PM puts the brakes on rip-off parking charges and second-hand car scams
Gareth Snell, Member of Parliament for Stoke-on-Trent Central, has welcomed news that drivers in Stoke-On-Trent will get new rights to challenge unfair private parking charges under new rules.
The changes introduced by the Labour government include a guaranteed 5 minutes to decide whether to park and 10 minutes to leave once their session ends. Drivers will also hold the right to appeal charges for issues they can’t control.
Under the new Private Parking Code of Practice laid before Parliament on 20th October, charges will be scrapped on appeal for honest mistakes, like stopping briefly to check directions, and for situations like a medical emergency, breakdown or broken ticket machine.
For smaller slip-ups, like forgetting a parking permit, entering the wrong vehicle’s registration or forgetting to confirm it in the machine when parking, drivers will face a maximum charge of £20 on appeal.
The Code also freezes the maximum parking charge at £100. Operators who don’t comply risk losing access to DVLA data, meaning that even if they issue a charge, it will be far more difficult to identify the registered owner to pursue payment.
In addition, unscrupulous second-hand car dealers who wind back odometers to disguise a vehicle’s true mileage will also face tougher action. Known as car clocking, fraudulently selling a clocked car is already illegal, but adding it to the official list of banned practices will make it easier for enforcers to crack down, protecting buyers and backing honest businesses.
These changes are the latest measures in the Prime Minister’s series of everyday fixes, tackling the frustrations that cost people time and money to give families more room to breathe.
The action follows moves to stop unfair airline charges, tackle subscription traps, rogue traders, and rip-off school uniform costs – all championed by Gareth Snell.
Gareth said: “Residents in Stoke-on-Trent deserve better than a system that can impose disproportionate financial penalties for genuine mistakes, whether that’s entering the wrong registration number, briefly stopping to check directions, or taking longer to leave a car park while getting children safely into the car.
“I’m delighted to see the Government taking practical steps to put an end to these unfair practices and create a parking system that is more reasonable and proportionate for motorists.”
The government has also promised today to go further still, by consulting as soon as possible next year on private parking debt recovery fees, including on whether to cut an existing £70 cap or scrap the fees altogether.
Data shows just under 17 million private parking charges were issued in the UK last year. In 2025, the government set out proposals to improve standards by consulting on a new Private Parking Code of Practice.
Today’s response sets out the measures being brought in to protect motorists. Parliament will now have time to scrutinise the new Code, before ministers press ahead to bring it into force as soon as possible.
This Code brings in, for the first time, a fully independent Scrutiny and Oversight Board, and requires operators to share more information with government, giving drivers stronger protections than ever before.
Since taking office, the government has also launched a review of airport drop-off charges, cut VAT on electricity bills this winter, frozen fuel duty and rail fares, and raised the Minimum Wage, as it continues to take action to ease the cost of living.