The Railway Byelaws 2005 (the Byelaws) regulate the use and parking of vehicles in station car parks. The Protection of Freedoms Act (POFA) 2012 does not apply on Railway Land.
A person using a station car park must pay the parking charges levied by the Parking Operator, under Byelaw 14(3). Under Byelaw 14(4)(i) the owner of the vehicle may be liable to pay a penalty if it has been used, placed or left in contravention of Byelaws 14(1) to (3). The ability to render a charge under Byelaw 14(4)(i) is distinct from the general enforcement power in Byelaw 24(1), under which a person can be prosecuted in the Magistrates Court.
The Department for Transport (DfT), in June 2018, confirmed that they consider Parking Operators have a remit to issue penalties under Byelaw 14. They have further said that, as a matter of good industry practice, a person issued with a parking ticket should be provided with the opportunity to appeal against it to a body that is independent of the parking operator. They have not specified that this should be any one appeals body. Members of the British Parking Association are required to offer a second independent appeals process to its customers.
The Byelaws do not specify the timescales of the issuing of a Penalty Notice, however, the Parking Operator is unable to prosecute for a breach of Byelaws after six months.
The appeal decision made by AS is binding on the Parking Operator, however not on the motorist, who has the option to take the matter to the Magistrates Court within the 6-month timescale.