Wheel clamping on private land is now a criminal offence as of 1 October 2012.
Whilst there are some limited exceptions under local by-laws, it is really only the DVLA and Police that are allowed to clamp from that date.
The new law comes in response to numerous complaints about instances of gross overcharging for parking on private land.
There is also an independent appeals procedure in place so if you feel that any penalty has been unfairly applied it is worth gathering evidence to support your view.
A less publicised feature of the new law is that parking enforcement companies who are members of the British Parking Association (BPA) will now be able to enforce parking fines against the registered owners of vehicles. They are entitled to obtain this information from the DVLA. Previously, they had to enforce against the driver of the vehicle on the basis of breach of contract (say where time limits had been exceeded) or trespass (where there was no right to park there in the first place).
The amount that can be levied as a fine has also been restricted to £100 in most circumstances and this figure must be discounted by up to 40% for early repayment.
Whilst they may add some certainty to an area of the law that has always been notoriously grey, the additional rights given to parking companies and the relatively high limit on fines may in fact work against motorists as the courts may be more willing in future to uphold fines.
The new regulations may also not be that effective in dealing with rogue parking companies who are not members of the BPA. Such companies are likely to continue to rely on intimidation and similar tactics to try to extract large penalties from motorists. One of the reasons that so many of these companies used clamps was that they do not have access to the DVLA records and do not want motorists to be able to leave without paying. The fact that they cannot clamp does not mean that they will simply let motorists drive off with a parking ticket.
Our advice for landowners is to find out if your parking enforcement company is a member of the BPA and, if not, to consider whether it is worth finding one that is. Motorists need to be more attentive to signage and parking rules in future as the days of being to avoid payment through various means may now be at an end.
If you do end up in a situation where you are being asked to pay an on the spot fine you should refuse to do so and consider calling the police if you feel at all intimidated.
Whilst there are some limited exceptions under local by-laws, it is really only the DVLA and Police that are allowed to clamp from that date.
The new law comes in response to numerous complaints about instances of gross overcharging for parking on private land.
There is also an independent appeals procedure in place so if you feel that any penalty has been unfairly applied it is worth gathering evidence to support your view.
A less publicised feature of the new law is that parking enforcement companies who are members of the British Parking Association (BPA) will now be able to enforce parking fines against the registered owners of vehicles. They are entitled to obtain this information from the DVLA. Previously, they had to enforce against the driver of the vehicle on the basis of breach of contract (say where time limits had been exceeded) or trespass (where there was no right to park there in the first place).
The amount that can be levied as a fine has also been restricted to £100 in most circumstances and this figure must be discounted by up to 40% for early repayment.
Whilst they may add some certainty to an area of the law that has always been notoriously grey, the additional rights given to parking companies and the relatively high limit on fines may in fact work against motorists as the courts may be more willing in future to uphold fines.
The new regulations may also not be that effective in dealing with rogue parking companies who are not members of the BPA. Such companies are likely to continue to rely on intimidation and similar tactics to try to extract large penalties from motorists. One of the reasons that so many of these companies used clamps was that they do not have access to the DVLA records and do not want motorists to be able to leave without paying. The fact that they cannot clamp does not mean that they will simply let motorists drive off with a parking ticket.
Our advice for landowners is to find out if your parking enforcement company is a member of the BPA and, if not, to consider whether it is worth finding one that is. Motorists need to be more attentive to signage and parking rules in future as the days of being to avoid payment through various means may now be at an end.
If you do end up in a situation where you are being asked to pay an on the spot fine you should refuse to do so and consider calling the police if you feel at all intimidated.
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