I booked a completely different vehicle by mistake, to the one I parked. Now I've received a parking fine - PCN

😕 Booked the wrong car — now you’ve received a PCN

We’re sorry to hear you’ve received a parking fine. When you make a booking, we send your details (including your vehicle registration) to the enforcement company. If they can’t match the vehicle on their system or handheld device, a Parking Charge Notice (PCN) may be issued.

If a completely different vehicle was parked compared to the one booked (e.g. you booked EG18 XDN but parked YA18 ABC), the enforcer will not find a match and will issue a PCN. This is known as a major keying error. It often happens when using a partner’s car, a hire car, or an old vehicle saved in your JustPark account.

🧭 What to do next

First, review your booking and the location’s parking rules to make sure there wasn’t any other reason for the PCN besides the wrong vehicle being parked.

• If you find another reason (e.g. wrong time/date, overstaying, incorrect bay, etc.), you should pay the fine to avoid further action or increased costs.
• If there are no other reasons, appeal directly to the enforcement company and state that this was a major keying error.
  • Do not send your appeal to JustPark — we cannot appeal on your behalf.
• If your appeal is rejected, you can appeal to POPLA stating that it was a major keying error.
• You can also review POPLA’s keying error case studies for guidance.

🔎 What will happen?

Provided there were no other breaches, the enforcement company should reduce the charge to an administrative fee. This is typically around £20 (but may vary by company). If they do not reduce it, you should appeal to POPLA.

📎 Helpful links

• How to appeal — POPLA
• Keying error case studies — POPLA