Parking Charge Notice or Penalty Charge Notice? How to tell
A Parking Charge Notice comes from a private company; a Penalty Charge Notice comes from a council or TfL. Both get called a PCN, but the rules, deadlines and appeals are different.
Last checked 28 October 2026. General information, not legal advice.
The short answer
Both are called a PCN, but they're different things. A Parking Charge Notice comes from a private company, such as a supermarket car park operator, and is a claim under contract law. A Penalty Charge Notice comes from a council or Transport for London, and is a civil penalty under public law. Which one you have decides how you appeal, who decides, and what happens if you don't pay.
Side by side
| Parking Charge Notice (private) | Penalty Charge Notice (council or TfL) | |
|---|---|---|
| Who issues it | A private company | A council or TfL |
| Legal basis | Contract, and the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 for keeper liability | Traffic Management Act 2004 and related laws |
| Usual amount | Up to £100 | Set by law and varies by area: in London £110 to £160 |
| Discount | At least 40% within 14 days | 50% within 14 days (21 for many postal camera tickets) |
| First appeal | The company, within 28 days | The council or TfL |
| Independent appeal | POPLA or the IAS | London Tribunals or the Traffic Penalty Tribunal |
| If you don't pay | Debt collectors, then a County Court claim | 50% increase, then bailiffs without a full court case |
How to tell which one you have
- Who sent it: a company name ending in Ltd (for example ParkingEye or Euro Car Parks) means a private charge. A council or TfL logo means a penalty.
- The words on it: private companies use 'Parking Charge Notice' or 'parking charge'. Councils use 'Penalty Charge Notice'.
- The law it mentions: private notices sent by post usually refer to the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012. Council notices usually refer to the Traffic Management Act 2004, sometimes alongside London-specific legislation for things like bus lanes and the congestion charge.
- Where you appeal: a private notice names POPLA or the IAS as the independent appeal. A council notice names London Tribunals or the Traffic Penalty Tribunal.
- A police Fixed Penalty Notice is different again: it's for an offence, and some can put points on your licence.
Private Parking Charge Notice
- Issued by a private company on private land: supermarkets, retail parks, hospitals, gyms, blocks of flats.
- Usually up to £100, reduced by at least 40% if you pay within 14 days.
- Appeal to the company within 28 days, then to POPLA or the IAS if it's rejected. Both are free.
- If you don't pay, the company can only make you pay by taking you to the County Court. It can't send bailiffs without a court judgment.
- The registered keeper can only be made to pay if the company follows the Protection of Freedoms Act (England and Wales). In Scotland and Northern Ireland only the driver can be pursued.
Council or TfL Penalty Charge Notice
- Issued by a council or TfL for parking on the street or in council car parks, bus lanes, yellow box junctions, and in London the congestion charge and ULEZ.
- Usually halved if you pay within 14 days, or 21 days for many tickets sent by post after a camera recorded the contravention.
- For a ticket left on the windscreen, you can challenge it informally first, then make formal representations after the Notice to Owner. A ticket sent by post (for example from a camera) goes straight to formal representations. If those are rejected, you can appeal to the independent tribunal, which is free.
- In England and Wales, if you don't pay, the penalty goes up by 50% with a charge certificate. The council can then register the debt with the Traffic Enforcement Centre and send an Order for Recovery, giving you 21 days to pay or file a statement disputing it. After that it can send enforcement agents (bailiffs) without a full court case.
- The registered keeper (the law calls them the owner) is liable to pay, whoever was driving.
Why it matters
The arguments that work are different. A private charge can fail because the company broke the Protection of Freedoms Act or the industry code, for example by sending the notice late. A council penalty can fail because the contravention didn't happen, the signs or lines were wrong, or the council didn't follow the procedure. Using the wrong rules wastes your appeal.
The risks of ignoring them are different too. An ignored private charge can end in a County Court Judgment. An ignored council penalty can end with bailiffs much sooner, because the council doesn't need a full court case first.
What we check
Our free check covers private parking charges in the UK. We don't handle council or TfL Penalty Charge Notices yet: our guide to council and TfL tickets explains how to challenge them yourself.
Who sent your charge?
How to appeal to the companies that send the most charges:
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