The new rules were preceded by a public consultation running from July to September 2025, from which there were 4,526 responses, with a general theme of drivers wanting fairer appeals and external oversight of the industry. The government will also launch a consultation next year regarding private parking debt recovery fees.
All of this follows various horror stories involving private parking firms. One motorist in Derby was sent nearly £2,000 in penalty charge notices from Excel Parking, having taken longer than five minutes to pay for a session, which she blamed on a poor mobile signal when trying to use a parking payment app. The charges were later dropped. More recently, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said that it was investigating Euro Car Parks, following complaints from drivers that it was fining them for queuing for fuel.
“Being a few minutes late back to your car or typing one digit of your numberplate wrong shouldn’t end with a hefty fine landing on your doormat,” Prime Minister Andy Burnham said, adding, “These charges leave people feeling ripped off and out of pocket, so I’m putting a stop to them.
“We are introducing clearer rules, longer grace periods and lower charges for genuine mistakes, while going after the deliberate scams that rip drivers off.”
Meanwhile, AA head of roads policy Jack Cousens said: “After seven long years, drivers finally have something which could offer them better protections against the worst private parking operators. For too long, many private parking operators have aggressively attacked drivers to the point where many simply pay up if they receive a charge from one on the doorstep.
“While this is a good first step, there is still a huge amount of work to do, such as tackling the scourge of debt recovery fees. Ultimately, we need to stop charges being issued in the first place, especially where the driver has done nothing wrong.”
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