To think parking fines should have a penalty points system?

[FirstNameSurname]

For council fines, not those on private land.

I live in a historic town with narrow roads. Parking is always limited. We have a large amount of well off people, they seem to have decided to ignore parking restrictions and just pay the fines as and when they get them. This leads to a large number of 1 & 2 hour spaces being taken for the whole day. It also means they park dangerously and make driving difficult for others or hazardous for people crossing.

I walked past one yesterday who told his friend he would get his secretary to deal with it as its tax deductible (no idea if it is). "Shes used to dealing with these things"

I feel they should have a points system similar to speeding points, with the very persistent offenders ending up in court. Or at least not offer the reduced fine if paid in x days to those who collect multiple fines. This way they would also have to declare to the insurance company who could increase premiums to those parking dangerously.

Seems unfair that someone can persistantly park dangerously and unless the police take notice, they pay an insignificant amount of money (to them) and are otherwise unpunished.

I think if people park dangerously they should have their car towed.

Overstaying parking times I think should stay as a fine as that's not really a police matter imo.

No I don’t agree with you. I once had a parking fine when the ticket i’d purchased flew off the dashboard when I closed the car door and I didn’t notice. Completely accidental but I wouldn’t have been able to contest it.

I do, however, think cars should be clamped or towed if parked dangerously

Overstaying isn’t dangerous, although I would agree with persistent offenders not being able to pay the reduced fine.

Parking dangerously I absolutely agree should be worth penalty points.

I think that might be a good idea. After a certain number of fines, the amount payable could increase or result in penalty points in a driving licence. How much are the fines where you live? People must be quite wealthy if they can just drop £25 all the time.

No I don’t agree with you. I once had a parking fine when the ticket i’d purchased flew off the dashboard when I closed the car door and I didn’t notice. Completely accidental but I wouldn’t have been able to contest it.

That happened to me and I did contest it. I didn't expect to get anywhere but the council cancelled the fine and told me that was the one and only time they'd do it.

I think there's a difference between parking inconsiderately or dangerously eg blocking pavements, driveways, on blind bends etc, and staying too long in a space.

If it's safe for 4 cars to par in a space for 2 hours each, it's safe for one car to park there for 8 hours.

But if there were penalty points for blocking driveways people would soon stop doing it!

Parking dangerously is completely different to overstaying in a one hour space though.

Many parking restrictions are more of a social/community strategy (allowing different people to access shops, facilities etc) than anything to do with road safety, as penalty points are.

As an aside, I believe parking fines incurred by employees in the course of work are tax deductible, but not by sole traders or business owners.

There was a case made by G4S that established it in the run up to the olympics I think.

I guess parking fines aren't criminal. But I would have thought making regulatory penalties (which they are if they are from the council) tax deductible was against public policy.

Overstaying a space should just stay as a fine.
Parking dangerously is a different matter.

PArking fines aren't tax deductible. They don't meet the definition of "wholly and exclusively" for tax purposes.

And if the company reimburses or pays a fine on behalf of an employee, then it should be treated as additional salary for the employee and PAYE and NIC paid on it accordingly.

I agree with you though OP - persistent offenders should have some sort of additional punishment: increasing levels of penalties, means tested levels of fines, possession and crushing of cars, etc.

This is the problem they have outside Harrods in London. All the fancy cars parked outside get loads of fines, but for the people that own them even if they do pay it, it's just pocket change to them.

^A situation in which an employer pays, or reimburses, a parking fine which is the employee’s liability should be dealt with as above. The fine will be the employee’s liability if the penalty notice was actually handed to him or her at the time of the offence, or if the employee owns the car. In such circumstances a deduction may be allowed to the employer for the fine paid on behalf of the employee.

But if the notice was fixed to a car owned by the employer, and the employer pays the fine as the registered owner, an employment income charge will not arise to the employee. The fine should then be disallowed in computing the employer’s taxable profit. If the employee voluntarily pays a fine in these circumstances, and the employer reimburses it, the employee will be chargeable to tax the reimbursement as earnings. A deduction for the expense may then be allowed to the employer.^

From www.gov.uk/hmrc-internal-manuals/business-income-manual/bim42515

They are deductible if reimbursed to an employee, not if paid by a business owner.

I think so too. A parking fine is only £40, so balance against chances of seeing a traffic warden (very low in my area), then its a chance worth taking.