BPA Parking Fine – Should you Pay or Appeal? 

Have you received a BPA parking fine and are unsure whether to pay it or appeal? You’re not alone! Each month, over 130,000 people visit our site seeking advice on fines and parking tickets. 

Which? found that unclear rules and various payment methods in private car parks are partly to blame for an increased number of fines.¹ So if you’re feeling confused, don’t worry. In this easy-to-follow guide, we’ll help you understand:

•  The role of the British Parking Association (BPA).
•  Your rights as a car owner.
•  Steps to take if you want to appeal a fine.
•  How to manage parking on private land.
•  Why you might not always have to pay a fine.

We know that dealing with this issue can be a real headache. But you’re not alone. We’re here to help you find out if you should pay or appeal your BPA parking fine.

Let’s dive in!

Who is the British Parking Association (BPA)?

The BPA represents the parking sector in the UK.

Their members include healthcare trusts, Government organisations, local authorities, and private car park operators, to name but a few sectors covered.

The association provides an Approved Operator Scheme that covers how its members manage parking arrangements on privately owned land.

How do I appeal to the IAS?

In my experience, navigating the appeal system can appear challenging, so I’ve provided some information here.

You can file an appeal to the IAS when you want to contest an accredited operator’s appeal decision.

You must provide evidence to support your appeal together with the operator’s response.

It’s worth noting that you have the right to make a further response to the operator and vice versa to ensure all the relevant evidence is submitted.

You must file your IAS appeal within 21 days of receiving a letter of rejection from the operator.

How do I appeal a PCN to POPLA?

There’s a five-step process to making a POPLA appeal against an operator’s decision which I’ve listed here:

• The operator sends you a rejection notice that contains a ‘verification’ number
• Gather the relevant evidence to support your appeal
• Submit your POPLA appeal
• Track the progress of your POPLA appeal online
• POPLA makes a decision to uphold or reject your appeal

You must file a POPLA appeal within 28 days of receiving the notice of rejection. If you miss the deadline, your appeal won’t be considered.

Parking on private land

Unlike parking on public land, which is regulated by the Road Traffic Act 1984, private car park fines

are not.

A fine you get on public land is a Penalty Charge Notice for driving offences. They don’t appear on a criminal record unless you receive a conviction.

A parking ticket on private land is an invoice the operator raises when you break the T&Cs of using their car park.

Private operators manage car parks for landowners, which include:

• Train stations
• Retail parks
• Healthcare facilities
• Residential sites
• Commercial sites
• Universities
• Theme parks

A private operator is typically accredited to manage car parks for landowners.

In short, they belong to an Accredited Trade Association (ATA). This allows them to access a registered keeper’s details from the DVLA.

The role of the DVLA in private parking management is to provide accredited operators with registered keepers’ details.

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Management of private car parks explained

A landowner has the right to manage their car parks as they see fit.

However, they usually delegate the task to private companies that operate the sites on their behalf.

Landowners authorise private operators to issue Parking Charge Notices when motorists don’t follow the rules imposed.

The T&Cs are agreed upon by the landowners and the private operators (parking management companies).

Motorists are expected to comply with the Terms and Conditions when using a car park.

That said, Parking Charge Notices are handed out for minor violations which often leads to appeals against them being filed.

Understanding your rights as a motorist

You have the right to appeal a ticket when you get a Parking Charge Notice from a private operator that’s a BPA member.

First, you must file an appeal with the operator and if they reject it, you escalate the appeal to the Parking on Private Land Appeals Service (POPLA).

When a private operator is not a BPA member but a member of IPC, you can appeal the fine through its appeal service known as the Independent Appeals Service (IAS).

POPLA publishes an annual report on the number of appeals made and decisions made. However, the IAS does not.

Note: There is no such thing as a BPA parking ticket which is why understanding UK parking fines and who issues them is so important.

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The fine has not been issued within 14 days – is it invalid?

First, establish who gave you the Parking Charge Notice to ensure it’s genuine. Next, check when it was issued and whether you received it over 14 days later!

However, the 14-day timeframe is only applicable when the private operator relies on the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012.

When there is no mention of the legislation in the Parking Charge Notice, the operator is not obliged to follow the timeline.

Note: This typically applies to Parking Charge Notices issued by Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR)

Don’t automatically pay a parking fine if you think it is fraudulent!

I got a ticket, but I wasn’t the driver of the vehicle. What should I do?

When you get a parking ticket, it will be from a local authority, the police, the Highways Agency or a private operator.

Don’t ignore a Parking Charge Notice but don’t automatically think it’s genuine or correctly issued.

If you weren’t the driver when the parking offence happened, you must inform the operator as soon as possible.

Furthermore, you must provide the drivers’ details, including their names and address.

Failure to provide the information means an operator could pursue the registered keeper to recover the amount owed.

Note: The Protection of Freedoms Act 2012, schedule 4 applies to England and Wales only.

BPA Parking Contact Details

References

1. Which? – The rise of private parking fines