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Parking fine issued every TWO SECONDS as shocking new figures show councils and businesses raking in £1.3bn in fines this year
- Motorists receive around 50,000 parking fines per day, see figures
- Town halls and parking companies are on track to issue £1.3bn in fines
- Municipalities such as York and Thanet are planning to increase parking rates by 10%
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Motorists are attacked with about 50,000 parking fines per day, or one every two seconds.
Shocking new figures reveal that the ‘ruthless’ army of parking enforcement officers employed by municipalities averages nearly 20,000 fines per day.
With private companies handing out a record 30,000 daily tickets, this means town halls and parking companies are on track to issue £1.3bn in fines this year if current rates continue.
It will raise concerns that drivers are being used as cash cows amid the cost-of-living crisis, with many councils plotting double-digit increases in parking fees this year.
Motorists are hit with about 50,000 parking fines per day, or one every two seconds
York, Southend, Thanet, Rutland and the London Borough of Waltham Forest are among those who have already announced they will increase parking rates by around 10 per cent from April.
Figures obtained by Churchill Motor Insurance suggest municipalities will issue 19,631 fines per day in 2022, a 12 percent increase from 2021.
This swelled the council coffers by an estimated £777,287 a day, an increase of £35,113.
The analysis is based on data from 230 councils that have responded to requests for freedom of information – the real numbers are likely to be higher as there are more than 300 local authorities in the UK.
Islington Council in North London has issued more fines than any other council with a daily average of 1,012, followed by Lambeth and Waltham Forest, both also in London, with 999 and 874 respectively.
Outside the capital, Birmingham City Council had the highest percentage (373), followed by Southampton City Council (313) and Cardiff Council (279).
It means town halls and parking companies are on track to issue £1.3bn in fines this year if current rates continue (file image)
Many motorists complain about being penalized for honest mistakes, such as accidentally entering their number plate incorrectly into the ticket machine or staying a few minutes too long.
Fines issued by councils can be as high as £130 in London or £70 elsewhere. Separately, private companies issued 2.7 million tickets to drivers between April and June last year, the latest period data is available for – 50 percent more than the same period in 2021.
Edmund King, chairman of the AA, said: “Raising charges and fining every little mistake is a ruthless way to support the council’s coffers.”
The Local Government Association said revenue from fines would be spent on parking services and any surplus would be spent on essential transport projects.
It comes after the government withdrew parts of a code of conduct designed to protect drivers from ‘cowboy’ operators after parking companies launched a judicial review.