Parking fines and enforcement

We enforce parking restrictions on our public roads and car parks. This is to improve road safety, keep traffic flowing freely, and help make sure parking is safe and available for all users.

Contraventions include, but are not limited to, parking:

  • on double/single yellow lines
  • in loading bays when loading/unloading is not taking place
  • in disabled bays without displaying a valid Blue Badge
  • in a pay and display bay without displaying a ticket
  • in a pedestrian zone
  • in a residents’ parking zone without a required permit
  • where the kerb has been lowered to help pedestrians to cross the road

Paying a parking fine

The registered keeper or owner of a vehicle or its hirer is the person responsible for paying a parking fine. This is regardless of whether that person was the driver or not.

To get a 50% reduction, you need to pay a penalty charge notice (PCN) within 14 days of issue (21 days for a postal notice).

You can pay a parking fine online or call 03331 211013 to make a payment. You can also pay in person at any Barclays bank. To pay in-branch you need to use sort code 20-08-07, account number 83851142 and the notice number from the front of the PCN. You may be required to create a bank account to pay by cash.

Parking fines/penalty charge notices (PCN)

On your vehicle or in person

If you don’t park legally and safely, a parking fine or PCN can be applied to the vehicle or given to you in person by a parking services civil enforcement officer.

The fine could be £50 or £70, depending on the severity of the contravention.

By post

You can receive a parking fine through the post if you’re caught contravening restrictions by one of our automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras. You can also receive a fine if you prevent an officer from issuing the PCN to your vehicle or person (for example, by driving off).

Notice to owner

If you’re the registered owner and you don’t pay or challenge your penalty charge notice, we’ll send you a 'notice to owner' through the post.

You can pay a parking fine online or call 03331 211013 to make a payment.

If you don’t respond to the ‘notice to owner’ we’ll send you a 'charge certificate'. If you don’t respond to this, we’ll register the debt with the Traffic Enforcement Centre in Northampton. Failure to pay the debt can result in action being taken by our debt enforcement agents.

You can find more information about parking regulations in The Highway Code.

Challenging a parking fine

If you've received a parking fine and believe it's been issued unfairly, you can make a challenge. By making a challenge you're entering into a legal process.

You can view the evidence of your offence and make a challenge online. To view the evidence or challenge a PCN you'll need the PCN number and vehicle registration. To view the evidence or challenge a 'notice to owner' you'll also need the web code.

You're required to provide sufficient evidence to support a challenge, and failure to do so will result in an unsuccessful challenge.

Grounds for us not accepting a challenge

Our grounds for not accepting a challenge typically include the below.

Leaving your vehicle to get money to pay for parking

As soon as you leave your vehicle unattended, other than to go to get a ticket from a pay and display machine, you're deemed to have parked. Motorists should always arrive with sufficient change to pay for parking should the need arise.

Parking outside of a marked bay 

Parking outside of a marked parking bay in a car park hinders the movement of other vehicles. If there was deemed to have been enough space in the car park to mark a parking bay without hindering the movement of other vehicles then there would be one marked.

Not displaying the correct permit for the space in a car park 

Some parking spaces are reserved for specified ticket/permit holders. These are marked/signed differently to other parking spaces and it's your responsibility to ensure that you're parking legally and to fully read and obey the signs and markings.

Parking in a bay meant for others

Some parking places on the highway are reserved for specific users such as residents' bays, police bays, doctors' bays or loading bays. When you park, it's your responsibility to ensure that you're doing so legally and to read and obey the road markings. Disabled drivers are not exempt from these restrictions.

Overstaying the time you've paid for

It's the motorist’s responsibility to buy enough time to cover the duration of the parking time required. When purchasing parking it's important to allow for the possible over-running of meetings or appointments.

Forgetting to set the clock for Blue Badge parking

Blue badge holders are permitted to park for up to three hours where there are waiting restrictions (double or single yellow lines). It's a condition of the usage of your Blue Badge that the clock should be set every time you use it and leave your car. This is so that the civil enforcement officer knows that you're parked legally and what time you'll return to your vehicle. Not setting the clock prevents the civil enforcement officer from knowing when you'll be back and so they must assume that you've parked for longer than allowed and will issue a PCN.

Parking on double or single yellow lines

If you park on double or single yellow lines during the restricted hours (see the local time plates), even for a minute, you remain liable for the PCN. This however doesn't apply to Blue Badge holders.

You're not allowed any time at all unless the reason that you've stopped is a permitted reason. For example, you can't stop on a yellow line to pop into a shop, withdraw cash or similar. You should find a legal parking place for this. Civil enforcement officers will observe your vehicle to determine if you've stopped for a permitted reason. As soon as it's obvious that this isn't the case a PCN will be issued.

Parking where loading is prohibited

This includes parking on double yellow/single yellow lines or double/single yellow kerb tabs during the restricted hours (see the local time plates). This applies to all vehicles including Blue Badge holders.

You're not allowed any time at all unless the reason that you've stopped is beyond the driver's control.   

You're the owner of the vehicle but it wasn’t you who parked there

If you're the registered owner or keeper of the vehicle, then you're responsible for the PCN and must pay it. However, you'll have the opportunity to notify us of the driver of the vehicle when you receive a 'notice to owner' letter from us. If your vehicle was stolen when the PCN was issued then the PCN will normally be cancelled, provided that you produce a police incident number.

You didn’t know about the restrictions/thought you were parked legally, but made a mistake

When you park, it's your responsibility to ensure that you're doing so legally and to read and obey the signs and road markings.

Your car broke down

When driving, you are responsible for ensuring that your vehicle is roadworthy and will not break down. 'Foreseeable' problems such as running out of fuel/water/oil/brake fluid, or problems that have been happening for a while are no excuse and you'll remain liable for the PCN. 

Emergency problems such as flat tyres, collisions etc can at our discretion be accepted as valid reason for cancelling your PCN. In these cases, please include the following when you write to us:

  • a garage invoice
  • parts invoice where repairs have been carried out by yourself or
  • a recovery sheet from a breakdown service as proof that your vehicle required work

You were only parked to drop off or pick up your child from school

We regularly receive calls with regards to the safety outside all local schools. We are asked to enforce rules to ensure that parents do park correctly and consider pedestrians and other motorists’ health and safety.

Civil enforcement officers patrol schools on a regular basis to ensure the safety of the children. It's not permitted to park for an extended length of time to drop a child to school, over and above the time required for a child to board or alight the vehicle. Even this is not permitted on a 'school keep clear' marking.

We urge all parents to ensure that they arrive at school early enough to find a permitted parking place.

Challenges and evidence can also be submitted by post to: Parking Services, PO Box 538, Barnsley, S70 9BP. Challenges or evidence submitted via methods other than online or by post will not be accepted.

You'll receive a response to a challenge within 28 days.