A HUGE change to parking rules has been rolled out today.
From February 17, drivers using car parks with camera technology will not be fined for failing to pay in the first five minutes of their stay.
The change comes after Rosey Hudson was charged £1,906 for taking more than five minutes to pay for her parking.
Scrapping the five-minute fine will help drivers save money, after Brits branded the old rule “ridiculous”.
Instead of paying in the first five minutes of their stay, Brits will now need to pay before leaving the car park.
This change will apply to all car parks using ANPR technology.
However, the rule change will not apply to privately run car parks without camera technology or to sites run by firms who aren’t registered with the BPA or IPC.
The rules are part of the Private Parking Code of Practice, a voluntary set of guidelines established by the BPA or IPC.
This means that private car parks can opt out of the rules and, therefore, the new change.
Finally, council-run car parks will still be able to hand out official parking fines.
Critics of the changes have said that they do not go far enough.
They have pointed to a 2019 government bill which put protections for drivers into law.
The bill introduced a grace period at the start and the end of the parking period, a cap on parking charge fees of £50 and the removal of additional debt recovery fees.
However, the bill was withdrawn in 2022 when there was a legal challenge from several parking firms.
Simon Williams, head of policy at motoring group the RAC, has called for the bill to be reinstated.
He said:”As there’s no information on how the change will work in practice, we fear it will make little difference to drivers.
“It’s also important to realise this is the industry’s own code, not the Government-backed Private Parking Code of Practice, which was enabled by an Act of Parliament in 2019 yet has never come into force due to a legal challenge.
“We want to see the statutory code in operation as soon as possible.”
The controversy around he five-minute charge comes after Southampton City Council scrapped plans for free parking in 17 sites.
It is hoped that extending the charging period in Southampton from 8am-6pm to 8am-8pm will raise £500,000.
