Drivers slapped with parking fines while queueing at petrol stations
13.1 million tickets were issued by parking management businesses during the final nine months of last year
One of the UK’s biggest parking companies is being investigated over tickets issued to drivers using petrol stations.
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The Competition and Market Authority (CMA), a regulator responsible for protecting consumers, said it has launched an inquiry into Euro Car Parks which manages more than 3,000 parking locations across the UK and Ireland.
The investigation will examine the company’s practices at petrol stations and consider where it is fair to issue parking tickets to drivers queuing to use fuel pumps or other forecourt services, such as car washes.
It will also analyse Euro Car Parks’ wider appeals processes.
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The CMA announced in February it had imposed a £473,000 fine on Euro Car Parks for failing to respond for three months to repeated requests for information.
The regulator said the company sought a High Court injunction to stop it from being named, but the application was refused.
On Thursday, the CMA published an open letter to all private parking operators outlining concerns such as unfair tickets not being cancelled despite an appeal.
It found that some tickets have been issued because payment was not made within just five minutes of entering the car park.
The CMA also made recommendations to the Government on a new code of practice it has consulted on, including that parking companies should be required to make drivers aware of their rights and improve their appeals processes.
Recent Press Association analysis of Government data found drivers in Britain are being handed an average of nearly 48,000 parking tickets every day by private companies.
Some 13.1 million tickets were issued by parking management businesses during the final nine months of last year.
That was up 19 per cent from 11.0 million during the same period in 2024.
Each ticket can be up to £100, meaning the daily total cost to drivers may be almost £4.8 million at the current rate.
Emma Cochrane, executive director of consumer protection at the CMA, said parking companies “must treat motorists fairly at all stages”, and a clear and consistent appeals process “must be at the heart of this”.
She added: “It’s time for all private parking operators to comply with consumer law or risk action from the CMA.”
RAC head of policy Simon Williams said the measures taken by the CMA are “a major step forwards in ensuring drivers are treated fairly by private parking operators”.
He added: “Drivers aren’t consistently getting fair outcomes when they challenge tickets.”
Jack Cousens, head of roads policy at the AA, said: “Drivers are already feeling the pinch with rising pump prices, so the last thing they’d want or expect is to be hit for a parking charge just for sitting in the queue.
“Forecourts and parking operators need to ensure that customers can get the fuel they need without being penalised for simply waiting their turn.”
Lisa Webb of consumer group Which?, said: “We often hear from people who feel frustrated and confused as they fight unfair charges and tickets issued by private parking operators, including for absurd reasons like queuing for a petrol pump or car wash.”
Euro Car Parks was approached for a comment.