The number of parking tickets issued to drivers by car parking management companies hit a record high of 5.65 million in the last financial year, according to the latest official data.
The industry is issuing a penalty notice roughly every 6 seconds or 15,486 per day, the figures suggest.
RAC Foundation analysis of DVLA data shows that the number of tickets issued to drivers for parking on private land leapt up by almost a million in 2017-18, with 5.65 million sets of vehicle keeper records released to private enforcement companies compared to 4.71 million the previous year.
Almost all of these will have been used to pursue motorists who are deemed to have infringed regulations in private car parks, the RAC Foundation said.
These firms issue charges that often can be as much as £100, suggesting that parking firms could be demanding more than £565m from drivers on an annual basis.
Steve Gooding, director of the RAC Foundation, said: 'Each year we publish this analysis and each year we are not only astonished by the numbers involved, but also by the fact that those numbers keep rocketing up.
'The true volume of tickets being issued might actually be significantly higher still as some firms will simply slap a demand onto a windscreen for the driver to find when they return to their vehicle.
'Pursuing so many people must be a major administrative task for the companies involved, but the questions the numbers really beg are: what’s going wrong? Are Britain’s motorists really flouting the rules on such an industrial scale?
'We strongly support Sir Greg Knight in his initiative to get some regulation in place through a private member’s bill that will establish much-needed independent scrutiny of what’s going on in the private parking world. Only then can we be reassured that the cards aren’t stacked against the motorist.'
Sir Greg Knight MP’s Parking (Code of Practice) Bill had its second reading on 2 February 2018 - https://services.parliament.uk/bills/2017-19/parkingcodeofpractice.html
| Financial year |
Number of vehicle keeper records obtained from the DVLA by parking management companies |
| 2017/18 |
5.65 million |
| 2016/17 |
4.71 million |
| 2015/16 |
3.67 million |
| 2014/15 |
3.06 million |
| 2013/14 |
2.43 million |
| 2012/13 |
1.89 million |
| 2011/12 |
1.57 million |
| 2010/11 |
1.17 million |
| 2009/10 |
1.03 million |
| 2008/9 |
687,000 |
| 2007/8 |
499,000 |
| 2006/7 |
272,000 |
| TOTAL |
26.64 million |
The top five purchasers of data in 2017-18 were:
- ParkingEye Ltd – 1,768,233 records (1,530,259 in 2016-17)
- Euro Car Parks – 406,323 records (306,857)
- Smart Parking Ltd – 390,860 records (329,157)
- Athena ANPR Ltd – 318,486 records (246,743)
- Ranger Services Ltd for Highview Parking Ltd – 274,591 records (271,917)
Clamping on private land was banned (in all but exceptional circumstances) in 2012 by the Protection of Freedoms Act, which also allowed for private parking companies to pursue the registered keepers of vehicles rather than having to prove who the driver was at the time of the ’offence’.
To access the vehicle-keeper data held by the DVLA, the companies need to be members of an Accredited Trade Association (ATA) and abide by the ATA’s code of practice. There are currently two ATAs: the British Parking Association and the International Parking Community.
Both ATAs have established independent appeals services to which drivers can take their cases.
Register now for full access
Register just once to get unrestricted, real-time coverage of the issues and challenges facing UK transport and highways engineers.
Full website content includes the latest news, exclusive commentary from leading industry figures and detailed topical analysis of the highways, transportation, environment and place-shaping sectors.
Use the link below to register your details for full, free access.
Already a registered? Login
