Numerous drivers have alleged that a prominent parking management company has been issuing unjust parking fines, leading one mother to confront several debt collection agencies dispatched by the firm.
Jane Winder reported receiving notices from five separate debt collection agencies, each demanding £170 after she was accused of failing to acquire a £2.30 parking ticket at a car park in Lancashire overseen by Euro Car Parks.
Winder is among several motorists who have shared their experiences with Guardian Money, revealing they were threatened with legal action despite providing proof of payment for their parking.
Euro Car Parks operates over 3,000 car parks throughout the UK and Ireland, serving a variety of clients, including supermarkets, hospitals, airports, and universities.
The company recently faced scrutiny after the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority imposed a £473,000 fine due to its failure to provide necessary information to the regulator.
Utilizing automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) technology, Euro Car Parks monitors whether drivers have paid for parking and issues parking charge notices (PCNs) to those who appear to lack a valid ticket.
According to Popla, an independent appeals service, Euro Car Parks’ PCNs were the second most appealed fines in the UK, with 12,000 appeals submitted in 2023 and 15,000 in 2024.
In November 2023, Winder received a £100 parking charge notice, which required payment within 28 days. The 51-year-old believed the notice was inaccurate and submitted a bank statement and a photo of her ticket as evidence of payment. Her appeal was denied, but she was asked to pay only a £20 administrative fee.
Convinced she had acted correctly, Winder chose to ignore the £20 request, only to be inundated with letters from debt collection agencies demanding payment.
The first letter arrived in March 2024 from Debt Recovery Plus, stating she owed £170 and warning of potential court action that could affect her access to loans and credit if left unpaid.
Winder attempted to explain her situation to the agency, providing evidence of her payment, but they persisted in demanding payment.
Over the next 14 months, she received correspondence from five different debt collection agencies regarding the £170 payment.
“I was quite anxious about the possibility of someone coming to my door to demand money I didn’t owe—it was distressing,” she recounted.
In June 2025, she received a notice from Preston Combined Court Centre indicating that Euro Car Parks had initiated a court claim against her, with the amount owed now escalating to £278.
Confident in her ability to defend herself, Winder stated, “I felt compelled to advocate for individuals like myself because these large companies can easily engage in such practices, knowing many people will capitulate to threats of court and debt collection.”
At the last moment, she was informed by the court that Euro Car Parks had withdrawn the claim.
“I fought this for two years, and now they’ve just dropped it… To me, that signals an acknowledgment of their wrongdoing,” she remarked.
Other drivers have shared similar experiences on review platforms such as Trustpilot, where, as of now, 99% of over 3,000 reviews of Euro Car Parks are rated one star, as well as on social media and with Guardian Money.
Kelly Haydock received a £100 PCN in November 2023 after parking while shopping in Manchester. Despite submitting her own proof of payment, her appeal was also denied, and she faced relentless demands from debt collectors.
Describing her experience, the 55-year-old said the debt collectors “refused to listen” to her and pressured her for payment.
By June 2024, the amount she owed had risen to £170, and in May 2025, she received a letter stating that Euro Car Parks had taken legal action against her for £277.
Just before her court date, a debt collection agency contacted her and offered to drop the case if she paid £75.
“I shouldn’t have paid anything. My job as a foster carer is already stressful, and dealing with the threat of bailiffs and court proceedings, alongside feeling bullied, was incredibly distressing,” she said. “I ultimately paid to end the harassment.”
After enduring a year and a half of disputes with Euro Car Parks and various debt collectors, Haydock expressed her frustration, saying she feels “very bitter” about the entire situation.
Michal Lucki, who also had his appeal turned down despite providing proof of payment, described his battle with Euro Car Parks and the debt collectors over the £170 PCN as “mentally exhausting.”
His ordeal began in June 2023 while he parked in a Bedfordshire car park, and it adversely impacted his well-being until he was finally free of the company and the debt collectors in December 2025 when a court claim for £282 was dismissed after Euro Car Parks failed to pay the associated hearing fees.
Guardian Money attempted to contact Euro Car Parks for comments regarding these cases but received no response despite multiple inquiries.
