What the new Private Parking Code of Practice means for your parking ticket

Parking companies have had their own rulebook for years. Now the government has written one, and operators who ignore it risk losing access to DVLA keeper details, which they need to chase unpaid charges.

Not yet. The code has to sit before Parliament for 40 days. If neither House votes it down, the government must issue it, and it comes into force 21 days after that. By our reading of that timetable, the earliest it could apply is around 20 December 2026. That's our estimate, not an official date, and it'll be later if Parliament takes a break of more than 4 days or the code is issued later.

We'll update this page when gov.uk confirms the dates.

For now, private operators who are members of the British Parking Association (BPA) or International Parking Community (IPC) follow the industry's Sector Single Code, which took effect in October 2024. The government's code will replace it once it's in force.

What isn't clear yet is how the switch will work for tickets issued before that date. The government says the transitional arrangements will be published when the code comes into force. So if you've got a ticket now, appeal under today's rules and keep an eye on the deadlines. Our private parking appeal guide covers how that works.

Time to decide (the "consideration period")

The consideration period is the time you get to drive in, find a space, read the signs and decide whether you want to park at all. In most car parks open to the public it's at least 5 minutes. In car parks that are free for at least 30 minutes and have 500 or more spaces, it's at least 10. If you read the terms and decide to leave, the code says you shouldn't get a charge, and the same goes if you're stuck in traffic inside the car park.

Time to leave (the "grace period")

Once your free or paid-for time ends, the operator has to allow at least 10 minutes before a charge is due, so you can walk back, find your keys at the bottom of your bag and drive out. Clearly signed short-stay locations are the exception: there, the grace period can be zero. The grace period only counts if you otherwise parked within the rules, and it doesn't stack with the consideration period to give you free parking.

One thing it won't cover is parking in a Blue Badge bay without a badge. The code says no consideration or grace period applies to a non-holder in a reserved Blue Badge space for more than a moment.

Camera (ANPR) car parks

In pay car parks watched by number-plate cameras, you shouldn't get a charge if you pay in full before you leave. For stays over 24 hours, payment must be made within 24 hours of arriving. In free camera car parks that ask you to type your registration into a terminal, you shouldn't get a charge if you enter it before you leave.

Under the new code, a private parking charge can't be more than £100, and you must be offered at least 40% off if you pay within 14 days of the notice being issued. Once a charge is overdue, an operator can add up to £70 for debt recovery. The code says these are maximums. A charge or fee under the cap isn't automatically fair or payable.

A few details worth knowing:

• The 14 days run from the date the notice was issued: the day it was put on your car, or the issue date printed on a posted notice.
• Unpaid parking fees over £60: if you didn't pay a tariff of more than £60, an approved operator can chase that tariff as well as the charge. The discount only applies to the charge.
• The £70 debt-recovery cap is interim. The government says it plans a further consultation on debt recovery, including whether to ban these fees altogether. It may also consult on the discount rate. Either could change.

Under the new code you can appeal to the operator within 28 days. If they say no, you can go to an independent second-stage appeals service, and enforcement must pause while that's decided. Step by step:

1. Appeal to the operator within 28 days of the notice being delivered. A posted notice counts as delivered on the second working day after posting. Send your evidence: photos of the signs, your receipt or app payment, the permit you had, a hospital letter, whatever fits your case.
2. The operator replies within 28 days, or acknowledges your appeal and tells you how long it'll take. If they accept your appeal, they must cancel the charge.
3. Keep your discount while you wait. If you appeal within 28 days and they reject it, you can still pay at the rate that applied when you appealed for 14 more days after the rejection reaches you.
4. If they reject it, they must give you two options: pay, or appeal to the second-stage appeals service. Today that's POPLA if the operator is a BPA member, or the IAS if it's an IPC member.
5. While your second-stage appeal is going on, the operator can't start enforcement or debt recovery, and anything already started must be put on hold. The operator has to accept the second-stage decision.
6. If the second-stage appeal is also rejected, the discounted rate no longer applies.

Also useful:

• Missed the 28 days for a good reason? The operator must consider a late appeal if you can show exceptional circumstances. The code's examples include only finding out about the charge after the 28 days, being on holiday or a long work trip, being in hospital, living elsewhere because of renovations or an emergency, a family emergency, a recent house move, or the notice going to the wrong address through no fault of yours. The appeal period then restarts, and any enforcement, including court action, must pause.
• Already paid? Generally you can't appeal after paying. The exceptions are if you had to pay to get your car out (say, at a barrier) or if evidence later shows the operator did something wrong. Either way, you must appeal within 30 days of paying.
• Sent a complaint instead? If it's really an appeal against the charge, the operator must treat it as one for the deadlines.

The Appeals Charter is the part of the new code that lists cases where a parking charge should be cancelled on appeal, or reduced to £20, if you can give reliable evidence. Examples include a minor typo in your registration after paying, a breakdown, sudden illness, an overrunning medical appointment and broken payment machines with no reasonable alternative.

