Free Traffic Legal Advice

Others will come along and provide usual advice the NTK is almost identical to the one that was recently received and was advised to appeal on the basis it is not compliant. They will turn down the appeal. There should be signs if you enter you PCN number in their site.

I would add there is no point in appealing to IAS you have more chance of winning the lottery. You will probably go to the limit of civil court in order to resolve this with the assistance of this forum.

  Not sure why the permit isn't visible in their picture.

Don't have a lease, I'm a freeholder. Is there any other information I should be looking for?

I'll see what I can dig out. Given I've lived here since 2016 and there's been a permit in the car since it was purchased what are the chances that these shysters have edited the photos?

Personally I'd park any argument that a permit was displayed. As unscrupulous as these firms are - they're already making enough money to not have any need to hire someone to convincingly doctor images (not the mention the entirely unnecessary legal risk they would be taking doing so).

Absent any evidence of foul play, or evidence to counter theirs, I think you'd face an uphill battle to argue a permit was displayed, and doing so might come at the expense of focusing on arguments with a higher likelihood of success.

This is what I could find about parking in the lease:

Parking

9.10 Not to park any vehicle caravan trailer or boat of any kind on the Property or any part of the Estate except that

9.10.1 private motorcars and private motorcycles may be parked on such part of the Property (if any) as is specifically constructed for that purpose or in any garage forming part of the Property

9.10.2 any vehicle caravan trailer or boat may be parked in any garage forming part of the Property or within the back garden (if any) of the Property if suitably screened and positioned so that it is not obtrusive to the views of neighbours from the ground floor of their premises

9.11 Not to keep or allow any vehicles to stand on any accessways or any turning areas serving Estate Roads nor to do anything which would obstruct the easy access over such land

9.12 Not personally to park any motor or other vehicles on a Visitors Parking Space

9.13 Not to allow any occupier of or visitor to the Property to infringe these covenants relating to parking PROVIDED THAT a visitor to the Properly may park a vehicle on a Visitors Parking Space in accordance with clause 6.6

Clause 6.6 states:

6.6 Until such time as the Estate Roads shall become publicly maintained the right in common with the owners and occupiers of plots on the Estate capable of being directly served thereby and on a first come first served basis for the Transferee to authorise visitors (excluding any person living in the house erected on the Property) to park for short periods of time only a private motor vehicle in one only of the Visitors Parking Spaces within the adoptable highway

So... is the estate under the control of a management company? I am presuming that the management company contracted UKCPM to operate some sort of parking control.

The management company does not have the legal right to unilaterally introduce new terms of parking—such as requiring a permit or authorising a private parking operator to issue PCNs—if those terms are not set out in the lease.

Here’s why:

1. The management company cannot override or alter lease terms

The lease is a binding legal agreement between the leaseholder (you) and the freeholder (or developer). It sets out both rights and obligations, including how common areas like estate roads and parking are to be used.

The managing agent or management company acts in an administrative capacity and derives all its authority from the lease. It cannot introduce new rules that add to or change what the lease says.

If the lease grants you or your visitors a right to park (as it does in Clause 6.6 and others), this cannot later be made conditional on displaying a permit unless the lease explicitly allows the management company to make such rules.

2. Lease silent = no authority to impose

Your lease does not:


Without such authority, any permit scheme or enforcement contract entered into by the management company is not binding on leaseholders, because:


This is well established in case law, including decisions that recognise unlawful interference with leaseholder rights where managing agents sought to introduce permit schemes without leaseholder consent.

3. Derogation from grant

If the lease gives you a right to park (either explicitly or as a reasonable adjunct to property access), then attempting to restrict or penalise that right—by enforcing new conditions—is a derogation from grant.

It is unlawful for a landlord or its agent (such as a managing agent or parking company) to:


Conclusion

Unless your lease explicitly allows the management company to introduce rules requiring parking permits or enforcement schemes, they do not have the authority to contract with a parking operator in a way that imposes new obligations on you. The introduction of a PCN scheme is likely to be unlawful, and any resulting charges are unenforceable against you as the leaseholder.

So, just because you’ve always displayed a permit in your car doesn’t mean you’re legally required to. Your lease contains no clause requiring a permit to be displayed, nor does it authorise anyone to impose such a requirement. You have a right to park based on the lease, and that right cannot be overridden by signs or private enforcement rules introduced later.

If a permit was displayed in the past, that was simply done out of courtesy or habit — not because the lease obliges you to. The fact that a permit may not have been visible on one occasion does not justify an invoice from a third party, especially when no such requirement exists in your lease.

As it is now too late to use the parking company’s appeal process, you should make a formal complaint to the management company. They are the party who appointed the parking company, and they remain responsible for the actions of that contractor.

In your complaint, you should:


You should also make it clear to the management company that, as principal, they are jointly and severally liable for the unlawful conduct of their appointed agent, UK Car Park Management. Any further attempt to restrict your rights or penalise you for exercising them will be treated as a serious breach of your lease, for which the management company is directly responsible.

Send the following to the managing agent:

[Your Name]
[Your Address]
[Postcode]

[Email Address]
[Phone Number]

[Date]

[Managing Agent Name]
[Managing Agent Company]
[Company Address]
[Postcode]

Subject: Formal Complaint – Unlawful Parking Charge Notice (PCN No: [Insert PCN Number])

Dear [Managing Agent's Name],

I am writing to raise a formal complaint concerning a Parking Charge Notice (PCN) issued to me by UK Car Park Management Ltd (CPM), who I understand have been appointed by you to operate parking enforcement at [Estate/Development Name].

PCN Reference: [Insert Full PCN Number]
Date of Issue: [Insert Date on PCN]
Vehicle Registration: [Insert Vehicle Registration]

This PCN relates to my vehicle being parked directly outside my own home at [Property Address], where I am both the registered keeper of the vehicle and the leaseholder of the property.

The PCN alleges that my vehicle was parked without displaying a valid permit. While I can confirm that a valid permit has continuously been displayed in the vehicle since it was purchased, the central issue is that the lease contains no requirement to display a permit, nor does it authorise you or your agent to impose such a requirement.

Clauses 9.10 to 9.13 and clause 6.6 of the lease define the parking rights and restrictions. They make no reference to permits or to enforcement by third parties. As such, neither CPM nor any signage they rely on can override my leasehold rights. The lease remains the controlling legal document, and its terms cannot be varied or restricted by way of signs or private enforcement.

The previous display of a permit was done out of courtesy, not legal obligation. The absence of a permit on one occasion does not extinguish or diminish the rights granted to me by the lease. Your agent had no authority to issue this PCN, and any attempt to enforce it amounts to a clear derogation from grant.

As the party who appointed CPM, you are jointly and severally liable for the actions of your agent. I therefore require you to take immediate steps to ensure the cancellation of the above PCN.

Please treat this as a formal complaint and confirm in writing that the PCN has been cancelled. I also require written assurance that no further enforcement action will be taken which interferes with the rights granted to me under the lease. Any future attempt to impose unauthorised parking restrictions will be treated as a breach of lease for which I will hold you fully accountable.

I reserve all rights.

Yours faithfully,

[Your Name]
Leaseholder – [Property Address]