The BPA cries ‘carmageddon’ again

The British Parking Association has warned that proposed government reforms to private parking will cause “carmageddon” — gridlocked roads and overwhelmed courts across the UK. Let’s just pause and take that in for a moment.

The same industry that has just issued a record-breaking 15.9 million parking charges in a single year — roughly one every two seconds, every hour of every day — is now warning that if it’s reined in even slightly, Britain’s roads will descend into chaos.

Pull the other one.

What’s Actually Happening

The government has been consulting on a new Private Parking Code of Practice. The consultation, which closed in September 2025, looked at two specific proposals that have the parking industry absolutely rattled:

1. Capping or reducing the £100 parking charge
2. Banning or capping the £70 debt recovery fee that gets added when a charge goes unpaid for 28 days

These are, it has to be said, pretty modest proposals. The government isn’t talking about abolishing private parking enforcement. It’s talking about whether a £100 charge is proportionate, and whether slapping an extra £70 on top — purely for sending a few letters — is fair.

The BPA’s response? “Carmageddon.”

What the BPA Actually Said

Alison Tooze, the BPA’s chief policy and engagement officer, warned of “unintended and avoidable consequences” if the code is adopted. She said that without the threat of debt recovery action, motorists would simply stop paying — and that parking companies would then be forced to take everyone to court instead, overwhelming an already stretched legal system.

She pointed to examples in Bournemouth and Aberystwyth as evidence of what happens when drivers aren’t sufficiently deterred.

The RAC, to their credit, was having none of it. Their head of policy Simon Williams said: “A £100 parking charge notice is bad enough, but if this isn’t paid in 28 days, it automatically gets increased by £70 when a debt recovery letter lands on the doormat. This seems disproportionate and could scare people into paying rather than appealing any unfair fines.”

He’s right. And that’s precisely the point.

Let’s Talk About What Debt Recovery Fees Actually Are

When a parking charge goes unpaid, the parking company passes it to a debt recovery firm. That firm sends you some threatening letters. For this service, they charge you — the motorist — an additional £70.

Not £70 to cover court costs. Not £70 because anyone has been harmed. Just £70 for letters.

The government’s consultation describes these fees as “disproportionately high” and “out of step with similar industries.” That’s putting it mildly. The entire purpose of the fee is not to recover a genuine loss — it’s to pressure motorists into paying charges they might otherwise successfully appeal.

The BPA knows this. That’s why they’re so keen to keep it.

The Record Nobody Should Be Proud Of

Let’s not lose sight of the backdrop here. In the year to September 2025, private parking firms issued 15.9 million charges — up 17% on the previous year, and more than double the figure from 2018-19. At £100 a time, that’s potentially £4.4 million being extracted from motorists every single day.

This is an industry that has doubled its output in six years, during a period when the government was supposedly trying to crack down on it. The original Private Parking Code of Practice — which would have capped fines at £50 — was withdrawn in 2022 after legal challenges from the parking industry itself.

So the industry successfully killed the last attempt at reform, continued to ramp up ticketing to record levels, and is now warning that any future attempt at reform will cause gridlock. You couldn’t write it.

What “Carmageddon” Really Means

Here’s what the BPA’s argument actually boils down to: if we can’t frighten people into paying with large fees, some of them won’t pay. And if we then have to prove our charges in court rather than rely on the threat of debt recovery, we might lose some of those cases.

Which rather suggests that some of those charges wouldn’t survive legal scrutiny, doesn’t it?

The parking industry’s business model depends heavily on people paying up without questioning whether the charge is valid. Debt recovery fees are a key part of that — they turn a £100 invoice into a £170 one in 28 days, which is very effective at discouraging appeals. Remove that lever, and suddenly the calculus changes. People might actually appeal. And the POPLA appeal service — when motorists bother to use it — upholds a significant proportion of them.

That is what the BPA fears. Not carmageddon. Accountability.

What Should You Do Right Now?

While we wait for the government to finally grow a spine and publish the new code, the situation for motorists remains the same as it has always been: if you receive a parking charge notice, do not automatically pay it.

Check it carefully. Look for errors. Consider whether the signage was adequate. Check whether the Notice to Keeper was sent within 14 days as required under the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012. And if you have grounds, appeal it.

The parking industry is very good at making their charges feel inevitable and official. They are not. A private parking charge is a civil invoice, not a fine. And civil invoices can be challenged.

Don’t let the threat of a debt recovery letter — the very tool the BPA is now fighting to protect — stop you from exercising your rights.

The government has said “no final decision has been made” on the debt recovery fee cap, and that further details on the new code of practice will be published “as soon as possible.” We’ll be watching — and reporting back.