Prime Minister Andy Burnham is set to tackle unfair private parking prices with new rules inbound.

With the government announcing a new private parking code of practice, Burnham has chose to shake things up with laws coming in such as there being a five minute deciding period, in which drivers will choose whether to park,

This is followed up by a ten minute leaving period at the ending of the drivers parking session, where if motorists do not leave the car parks in this space of time, they will receive a penalty fee.

This being said, for drivers who forget parking permits, enter the wrong registration or forget to confirm it at parking machines, there will be a maximum charge of £20 on appeal. For genuine mistakes and errors, it is said that these charges will be axed.

With minor errors being as low as £20, these prices are said to be capped ultimately at £100.

The government is insisting that these new rules will aim to curb ‘rip-off’ prices and improve fairness alongside avoiding deliberate scams. Private parking firms issued an astonishing 16.9 million tickets in the year to March 2026, up from 14.4 million in the previous year, according to figures from the RAC.

Burnham claimed that “these charges leave people feeling ripped-off and out of pocket, so I’m putting a stop to it.”

Currently, private parking companies use vehicle keeper information from the DVLA to pursue parking charges. The new private parking charges/code of practice will apply in England, Scotland and Wales, and will therefore bring a fully independent scrutiny for the first time.

Operators who refuse to respect these rules will be at a potential risk of losing access to their DVLA data.

Additionally, members of the government have also ensured the public that they will be clamping down on dodgy second-hand car dealers under the new plans.