The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government says the Private Parking Code of Practice was laid before Parliament on 20 October 2026, setting out a single government framework for private parking operators in England, Scotland and Wales. The main provisions are a five-minute period for drivers to decide whether to park, a ten-minute period to leave once a session ends, and a right to challenge charges where the problem arose from events outside the motorist’s control. (gov.uk) The move returns the sector to the statutory process created by the Parking (Code of Practice) Act 2019. A previous code was laid in 2022 and then withdrawn after legal challenge; ministers reopened the policy through a further consultation launched in July 2025 before bringing forward the present code. (legislation.gov.uk)
Much of the practical change sits in the appeals rules. MHCLG says a charge should be cancelled when a motorist can evidence circumstances such as briefly stopping to check directions, a medical emergency, a breakdown or a broken ticket machine. For lesser errors, including forgetting a permit or entering the wrong vehicle registration, the maximum charge on appeal will be £20. (gov.uk) That distinction matters. The £20 figure is not a new universal charge for all contraventions; it is the ceiling for specified minor errors after appeal. The main cap on a parking charge remains frozen at £100, so the reform is aimed more at proportionality in appeals than at cutting every notice at source. (gov.uk)
Compliance is meant to be enforced through access to key data and closer monitoring. Operators that do not comply risk losing access to DVLA keeper data, and the department says firms will also have to submit information on the charges they issue and the way appeals are handled. That reporting will be examined by a new independent Scrutiny and Oversight Board once the code is in force. (gov.uk) For operators, that points to more formal evidence handling, clearer records and tighter quality control over appeal decisions. For motorists, the practical effect should be a system where the basis of a charge, and the route for challenging it, are easier to inspect. The second sentence is an inference from the reporting and oversight requirements set out by MHCLG. (gov.uk)
The Code will not take effect immediately. Under the Parking (Code of Practice) Act 2019, a code laid before Parliament is subject to a 40-day period in which either House may resolve not to approve it, and ministers then bring it into force by regulations if that period passes without objection. MHCLG says Parliament will now scrutinise the Code before it is commenced as soon as possible. (legislation.gov.uk) The department says the policy follows a public consultation that ran from July to September 2025 and received 4,526 responses from motorists, industry and other stakeholders. According to the government’s summary, respondents wanted fairer appeals arrangements and independent oversight of the sector. (gov.uk)
The scale of the market explains why the reform has been brought back. The government says just under 17 million private parking charges were issued in the UK last year, making appeals, fees and recovery practices a significant consumer issue rather than a narrow regulatory question. (gov.uk) There is also recent competition and consumer enforcement pressure. In a letter published on 16 July 2026, the Competition and Markets Authority said it had particular concerns about the way some operators handle appeals and attempt to recover additional fees on top of the parking charge. That concern sits directly behind the next stage of reform. (gov.uk)
That next stage is debt recovery. MHCLG says it will consult in 2027 on private parking debt recovery fees, including whether to reduce the existing £70 cap or remove the fees altogether. The department also says it intends to consult further on remaining Competition and Markets Authority recommendations after publication of the Code. (gov.uk) This matters because the added recovery sum is the amount still under review. Any reduction or removal would change the economics of pursuing lower-value cases for some operators and agents. The second sentence is an inference from the government’s consultation pledge and the CMA’s concern about added fees. (gov.uk)
The same announcement also reaches the used-car market. The government says businesses selling cars to consumers will see car clocking added to the banned practices list in Schedule 20 of the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024, with the stated aim of making enforcement more straightforward where a vehicle’s mileage has been misrepresented. (gov.uk) That claim has a clear legal basis. The Act’s explanatory notes say Schedule 20 covers practices that are unfair in all circumstances and may be sanctioned without applying the usual transactional decision test. On that reading, adding car clocking to the schedule should give enforcers a more direct route in mileage fraud cases while reducing the advantage held by non-compliant traders over honest dealers. The final sentence is an inference from the Act and the government announcement. (legislation.gov.uk)