Andy Burnham's New Rules Would Give Drivers the Right to Challenge 'Rip-Off' Private Parking Charges
Drivers are to get the right to challenge 'rip-off' private parking charges, and more grace when using private providers, under new rules set out by Andy Burnham.
One case shows the shape of the grievance: a woman was taken to court in a £1,906 claim after taking longer than five minutes to pay at a car park in Derby, and the charge was eventually dropped.
The announcement followed repeated concerns from drivers that penalties issued by private providers were too harsh and left motorists unfairly punished.
AI-generated discussion · Different perspectives
The motoring groups see real, if modest, value in it: the RAC said the changes would protect drivers from poor practices by some private parking companies, while both the AA and the RAC called the new code a good first step that does not go far enough.
The unfinished list is what earns that 'first step' framing: the RAC's head of policy, Simon Williams, wants debt recovery fees banned and the industry-run appeals bodies replaced by a single independent one, and the AA argues the goal should be to stop charges being issued in the first place, especially where the driver has done nothing wrong.