Sajid Javid pledges crackdown on ‘dodgy parking firms’
2 min read
"Dodgy" companies that issue parking fines could be forced out of business as tough new standards are imposed, the Communities Secretary has said.
Sajid Javid has vowed to back legislation that will crackdown on "unscrupulous and aggressive" parking operators.
The plans were set out by Conservative MP Sir Greg Knight in his Parking (Code of Practice) Bill, which is due for its second reading in the House of Commons on Friday.
The Government’s backing now effectively guarantees its passage into law.
The legislation will provide "fair, clear and consistent" regulation of the parking industry and will ban firms found to be acting unfairly from accessing driver data and issuing fines.
Mr Javid said: "For too long, drivers have suffered from unjust fines at the hands of dodgy parking firms.
"We need a fairer, clearer and more consistent system that brings the small minority of unscrupulous operators in line with those who are behaving appropriately.
"That is why Government is putting the brakes on these rogue operators and backing new laws that will put a stop to aggressive behaviour and provide a simpler way for drivers to appeal fines."
Director of the RAC Foundation, Steve Gooding said: "We all hoped the ban on clamping would end the sharp practices that had come to plague private parking, but the fact that companies are issuing millions of penalty tickets annually is clear evidence that something is still going badly awry.
"Drivers don't want a parking free-for-all, but they do want a system that is fair to all parties and that's what a code of practice set by Government - rather than the industry itself - should bring about."
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