Car parking charges and use of parking apps - Levelling Up Committee writes to Government Ministers

Clive Betts, Chair of the Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, has written to Transport and Levelling-Up Ministers on a series of car parking issues, including the Government’s Private Parking Code of Practice, the National Parking Platform, and concerns that some motorists are being digitally excluded from the phasing out of pay-as-you-go parking meters. 

The Committee’s correspondence to Rachel Maclean MP, Minister, DLUHC, and Richard Holden, Minister, DfT, calls for the Government to respond to concerns raised about the Private Parking Code of Practice and to state when the Government will decide on whether to roll out of a national parking platform across the country. 

Clive Betts, Chair of the Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (LUHC) Committee said: “Finding suitable, affordable, and accessible places to park is an important part of our transport infrastructure and of considerable value to people as they visit villages, towns and cities. Recently, there have been accounts of motorists being, in effect, digitally excluded as local authorities phase out pay-as-you-go parking meters due to 3G networks being switched off by mobile operators. 

“People shouldn’t be left to wrestle with countless apps to pay a parking charge or risk a fine when they aren’t able to navigate the app successfully. These developments pose particular difficulties for elderly or vulnerable motorists who may not have a smartphone, or who may struggle to use apps if they do. 

“In light of these developments, I hope the Government will be able to give an update on the National Parking Platform and when they are likely to decide on whether to roll out a national parking platform across the country. The Government should set out how motorists who do not have smartphones, or can’t get a mobile signal, will be able to pay for their parking in a convenient way”.  

In November 2021, the Levelling-Up Committee took oral evidence on the Government’s Private Parking Code of Practice Enforcement Framework. The Government withdrew that code of practice in June 2022 pending review.

A recent written question indicates the review is still ongoing. In December 2021, the Levelling-Up Committee followed up on its evidence session with a letter to the then Levelling-Up Minister Neil O’Brien to raise a series of issues relating to the behaviour and practice of parking operators.