How Write A Parking Charge Appeal Letter
How Write A Parking Charge Appeal Letter
Our website is designed to help you check if your parking charge was issued correctly according to the law then it will provide you with a parking charge appeal letter template that matches your scenario.
However, it is important not to rush and try to rely on mitigation (explaining what happened).
So, follow the instructions provided and if needed, you can add your own comments which should be updated for you using AI.
We have also prepared an article on the private parking appeal loopholes that will help you with your appeal.
PDF Appeal Letter
Once you have completed your appeal letter questionnaire, we will use the information you provided to generate your PDF letter.
A copy of the letter will be under the parking charge notice section of the parking mate UK website, and you can simply click on the parking charge notice reference to open the appeal and see all your documents and further instructions.
If you have multiple cases, you can simply search for the parking charge notice.
Mitigating Circumstances
When appealing a parking charge, try not to rely on mitigating reasons. The parking charge notice will likely be issued for minor breaches of contract such as overstaying for a few minutes, not paying for parking or not parking correctly.
If you explain the situation, you are more likely to make it harder to win an appeal because you will end up revealing who was driving and therefore void your legal rights.
Who Should Appeal A Parking Charge?
When appealing a parking charge, try not to rely on mitigating reasons. The parking charge notice will likely be issued for minor breaches of contract such as overstaying for a few minutes, not paying for parking or not parking correctly.
If you explain the situation, you are more likely to make it harder to win an appeal because you will end up revealing who was driving and therefore void your legal rights.
For Example:
- If a parking charge notice is not issued in 14 days but you name yourself as the driver, then the 14-day loophole is void.
- If the parking company hasn’t used the law to make the keeper liable, then naming the driver can also void the requirement for them to use keeper liability.
- Tribunals like POPLA or IAS will also check if you have identified yourself as the driver, if you want a strong appeal, we will guide you on how to do this.
Keeper and Driver Liability
We recommend that the registered keeper appeals the parking charge notice, the appeal letter template will have the correct wording.
The reason is simple, under the law, POFA 2012 the parking company can only make the keeper liable for a parking charge if they comply with strict legal requirements.
Our goal is to use the law to work for you, and the registered keeper has the best chance of winning an appeal.
Signage Requirements on Private Land
Signage is very important, if the signage is bad then there is no contract and therefore a parking charge notice can be issued.
Every parking charge is issued on the basis that the driver breached the terms of parking displayed on a sign. If the following scenarios match your situation, then we can help you challenge a parking charge based on bad or and clear signage.
- The signage was not visible or clear
- There was no entrance sign at the car park
- if this signage was not under adequate lighting in a dark car park
- if this signage was damaged or vandalised
- if this signage was covered up or under a tree
Simply check the options we provide on the online form and let us know if there was anything wrong with the signage.
We will write the relevant comments regarding signage based on the PPA or IPC code of practice and use the correct references to make it easier for you.
Checking for Poor Signage
Remember, the parking company would not confess that the parking signs and not adequate or poor. Therefore, it is your responsibility to check for signage and make sure that it is clear.
Use the advice below to see how to get pictures of the car park or look for evidence of clear signage.
Because signage is a mandatory requirement, having evidence of bad signage will make your appeal very easy to win and get your parking charge notice cancelled.
Parking Company Appeal or Payment Website
The parking company will usually have photos of the vehicle or from the camera on the payment page or on the appeal page.
This is a good place to get photos because the parking company themselves have provided the photos, and if the photos do not show the vehicle parked near a sign or the signage was not clear, then simply download these photos or take screenshots and add to the appeal.
You can also of the parking company to provide photos of the vehicle parked in your appeal. The reason I asked for evidence so that you can use any mistakes you identify to support your own case to get the parking charge notice cancelled.
Google Maps Street View
We recommend using Google maps in street view to see the quality of signage at the car park and identify any problems that could help in your appeal. In the example given above, you can navigate the car park and see photos of the signage.
Click here to open Google Maps and browse the car park, you can change the location to suit your needs.
Using Google maps also allows you to navigate around the car park, and it has a date and time feature when the photos were taken which will be useful to support your appeal.
We recommend taking screenshots and sizing them accordingly so that the screenshot taken is clear about what is wrong with parking sign.
Disabled Badge Holders
Is blue badge valid on private land
The blue badge scheme applies differently on private land, although the parking company is required to make certain adjustments for blue badge holders and the equality act, it is important to make sure that the blue badge holder also parks in accordance with signage.
A common mistake people make is that they park their vehicle and then display the badge, thinking that the rules will be the same as counsel managed purpose or on street parking.
What usually happens is that they don’t often park in a blue badge space and therefore a parking charge notice will be issued.
The rules on private land at different from local authority rules because the terms of parking in private car parks can differ between car parks.
How to appeal with blue badge
In this situation, it is important not to focus on trying to justify that the person driving had a blue badge, but to check the parking charge notice any errors that the parking company has made and use the law to work for you.
Appeal Checklist:
- Check your parking charge notice for errors using our online form
- Look for issues with the quality of signage in the car park
- Provide any evidence to support your appeal if correctly
- Don’t try to explain the situation as this may void your legal rights
Landowner Authority
The final thing that we will ask for in your appeal is for evidence of authorisation to issue parking charge notices on private land. This is a document that is signed between the company that issues parking charge notices and the landowner that gives them permission to operate.
Without this permission, a private parking company is not allowed to issue parking charge notices, therefore it is important requirement to check that the parking company has this information.
If the parking company doesn’t have this information, then your appeal will likely be successful at the tribunal based on the fact that they had no authorisation to issue the parking charge notice.
Please note that the tribunal handles the requirement for landowner authority differently.
POPLA: they are very transparent and allow you to see all copies of the documents provided by the parking company, therefore it should be very easy to verify if this was available at the time of the vehicle was parked.
The IAS: is not as transparent and will not give you access to the landowner authority, and most IPC operators will not share the landowner authority, however if the parking company does not provide this information, then you do not have to pay if you want to contest further.
Paying for your appeal
After you have finished answering the questions, our system will direct you to stripe to make payment for £4.99 for the appeal letter template and submission instructions.
The process is automatic and after payment is taken, you will receive confirmation by email and your appeal letter documents will be saved on your account on Parking Mate UK.
Start Your PCN Appeal
- Write Your Appeal
- Submit To Operator
- Submit To Tribunal