Don’t find yourself subject to airport parking fines and charges. Some Private Parking Companies (PPCs) are ruthless and they don’t hide it. Due to the amount of daily traffic airports receive, issuing airport parking tickets is easy money for them.
Parking at an airport these days is very easy and straight forward. If you pre-book your parking in advance, it is usually hassle free when arriving at the airport. A lot of airport parking is controlled by either Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) and/or ticketing system. Pre-booked parking even allows for a grace period if you are delayed slightly. This is usually 6 hours, anything over that will be charged at an extra days rate. This will usually need paying before you leave the car park. Checking your PPC’s terms and conditions will outline this.
If you haven’t pre-booked and pay on your exit, then this will likely cost you more. However, payment will still be required before you exit.
Both of these options are usually monitored by a barrier system at the exit, so you can’t exit the car park without having paid the correct fee. In this instance, the chances of you receiving a fine or additional charges it is highly unlikely. In some rare cases, if the PPC feels you have breached any of their other terms and conditions, you could incur a fine or charge.
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Parking Charge Notice vs Penalty Charge Notice
Funny how they both have the same abbreviation of PCN but they are completely different things. A Penalty Charge Notice (PCN) is usually issued by a Civil Enforcement Officer (CEO). They work on behalf of the local council and make sure parking regulations are upheld. Other authorities that can issue a PCN are The police and Transport for London. A Parking Charge Notice is an invoice for payment for breaching the PPC’s terms and conditions.
The police, councils and Transport for London can only issue a Penalty Charge Notice, which is a fine. PPCs are banned from specifically using the word penalty in their notices. They are also not legally allowed to use the word fine.
The relationship between a motorist and the PPC is governed by contract law. So this means where their terms and conditions have been breached, the PPC can only claim the loss of revenue, rather than the inflated amounts usually demanded.
Airport Private Parking Charge Notices
The majority of airport private parking charge notices are incurred in the pick-up and drop-off zones. There are also instances of people receiving a Parking Charge Notice on the approach roads or on double yellow lines around the airport where they have been captured by the ANPR system. These zone are provided by the airport but usually at a cost to the driver of the vehicle. Unfortunately, if you forget to pay in an area that is only monitored by an ANPR system, overstay the allotted time or sometimes even leave your vehicle unattended, you will likely soon have the displeasure of receiving a Parking Charge Notice by post.
These Parking Charge Notices will commonly be sent from a PPC who manages the parking areas for the airport. Unfortunately, the similarities between a PCN and a Parking Charge Notice are not that obvious. The PPCs are relying on people not knowing the difference between them, and their concern of implications if they don’t pay.
Can A Private Parking Company Enforce A Fine?
As a Parking Charge Notice from a PPC is essentially just an invoice, if you don’t pay, the only way they can make you pay is if they take you to a claims court. Depending on the amount of the charge and the court costs, they decide against this options. However, some airports have local byelaws giving them the capability to give out fines with the authority of the local council. So, if the PPC can prove you have breached the byelaws, you will unfortunately have to pay.
Make sure you read the notice thoroughly before taking action!
Do You Have To Pay Airport Fines?
Airports can enforce fines that are not related specifically to non-payment of a parking charge. However, if you breach one of their terms and conditions, they could impose a fine on you for that breach. Such as leaving your car unattended in a drop-off zone could result in it being removed. If that was to happen, you would be liable for the costs associated with the removal.
These types of fine can be completely unrelated to a Parking Charge Notice issued by a PPC and should be fully understood before proceeding. The implications of not paying these types of fine could be severe.
Appeal An Airport PCN
If you want to appeal the Parking Charge Notice, then you first must do this to the PPC that issued the Parking Charge Notice. This must be done via the correct avenue outlined on the Parking Charge Notice. If there is an online option, you must always choose this option. If it rejected by the PPC, you can them move on to an appeal with The Parking On Private Land Appeals (POPLA).
Appeal An Airport PCN With POPLA
POPLA is an independent appeals service introduced in 2012 to deal with non-council related parking charges. Airport parking fine and charges can be appealed with POPLA and it is easy. All you need is your 10 character verification code that was provided by the PPC. You can also appeal online through their website.
TLDR: Airport Parking Fines And Charges
- Pre-booking your airport parking is the cheapest and easiest option for onsite parking, and to help avoid a possible airport parking fines and charges, and Parking Charge Notices;
- The differences between a Parking Charge Notice and Penalty Charge Notice (PCN) is who issues them. Transport for London, the police and councils issue PCNs. Private Parking Companies (PPCs) issue Parking Charge Notices;
- Airports tend to catch you in the drop-off zones using Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) systems;
- PPCs manage the parking areas and issue the Parking Charge Notices;
- Some airports have local byelaws which gives them the authority of the local council;
- Airports can issue fines for other terms and condition breaches;
- You can appeal the Parking Charge Notice through the PPC and then through The Parking on Private Land Appeals (POPLA) if they reject it.
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