is passed by Parliament, and the final version won't be vastly different from the existing BPA and IPC codes.

I really can't be bothered with this any more, it's much more satisfying to defeat the scammers in contested court hearings, where I win nearly every time.

I hope you don’t mind me asking for clarification on something: the advice to defendants seems to be, primarily, that DCBL almost always discontinues before a court hearing. Looking at your score, it would suggest that quite some number do go to court. Is the assertion that they’re “usually” discontinued correct, or misleading? 

In the event @bargepole doesn't see this, his 'score' doesn't state which law firms he defended against. DCB Legal certainly don't have the monopoly as far as private parking court claims are concerned. 

ChirpyChicken

Nellymoser said:

"Doing nothing achieves nothing"

says The Complaints Resolver 

https://thecomplaintsresolver.co.uk/new-parking-code-tighter-rules-for-private-parking-firms/

A helpful article, encourages people to speak up and suggests how to have your say on the parking consultation "Your experience could help others and bring pressure where it’s needed most."

Bad practices will only stop if enough drivers respond and force the private parking industry to change.

Consultation closing date now 26th Sept 2025

Hes a really nice guy as well

Coupon-mad

Scubanutta said:

bargepole said:

I've had a quick skim-read of this, and once again, it is a complete fudge.

The parking charge may be capped at £100, or a lower amount.

The debt recovery fees look like they will remain, but possibly at a lower level than the £70.

The discount for early payment may remain ay 40% or possibly 50%

They say they don't have enough evidence to make decisions on these issues, hence yet another consultation. The reality is that they have had shedloads of evidence over the past 7 years since the Act became law, but have dragged their heels, and have given far too much credibility to the lies and spin of the parking industry.

This consultation runs for 8 weeks, then probably another few months while they collate and analyse all the responses. Which means that it will probably be another 2 years before the statutory CoP is passed by Parliament, and the final version won't be vastly different from the existing BPA and IPC codes.

I really can't be bothered with this any more, it's much more satisfying to defeat the scammers in contested court hearings, where I win nearly every time.

I hope you don’t mind me asking for clarification on something: the advice to defendants seems to be, primarily, that DCBL almost always discontinues before a court hearing. Looking at your score, it would suggest that quite some number do go to court.

Is the assertion that they’re “usually” discontinued correct, or misleading? 

It is absolutely correct.

I've appeared in court, so has @bargepole, so has @kryten3000 and @ChirpyChicken over many years. I've had NO hearings v DCB Legal claims because they pretty much always discontinue (except in VCS & Excel cases).

Other legals don't tend to discontinue, and DCB Legal also habdle multiple PCN cases ehich occasionally make it that far, but we still win at hearings, hence bargepole's running total.

There is nothing to fear from a DCB Legal claim.

kryten3000

Coupon-mad said:

I've appeared in court, so has @bargepole, so has @kryten3000 and @ChirpyChicken over many years. I've had NO hearings v DCB Legal claims because they pretty much always discontinue (except in VCS & Excel cases).

Other legals don't tend to discontinue, and DCB Legal also habdle multiple PCN cases ehich occasionally make it that far, but we still win at hearings, hence bargepole's running total.

There is nothing to fear from a DCB Legal claim.

I've attended exactly one DCB Legal run case in the last few years. Claimant was CUPS for a brief stop at the infamous Gaumont Approach lay-by in Watford and the case was dismissed.

Most of the other DCB Legal cases I have helped with have been discontinued, the only other exceptions were Excel/VCS claims which tend to go all the way.  

Exact numbers YTD against DCBL are:  

Won - 4
Struck out - 1
Discontinued - 12 
Settled - 6
Lost - 0

Not bad for someone with absolutely no legal training (I work in IT). Everything I know about the subject I have learned from this forum and elsewhere.

Nellymoser

Consumer Scotland’s response to private parking code of practice

https://consumer.scot/publications/uk-government-consultation-on-a-statutory-private-parking-code-of-practice-html/

Car1980

Scubanutta said:

bargepole said:

I've had a quick skim-read of this, and once again, it is a complete fudge.

The parking charge may be capped at £100, or a lower amount.

The debt recovery fees look like they will remain, but possibly at a lower level than the £70.

The discount for early payment may remain ay 40% or possibly 50%

They say they don't have enough evidence to make decisions on these issues, hence yet another consultation. The reality is that they have had shedloads of evidence over the past 7 years since the Act became law, but have dragged their heels, and have given far too much credibility to the lies and spin of the parking industry.

This consultation runs for 8 weeks, then probably another few months while they collate and analyse all the responses. Which means that it will probably be another 2 years before the statutory CoP is passed by Parliament, and the final version won't be vastly different from the existing BPA and IPC codes.

I really can't be bothered with this any more, it's much more satisfying to defeat the scammers in contested court hearings, where I win nearly every time.

I hope you don’t mind me asking for clarification on something: the advice to defendants seems to be, primarily, that DCBL almost always discontinues before a court hearing. Looking at your score, it would suggest that quite some number do go to court. Is the assertion that they’re “usually” discontinued correct, or misleading? 

You can check on Courtserve. The listings would be full of cases if they went to a hearing.

90% of Euro Car Park hearings are CCJ set aside listings.

The rest - and we're talking 2 or 3 a week - are presumably high value multiple tickets over £600.