Revealed: The Councils which issue the most parking tickets

Richard Aucock, Contributor
Wed, 22 May 2024

London Borough Councils issues the most parking fines in 2023 with the Borough of Newham Council topping the list. That's according to new data obtained by Uswitch car insurance.

Newham Council issued 257,788 parking penalties, despite the borough only having a population size of 358,645.

At the other end of the scale, Hart District Council in Hampshire, issued just 3070 parking fines last year, almost 44,000 behind the national average.

UK councils each issued an average of almost 47,000 parking fines in 2023.

The intensity of London-based parking Penalty Charge Notices (PCN) issued was similar in Lewisham, with 216,673 parking fines issued. Meanwhile, Islington issued 190,918 PCNs, which is not far behind its official population size of 220,373.

Penalty Charge Notices can be issued for a variety of parking offences, both on-street and off-street. A ‘higher’ PCN, for offences such as parking in a restricted street during prescribed hours, costs £130.

A ‘lower’ PCN, for offences such as parking after the expiry of paid-for time, costs £80. Both are halved if paid within 14 days.

The most common conviction in London parking hotspot Newham was parking in a residents’ space without having a valid permit on display. This caught out more than 78,000 motorists. It was also the top offence in Islington.

Uswitch says that parking penalties are most common in cities because there’s less access to private or free off-road parking.

Indeed, fewer than 1 in 3 households in cities and urban areas have access to off-road parking, compared to 39% in suburbs and 55% in rural areas.

What’s more, it is also a criminal offence to park on the pavement in London. No other area in England enforces this rule.

In contrast, the most common conviction type in suburban areas were related to off-street pay and display parking, rather than permits or road restrictions.

Hampshire’s Hart council issued the most fines to motorists not paying at all, while the most common conviction in both Eastleigh and St Helens was for parking without a clear pay and display ticket.

Councils that issued the most PCNs in 2023

Councils that issued the fewest PCNs in 2023

Ask HJ

My blue badge was not displayed properly and I was issued a ticket, can I appeal?

I displayed my blue badge on the dashboard but sitting slightly on top of it was an air freshener. I have now received a penalty for not displaying my blue badge properly, should I appeal?

We would suggest appealing, because all it will cost you is a little of your time and it may be successful. Incorrectly displaying a blue badge is an offence that is punishable by a parking ticket, but the parking enforcement officer that issued the ticket would need to prove that the badge was obscured to the point where the information could not be read. You can read our guide to appealing a parking ticket here: https://www.honestjohn.co.uk/advice/driving-advice/parking-ticket-appeals/

Answered by David Ross

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