Richmond Nets £3.3 million from Parking Fines

8.30.00am BST (GMT +0100) Mon 18th Oct 2004

The most recent figures for parking fines (last year) show that Richmond Council acquired £3.33 million in parking fine income, 11% up over a year before. This is slightly more than neighbouring boroughs Hounslow and Kingston, much more than Sutton (£2.1m) but much less than Wandsworth (£8.8m) [Source: AppealNow.com]

Vincent Cable, MP, said that he had "large numbers of complaints about unfair fines. I think most reasonable people will accept that it is a 'fair cop' if they face a fine for parking dangerously or inconsiderately or if they don't take care over the time spent in metered parking. But I encounter far too many cases where wardens have been unreasonable and over zealous".

"There are two major sources of grievance about local parking fines. The first is in the Twickenham and Whitton area where parking control zones were introduced by the council, supported by the RFU, to help residents on match days but are now being used to milk residents for fines. The second is the new system of appeals whereby residents face an £80 rather than £40 fine if they appeal".

"London councils, including ours, will have to convince residents that parking fines are to manage traffic not a revenue raising device; and, if they overstep the mark, there will be a backlash against their being allowed to keep surpluses from fines".