How to appeal a parking ticketParking ticket FAQs

New parking ticket laws

I've heard the laws governing parking tickets have changed – what does this mean for motorists?

The government unveiled a raft of changes to civil parking enforcement and Penalty Charge Notices (PCNs), which came into effect in England and Wales on 31 March 2008. Scotland and Northern Ireland have no immediate plans to alter their current legislation in a similar way.

Key changes to parking ticket laws include:

• New names – council parking attendants are now called Civil Enforcement Officers (CEOs) and decriminalised enforcement is known as Civil Parking Enforcement (CPE)
• There are now different parking penalties depending on the seriousness of the contravention, which brings England and Wales into line with London, where tiered charges have been in force for longer.
• PCN parking tickets can now be issued by post if the motorist drives away after the CEO has started to issue it.
• Enforcement cameras can be used to detect parking contraventions and parking tickets from these cameras can be served by post.
• There's an extended discount payment period of 21 days for PCN parking tickets issued by a enforcement camera.
• Clamps can't be fitted until 30 minutes have passed since a PCN parking ticket has been issued. For persistent offenders the time limit remains at the the previous time limit of 15 minutes.
• Independent adjudicators have new powers to decide cases where the council has failed to follow the correct parking enforcement procedures.  
• Independent adjudicators have the power to refer back to the council for reconsideration cases where a parking contravention took place but there were mitigating circumstances. 

Driving away from a parking ticket

Do I still have to pay a parking ticket if I drive off before it's fixed to my vehicle?

Yes, in most cases. If it's a police officer or police traffic warden then the parking ticket will stand even if you drive off before they physically issue it. Penalty Charge Notices (PCNs) can also be issued to you by post if the CEO could not serve the notice because of abusive behaviour or because the motorist drove away AFTER the CEO had started to issue it.

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Missing pay-and-display ticket

My pay-and-display ticket fell off my windscreen after I left my car and I got a parking ticket. Can I appeal?

Technically, no. In accordance with the pay-and-display system, it is not only your responsibility to buy the correct ticket, but also to make sure that it is properly displayed. 

However, it's still worth writing to the authority that issued the parking ticket saying what happened, and enclosing a copy of the pay-and-display ticket. Some councils do exercise their discretion and cancel tickets issued for this reason.

If the council rejects your appeal, you might still have a case for getting the parking ticket cancelled. Independent adjudicators have the power to refer back to the council for reconsideration cases where a contravention took place but there were mitigating circumstances. A valid ticket coming away from a windscreen could well be deemed to be a mitigating circumstance.

Someone else driving

I wasn't the person driving when the parking ticket was issued – do I still have to pay?

Yes, unless your car was reported stolen at the time. The various laws that govern parking fines say that the owner of a vehicle is normally liable for the penalty charge when a contravention occurs.

A different owner

What if I didn't own the vehicle at the time the parking ticket was issued?

You should return the parking ticket correspondence with a letter explaining the situation. Ensure you give the details of the person who you sold the vehicle to (or bought it from) and enclose copies of any documents you have regarding the transaction – see our Sample Letters.

Wrong details on the parking ticket

My parking ticket doesn't include the correct registration number for my car. Can I appeal?

When issuing a parking ticket, parking attendants must record a number of details, including the registration number and colour of the vehicle. These details must be correct for the ticket to be valid. 

If the registration number or colour is recorded incorrectly, the parking ticket is invalid. However, if the parking ticket error is slight – such as the vehicle colour noted as being grey instead of silver – a parking adjudicator may decide that the details are close enough for the parking ticket to be valid.

Evidence for parking ticket appeal

I'm formally appealing against a parking ticket. What evidence should I send to the adjudicator?

The adjudicator will not have any prior information on your PCN parking ticket and will decide your appeal based on evidence provided by you and the issuing council. Therefore you should provide copies of anything that may support your case.

Evidence could include:

• receipt for sale, if you no longer own the vehicle
• delivery details and documentation, if you're claiming exemption because you were loading or unloading goods, not parking
• photographs (of signs or road markings, for example)
• tax disc details, if you are claiming that a PCN parking ticket was never fixed to your vehicle
• witness statements (for example, if you had stopped to attend to an accident).

Whether your case is being examined at a postal or personal hearing, the local authority must send you a copy of its evidence at least three days before the hearing. If you're concerned that any evidence may not fully explain your case, you may request a personal hearing.

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