Can You Ignore a Private Parking Ticket in 2026? What Actually Happens

You've come back to your car and found a yellow plastic envelope on your windscreen. It looks official. It demands £100. And your first thought is: can I just ignore this?

It's the most common question we get. The honest answer is: it depends on the ticket, who issued it, and whether they followed the rules. Here's what actually happens in 2026 if you don't respond to a private parking charge.

Private Parking Tickets vs Council PCNs: The Critical Difference

First, you need to know what you're dealing with. A council parking ticket (issued by a Civil Enforcement Officer in a uniform, usually with a council logo) is a Penalty Charge Notice backed by law under the Traffic Management Act 2004. Ignoring a council PCN will eventually lead to bailiff action. Don't ignore those.

A private parking ticket — from companies like ParkingEye, Euro Car Parks, APCOA, Smart Parking, or similar — is not a fine. It's an invoice. Legally, it's a claim for breach of contract. The operator is saying: you parked on private land, the signs said you'd be charged £100 if you broke the rules, and now you owe us money.

That distinction matters enormously.

What Happens If You Simply Don't Pay

Here's the realistic timeline if you ignore a private parking ticket in 2026:

Weeks 1–4: Reminder Letters

The operator sends increasingly urgent letters. These often have red text, "FINAL WARNING" headers, and threatening language. They may mention "debt recovery" and "county court action." Most people panic at this stage — which is exactly the point.

Weeks 4–12: Debt Collection Letters

The operator passes your case to a debt collection company. You'll get letters from companies with intimidating names. These letters often add "administration fees" on top of the original charge, pushing it to £150–£170.

Important: Private parking debt collectors are not bailiffs. They cannot visit your home, clamp your car, or take your belongings. They can only send letters.

After 3–6 Months: The Court Decision

This is where it gets real. The operator must decide: do we file a county court claim, or do we write this off?

Most operators write off most tickets. Filing a court claim costs the operator money (court fees, legal admin), and they only do it when they're confident they'll win.

However, some operators do go to court regularly. ParkingEye files over 30,000 claims per year. They are not bluffing. Euro Car Parks, APCOA, and several others also pursue claims.

The POFA Protection: Why the Keeper Letter Matters

The Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 (POFA) gives private parking operators the right to chase the registered keeper of a vehicle — but only if they follow strict rules. Specifically, they must send a "Notice to Keeper" (NTK) that:

• Arrives within 14 days of the alleged contravention (or within 14 days of obtaining keeper details from the DVLA)
• Contains specific statutory information
• Names the correct keeper
• States the correct vehicle, date, and location

If the operator gets any of this wrong, they lose the right to pursue the keeper. They can only chase the driver — and since they don't know who was driving (and you're not obliged to tell them), the ticket becomes effectively unenforceable.

This is one of the most common reasons private parking tickets fail. Many operators send their NTK letters late, with wrong details, or with missing statutory wording.

The Notice to Hirer Loophole

If you were driving a hire car, company car, or leased vehicle, there's an additional requirement. Under POFA Schedule 4, Paragraph 14(2)(a), the operator must send a separate "Notice to Hirer" to the hire company. If they didn't, the ticket is unenforceable against both you and the vehicle keeper.

This catches out operators constantly. Many simply don't bother with the Notice to Hirer process, which voids their claim entirely.

So Should You Ignore It?

Here's our honest assessment:

Simply ignoring it and hoping it goes away is risky, especially with operators like ParkingEye who actively pursue court claims. If they do file and you don't respond, you'll get a County Court Judgment (CCJ) by default, which damages your credit rating for six years.

The smarter approach is to appeal. Check for procedural errors first (late NTK, Notice to Hirer failures, signage issues, grace period violations). If the operator made a mistake — and they often do — your appeal will succeed and the ticket is cancelled.

If your appeal is rejected, you still have a free right to escalate to an independent appeals service (POPLA for BPA members, IAS for IPC members). Around 40% of POPLA appeals succeed.

When You Genuinely Can Ignore It

There are specific situations where the ticket is unenforceable and ignoring it carries minimal risk:

• The operator is not a member of an accredited trade body (BPA or IPC) — they cannot access DVLA data and cannot identify you
• The Notice to Keeper arrived more than 14 days late — keeper liability has not transferred
• You were driving a hire/lease vehicle and no Notice to Hirer was sent
• The operator has no DVLA access (some very small operators)

Even in these cases, we'd still recommend sending a short appeal citing the specific failure. It creates a paper trail and usually stops the letters immediately.

The Bottom Line

Don't panic, but don't ignore it either. Check for errors, appeal properly, and you stand a strong chance of getting it cancelled. A professional appeal letter costs less than the early-payment discount on most tickets — and if it works, you pay nothing at all.