Should be cancelled on appeal, if you can provide reliable evidence that:

• you paid but made a minor keying error in your registration (an O for a 0, an I for a 1) that the operator didn't pick up
• you paused on a private road to check directions, for example on an industrial estate where you had a reason to be
• you were directed onto the land by the emergency services, the landowner or the operator
• you drove on because of an unavoidable emergency, such as serious illness
• you or a passenger fell ill
• you or a passenger were delayed by an overrunning medical appointment
• you were delayed by childcare arrangements
• your vehicle broke down
• the payment machines were out of order and there was no reasonable alternative way to pay
• the operator broke the code when issuing the charge, or in a way that meant you couldn't follow the car park's rules

Should be cut to £20 (payable within 14 days) after an appeal to the operator, if:

• you didn't display your permit but can show a permit that was valid at the time
• you paid but entered the wrong registration (a partner's car, or your old one)
• you'd have been allowed to park but forgot to enter your registration at the terminal
• your Blue Badge wasn't on display but you can show a valid badge and that the holder was in the vehicle. This one only applies the first time. After that, it's up to the operator.

Shouldn't be issued at all to emergency vehicles on operational duty, doctors or health workers on an emergency call (displaying the right badge), breakdown recovery vehicles, or a hearse or funeral cortege in use.

If your evidence isn't enough to decide, the code says the operator should give you a reasonable chance to send more. Bear in mind that a ground on this list means the charge should be cancelled or reduced. It doesn't decide your case for you, so send clear evidence.

The new code applies to private car parks in England, Scotland and Wales. It doesn't apply in Northern Ireland, because the law behind it doesn't extend there. It also doesn't cover council car parks or on-street parking, which have their own rules and appeal routes.

Whichever nation you're in, the code says operators mustn't assume the registered keeper was the driver.

Breaking the code doesn't, on its own, make an operator liable in court. But it has teeth. The government must take breaches into account when deciding whether an operator can get keeper details from the DVLA, and whether a parking trade association stays accredited. The government's explanatory memorandum says losing DVLA access would prevent an operator enforcing unpaid parking charges.

Compliance will be checked through a Private Parking Certification Scheme run by UKAS-accredited bodies. A new Scrutiny and Oversight Board will review how the code is working. The code is also admissible as evidence if a case does reach court.

The code also tightens up the paperwork. A private parking notice mustn't be designed to look like a council Penalty Charge Notice, suggest it has legal authority it doesn't have, or use council-style terms like "Notice to Owner" or "Charge Certificate". The code's standard wording for notices says plainly that a private parking charge "is not a fine nor a penalty". It's a charge the operator says you owe under the car park's terms, and the operator can take you to court if it isn't paid. So don't ignore it, even if you think it's wrong. Appeal instead.

Not sure which kind of ticket you've got? A council PCN and a private Parking Charge Notice look alike but work very differently. Our council PCN guide for England covers the council route.

1. Check who sent it and whether they're a BPA or IPC member. It should say on the notice or their website.
2. Note your deadlines. You get 14 days for the discount and 28 days to appeal. Our parking appeal deadlines guide has them all in one place.
3. Gather evidence now. Take photos of the signs and entrance, keep your receipt or app history, and anything showing illness, a breakdown or a broken machine.
4. Match it against the rules. Our guide to the best grounds to appeal a parking ticket explains which arguments carry weight, and why.

If you'd rather not read 65 pages of government code yourself (fair), Unclamped can check your ticket for £3 against the official rules and tell you whether it looks worth fighting. If there's a case, we'll write your appeal letter for £7 more. Check my parking ticket.

1. gov.uk, Private Parking Code of Practice (publication page, MHCLG, published 20 October 2026): www.gov.uk/government/publications/private-parking-code-of-p
2. gov.uk, Private Parking Code of Practice (full code text, HTML): www.gov.uk/government/publications/private-parking-code-of-p (PDF: assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6ad7343784361ce7947cd)
3. gov.uk, Private Parking Code of Practice 2026: Explanatory Memorandum (23 October 2026): www.gov.uk/government/publications/private-parking-code-of-p
4. legislation.gov.uk, Parking (Code of Practice) Act 2019: www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2019/8/contents (s.2 procedure: www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2019/8/section/2 ; s.5 effect: www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2019/8/section/5 ; s.12 extent: www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2019/8/section/12)
5. gov.uk, Private Parking Code of Practice: final stage impact assessment (PDF): assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6acfa08ff1ba855cc196a
6. gov.uk, Private Parking Code of Practice 2026 (collection page): www.gov.uk/government/collections/private-parking-code-of-pr
7. gov.uk, Parking fines and penalty charge notices: Challenging a ticket: www.gov.uk/parking-tickets/challenging-a-ticket
8. legislation.gov.uk, Protection of Freedoms Act 2012, Schedule 4: www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2012/9/schedule/4
9. gov.scot, Current status of Section 8 of the Transport (Scotland) Act 2019 in regards to Keeper Liabilities: FOI release (FOI 202600514549; the title is the FOI's own wording, and the provisions it means are Part 8, sections 90 to 108): www.gov.scot/publications/foi-202600514549/
10. legislation.gov.uk, Transport (Scotland) Act 2019, Part 8: Recovery of unpaid parking charges (sections 90 to 108, shown as "Prospective"): www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2019/17/part/8