Ticketless parking reform passes NSW Parliament

REFORMS to the ticketless parking ticket system requiring on-site notification have been passed by the NSW Parliament.

Under the current ticketless system, which was implemented in 2020, violation notification was sent by mail rather than left in the vehicle and was sometimes not received until weeks after the incident.

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In 2023/24 local councils issued 822,310 unticketed parking fines; this was a 49 per cent increase on the 551,441 awarded in 2022/23.

The Penalty Amendment (Parking Fines) Bill 2024 requires councils to attach an on-site notice to the vehicle, take photographs of infringements and make them available for Revenue NSW to provide to motorists.

There will be limited exceptions where on-site notification is not required, such as when it would be unsafe or dangerous for a ranger to do so.

The bill would also override ‘repeat’ ticketless parking fines, where drivers could be fined multiple times for the same offense without even realizing the first offence.

Data reporting rules will be introduced to assess whether further reform is required.

A working group, comprising representatives from stakeholders including Local Government NSW, has been established by Revenue NSW to inform the preparation of draft regulations and assist with implementation.

“Community feedback on this issue has been clear and dates back to when ticketless parking was first introduced in 2020,” said Finance Minister Courtney Houssos.

“Introducing instant notification for parking tickets is a common-sense reform and restores fairness and integrity to the parking ticket system.”