The private parking fines in the United Kingdom (UK) have been adjudged as fair because no less than the Supreme Court says so. It has been manifested in a recent ruling of the highest court of the land. The result would be that any private parking enforcement firm can now increase its fines following the said ruling which states that £85 is just fair or not excessive.

The group who has expressed greater concern over the possibility for the parking enforcement firms to increase their fines is the “AA.” It said that these UK firms may ride roughshod on drivers because the Supreme Court has failed to overturn the £85 fine as being excessive but instead ruled that it’s just fair.

It can be recalled that in April 2013, 47-year old Barry Beavis faced a fine of £85 for staying 52 minutes inside a free parking bay. This span of time however is already beyond the permitted two hours of parking in the area.

Via a camera, Mr. Beavis’ act was recorded right at a retail park. He argued that the £85 fine is disproportionate, unenforceable and unreasonable. However, he said, the Supreme Court, failed to overturn such a penalty charge and instead justifies that it is not excessive.

The concern of the AA is that any of the unscrupulous parking firms may now perceive that such a supreme court ruling is a licence to increase fines.

AA President Edmund King also argued that this Supreme Court ruling may result or will lead to riding roughshod by many private parking enforcement companies over drivers parking their vehicles in private parking bays and worse, they may even be more aggressive compared to what they’re just doing right now.

Mr. Beavis has shared such concerns and has gone far by claiming that the £85 fine should be thrown out or be declared totally unfair. He pointed out that what’s not excessive to a judge who is earning £214,000 annually is already very excessive to many families on benefits.

He also added that in a couple of years, the AA will be going back in court when the parking companies will always push the boundaries by putting their parking charges up to £250.

Consumer Watchdog Executive Director Richard Lloyd has opined that the Supreme Court judgement of the case is a thoroughly disappointing based on some narrow interpretation of the law. It will result to chaos if cowboy parking firms will choose to take advantage of the judgement by hitting drivers with even more excessive fines.

So, Mr. Lloyd’s advice to those concerned drivers or car owners is to be on your guard and often make an appeal if anytime they think that such a parking fine is in any way unfair.

On the other hand, in every negative event in life, there’s always something positive that other people with open minds can see such as what British Parking Association or BPA Chief Executive Patrick Troy has viewed about the issue. He welcomed the judgement of the Supreme Court as it has been providing clarity.