An official code of practice designed to clamp down on rogue private parking operators is still not in force despite being backed by legislation five years ago.

Drivers are frustrated that the official code of practice has still not been introduced

The new rules for the private parking sector were due to be in place by the end of 2023 in a move to end some of the worst practices in the private parking sector, but were delayed due to legal challenges.

The Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government is working to finally introduce the official code, but eight in 10 drivers (84%) questioned by the RAC said it was not fair that private parking operators and debt recovery companies had delayed its implementation.

And nine in 10 (87%) drivers said they don’​t trust the private parking industry’​s own code to be fair to drivers.

Launched on 1 October by the British Parking Association and the International Parking Community, the private parking industry’​s watered-down code differs substantially from the proposed official government code and is not backed by law.

The RAC’s survey also shows drivers continue to have severe misgivings about the way private parking companies operate.

The analysis of 1,847 drivers found that only 2% feel private parking companies enforce rules fairly and that two-thirds believe private parking ‘fines’ are excessive.

More than half (55%) of those surveyed felt private parking companies’ enforcement policies were too heavy-handed, with 40% saying there is no justification whatsoever for the way they enforce their rules. Almost eight in 10 (78%) believe private parking companies are only interested in making money from drivers. A fifth (18%), however, felt private parking operators were necessary to stop a parking free-for-all.

When questioned about the costs of parking charge notices issued by operators, nearly two-thirds (65%) say they understand fines were necessary but that they are excessive or disproportionate to the parking contraventions.

Drivers also expressed concerns about the visibility of private parking signage. A quarter (27%) of those surveyed by the RAC said they didn’t see the signage indicating charges. And among those who read the signs, nearly eight in 10 (76%) had issues with seeing or understanding them, with only a fifth (20%) saying the terms and conditions were both clear to see and easy to understand.

The official Private Parking Code of Practice, when introduced, will help protect drivers by putting caps on parking charge notice ‘fine’ amounts and on debt recovery fees, while also providing a single independent appeals service for drivers to use.

It will also force operators to follow a code of conduct, with those that don’t potentially losing the right to operate. Rules include a robust appeals process, a means of identifying vulnerable customers, issuing parking charge notices lawfully and not misleading drivers, providing photographic evidence of contraventions, not engaging debt recovery companies too soon, and providing clear signage and terms and conditions that are easy to understand.

RAC head of policy Simon Williams said: “We feel only the introduction of the real, government-backed code will bring much-needed fairness to the entire private parking sector. We badly need an acceptable cap on parking charge notices, along with a cap on debt recovery fees as, in our opinion, both are disproportionate to most parking contraventions.

“Finally, a truly independent single appeals system is needed for those who feel their initial appeal to the company concerned has not been listened to.”