Driver vs Registered Keeper: Who Is Liable for a Parking Charge?

When a private parking company issues a charge, they usually send it to the registered keeper of the vehicle. They obtain your details from the DVLA and hold you responsible for the charge. But the legal basis for this is more limited than most people realise, and understanding the distinction between driver liability and keeper liability is one of the most powerful tools in your defence.

The Basic Principle

At common law, the person who is liable for breaching a contract is the person who entered into it. In parking terms, this means the driver -- the person who drove onto the land and allegedly agreed to the terms displayed on signage. The registered keeper of the vehicle may be a completely different person.

Before 2012, private parking companies had a significant problem. They could photograph a vehicle and obtain the registered keeper's details from the DVLA, but they could not prove that the keeper was the driver. Since only the driver entered the contract, the keeper had no liability.

How POFA 2012 Changed Things

The Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 (POFA), specifically Schedule 4, created a new concept: keeper liability. This allows parking companies to hold the registered keeper liable for a charge even if they were not the driver. But this keeper liability only arises if the parking company strictly complies with POFA's requirements.

The conditions for keeper liability are:

If any of these conditions is not met, keeper liability does not arise. The parking company can only pursue the driver, and in most cases they do not know who the driver was.

Why This Matters for Your Defence

The strategic implication is significant. If the parking company has failed to comply with POFA -- for example, by sending the Notice to Keeper late or omitting required information -- they lose the ability to hold you liable as the registered keeper.

This is why it is critical that you **do not admit to being the driver** unless you are certain it helps your case. This is one of the most common mistakes motorists make. Common mistakes include:

Once you have admitted being the driver, the POFA keeper liability argument becomes irrelevant. The company can pursue you as the driver regardless of whether they complied with POFA.

What Your Defence Should Say

In your defence, the standard approach is:

This puts the burden on the parking company. They must prove either that you were the driver or that they have complied with every POFA requirement to hold you liable as keeper.

Hired and Leased Vehicles

POFA includes specific provisions for hire vehicles. If the vehicle was hired at the time of the alleged contravention, the hire company can transfer liability to the hirer by providing certain information to the parking company within a prescribed time. If you were driving a hire car, different rules apply and you should check whether the hire company has complied with these provisions.

For company vehicles and leased cars, the registered keeper (usually the leasing company or employer) may receive the charge. They may pass it on to the named driver, but the parking company must still comply with POFA if they wish to pursue the keeper directly.

Multiple Drivers

If your vehicle is used by multiple family members or drivers, the question of who was driving becomes even more relevant. The parking company does not know who was behind the wheel. As registered keeper, you are not obliged to identify the driver. Your only obligation is to respond to the charge if you choose to do so.

Our AI defence generator automatically analyses the POFA compliance of your case based on your questionnaire answers and includes the appropriate keeper liability arguments in your defence document.