Littlehampton resident baffled after receiving parking fine - despite displaying what he believed to be a valid disc

Andrew Whitehead left his car in St Martins Car Park on February 25 – displaying a council parking disc with the word ‘reusable’ written on it.

He said he bought the disc in 2020 and it had ‘no obvious expiry date’.

“I displayed the parking disc and complied with all the conditions,” Mr Whitehead said.

"When I returned to the car, there was no penalty charge notice so I drove home. It wasn’t until three days later that the wipers came on and it sent a piece of paper flying across the windscreen.

"Then I find out it was a PCN (Parking Charge Notice) – how was I supposed to know that?

"I parked in good faith and they say they have changed the conditions. How am I supposed to know that?

"I’ve parked here many other times and got no parking penalty so why now?”

Mr Whitehead said he appealed this fine – which was promptly rejected by Arun District Council, which confirmed that the parking disc was no longer valid.

"I asked in my appeal if this matter has been challenged in court,” Mr Whitehead added.

"I have a WSCC (West Sussex County Council) bus pass that has clearly stated on it "Expiry date 31 JAN 2026". How can a parking disc with no expiry date on it possibly be expired?"

Arun District Council has since issued a statement when approached by Sussex World.

A spokesperson said: “Even though the parking disc to which the customer refers does not have an expiry date, you can still get a ticket if a parking system changes.

"The validity of a parking disc depends on the rules set by the local authority or parking operator.

"A new scheme was introduced on January 1, 2024 to bring Littlehampton discs in line with Bognor Regis discs by charging a nominal cost of £3 and making them valid for one year only.

"Our parking order (a legal document that underpins all the rules and regulations regarding our council car parks) was updated to reflect the change to the scheme, invalidating the old purple discs.

“We updated all the signage in our car parks to reflect the change. Alongside this, the change was widely promoted on our website, via our social media channels, in our monthly residents’ newsletter and in an article in the council magazine, The Arun Times, which is delivered to every household in the district.

“We also issued warning notices (with no penalty charge) to customers displaying the old discs until the end of February 2024 as a transitionary measure.

“The scheme changed again in January 2025 where both discs were merged, meaning customers can purchase a one-year disc for both town centres, incorporating six car parks, for a cost of £6.

"Again, we have updated our signage to reflect this, publicised it widely, and offered a transitionary period of one month where warning notices were issued.”

Mr Whitehead also raised concern that the PCN was tucked under his windscreen wiper and he didn't immediately spot it before driving off.

He said: "It wasn't until three days that something went flying across my screen.

"What would have happened if I had never found it?”

The council spokesperson responded: “The Penalty Charge Notice (PCN) was placed under the windscreen wiper to avoid any residue from the pocket attaching to the windscreen of the car.

"As required, the officer took photographs to evidence where the PCN had been positioned. A Notice to Owner is sent if you don’t pay the PCN. The PCN is at a reduced rate if paid within seven days.

"If we do not receive an appeal or payment, we contact the DVLA for details of the motorist and send them a Notice to Owner in case they haven’t seen the PCN for any reason. They can still appeal at that stage.

“We look at all appeals on a case-by-case basis and these are assessed by trained officers.”

The council confirmed receipt of Mr Whitehead’s Freedom of Information request.

The response, which has since been published, read: “The new disc came into force in January 2024. The contravention for issuing a penalty charge notice encompasses all non-display of a valid pay and display ticket, parking clock or voucher and therefore it would take more than 18 hours to locate the requested disc PCN’s.

"A member of staff would have to look at each PCN issued and determine if it fitted the criteria requested by the customer, and this would take more than 18 hours to complete.

“Penalty Charge Notices are not criminal fines. They are civil penalties, and the recipient does not have a right to a court hearing. All disputes are dealt with by the Traffic Penalty Tribunal.”