Parking Ticket Scams: How to Identify and Avoid Them

Worried about a potential parking scam? We think you’re in the right place! More than 130,000 people visit our site monthly for information about parking tickets.

Here is our quick guide to parking ticket scams. In this article, we’ll take a look at:

• What a parking scam is
• How parking scams work
• How to spot a fake ticket
• How to deal with a fake ticket
• What you can do if you pay a fake ticket.

What is a parking ticket scam?

Have you ever wondered how a parking ticket scam works? It’s actually quite simple.

Scammers ‘stake out’ a busy street and wait for someone to park – ideally someone who hasn’t parked legally so the ticket is more believable. The scammer can then quickly print out a ticket that looks official and stick it to the windshield.

The fake ticket will have some official-looking information on how to pay it, but this is usually a fake website that will give your money to the scammer. They will also now have your payment information, often meaning this is a phishing scam. 

As part of our research, we’ve found some people reporting that they’ve received emails telling people that they have outstanding parking tickets that are going to become a legal issue soon. These emails then include a link which presumably takes them to a fake payment website or downloads malware.

How to spot a fake parking ticket

The most obvious sign that you received a fake parking ticket is that you didn’t actually break parking laws or rules when you parked. Sometimes, your alleged offence on a fake ticket won’t make sense, which is also a sign that you’re dealing with a scammer.

But parking rules can be complicated, especially when on private land, so you can’t always be sure that you haven’t made a parking infraction. What do you do then? 

The easiest way to avoid a fake parking ticket is to know what to look for. While every fake parking ticket might look a bit different, there are some key identifiers:

• Spelling errors: Any spelling error on your ticket is suspicious, no matter if your ticket is on your windscreen or posted to you.
• Logo errors: As with spelling, any logo errors are suspicious. Basic errors like these suggest your ticket has not been sent from a professional body or organisation. 
• Sender address: Take a look at the sender or issuer’s address and verify it – a legitimate ticket issuer should have their address available on the internet.

What types of fake parking tickets are there?

Fake tickets can be received in a few different ways:

• Email
• Stuck to your windscreen
• Sent in the post.

Fake parking ticket emails

Private car park companies, local authorities, and other legitimate issuing authorities don’t send tickets via email. If you have received an email with a parking ticket included, it is more than likely fake, and you should report it. I go through reporting a fake ticket below. 

If you receive a ‘ticket’ via email, don’t pay it and don’t click any links in the email. This is likely a phishing scam, and your information could be stolen.

Fake parking ticket stuck to windscreen

You can quite easily get hold of ‘joke’ parking tickets that look realistic, which can fool an unsuspecting motorist. 

If you get a ticket stuck to your windshield that you think is fake, don’t forget that you can verify your ticket with the supposed actual issuer. You can do this with the vehicle information or by the issuing number. 

Just don’t use the contact information on the ticket! Search for the issuer’s contact information to make sure that you’re not just contacting a scammer.

Fake parking ticket sent in the post

As a ticket stuck to your window, follow the same steps as you would with a ticket on your windscreen.

Make sure to verify the ticket with contact information you’ve found on the internet. Use the issuing number or vehicle information to make sure that it’s legit before you pay.

What do I do if I receive a fake ticket?

If you think that you have received a fake ticket, the first thing you need to do is not panic. 

You should then try to verify the parking ticket to make sure that it is a fake. Some strong indicators are:

• Spelling mistakes
• Incorrect logos
• Incorrect sender address
• Non-standard email address
• The ticket encourages you to pay immediately or face serious consequences rather than paying within 14 or 28 days. 

Think that you have a fake ticket but aren’t 100% sure? You can contact the official issuer of your ticket. 

We recommend that you look up the contact information for the official issuer yourself and don’t use any contact information on the suspected fake ticket. The same goes for emailed tickets – look up the contact information and don’t follow any links within the email. 

Your ticket issuer should be able to give you information about it – the number, when and where it was issued, and to whom it was issued. A fake ticket probably won’t be able to corroborate this information.

You can report a fake parking ticket to Action Fraud on their website. They also have an article giving some more information on fake tickets and scam parking emails.

How to avoid the scam

Unfortunately, you can’t guarantee that you won’t get a parking ticket, but there are some things that you can do to help protect yourself.

• Do your research before you park: If you are going somewhere new, do your research to ensure you know the rules and where you can park. People from out-of-town are less likely to know local rules and regulations, so they are more likely to pay a fraudulent ticket, not realising that it’s a scam.
• Look at the ticket carefully: Make sure you look at your ticket and search for any errors, such as spelling or logos. Also, make sure that the official issuing authority is correct.
• Verification: You can verify your ticket with the official issuer to see if it is legitimate. Making sure they have the correct issuing number and vehicle information is a good place to start.

What do I do if I paid the ticket?

Paid a ticket but now think that it was fake? There are a few things that you can do.

Firstly, make sure that the ticket is fake. You can do this by contacting the official issuer of your ticket and asking them to verify your information. If they can, then you’re in the clear – your ticket wasn’t fake!

But if they can’t, you might have paid a fake ticket. But don’t panic. There are several groups or organisations that you can contact to get some free and specific advice. 

In the meantime, it might be worth trying to contact your bank or credit card company to see if there’s anything that they can do. They might be able to chase the scammer’s bank for your refund on your behalf.