Private parking
Residential parking charges: permits, flats and estates
Independent site, not a council, operator or appeals service. You pay or appeal only through the channel printed on your notice.
Choose "valid permit not displayed" in the tool to see the outcome the Appeals Charter sets; the rest of the page covers leases and the kinds of land involved.
What the Appeals Charter says about my case
Outcome under the Charter
Cancel the charge
| With evidence of | the payment |
| Reduced charge | not applicable |
Appeals Charter of the Private Parking Code, once in force. Until then operators follow their trade association code.
Many blocks of flats, new-build estates and managed developments hire a parking company to stop outsiders using the bays. Residents and their visitors are then expected to display a permit or register a number plate, and a car without one can receive a parking charge like in any private car park. The position of a resident differs in one way: the right to park often comes from the lease or the transfer of the property, not from the signs, and a parking company cannot usually take away by a sign a right that a lease already grants. Schedule 4 to the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 applies only to relevant land, which excludes public highways, parking places provided or controlled by a council and land where parking is under statutory control, so a charge on an adopted road of the estate is a different matter from one in a private courtyard. Under the government Code, a valid permit that was not displayed is a case for a reduced charge of £20 once the Code is in force.
Is this private charge above the Code limits?
Most the Code allows
£100
| Charge cap | £100 |
| Reduced within 14 days (at least 40% off) | £60 |
| Debt recovery add-on once overdue | £0 |
The Code is laid but not yet in force: these limits apply from the date it takes effect.
Rules, amounts and dates read by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Method
Which land a parking company can enforce
Paragraph 3 of Schedule 4 to the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 defines relevant land as any land other than:
| Excluded from relevant land | Typical example on an estate | Who enforces there |
|---|---|---|
| A highway maintainable at the public expense | an adopted estate road | the council, with penalty charge notices |
| A parking place provided or controlled by a traffic authority | council-run bays or a council car park | the council |
| Other land where parking is under statutory control | land where a statute itself regulates parking | whoever the statute names |
On relevant land, a parking company can pursue the keeper if its notices meet the Schedule; elsewhere, it cannot rely on the Schedule. Ask the managing agent which parts of the site the company enforces, and check with the council whether a road is adopted.
Your lease and the signs
A parking charge rests on a contract formed by the signs. A resident who already has a right to park under the lease did not need that contract to park. Where the lease grants a right to a specific space, or to park in a shared area, conditions added later by a parking company may not bind the resident unless the lease allows such rules, for example through a clause letting the landlord make regulations for the estate. This is a question about your own lease: read the clauses on parking, rights of way and estate rules, and keep a copy ready for an appeal. This site does not interpret leases; the operator, then the appeals service and finally a court decide.
Permits and the Appeals Charter
Once the government Code is in force, the Appeals Charter covers the most common residential mistakes:
- a parking permit not displayed, where the driver then supplies a copy of a permit valid at the time: reduced charge of £20 for 14 days;
- a vehicle that was allowed to park but whose registration was not entered on the terminal or app: the same reduced charge;
- a wrong registration entered, such as a previous car: the same reduced charge.
Annex B also gives permit holders and permitted users a consideration period of 5 minutes and a grace period of 10 minutes. Charges are capped at £100, and the mini-tool under the summary compares any amount with that limit.
Clamping and towing on residential land
Section 54 of the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 made it an offence to immobilise a vehicle, or move it or restrict its movement, without lawful authority, in England and Wales. Consent given by reading a sign is not lawful authority, except for a fixed barrier already present when the vehicle was parked. A residential parking company therefore cannot clamp or tow a car to force payment of a parking charge; it can only send a charge and, if unpaid, go to court. Councils keep their own powers to remove vehicles from the highway, explained on our towing and clamping page. To dispute a residential charge, the appeal letter builder has reasons for permit holders and for keepers.