Parking without a parking ticket: fines and penalties 2024

Parking your car in German cities is usually not easy. Especially in the center and parking spaces are scarce. Once you have found a parking space, you usually have to pay for it. In most cases, you have to buy a parking ticket for this. That's what the parking ticket machines on the roadside are for.

In recent years, parking fees have risen sharply, especially in large cities. Three euros per hour are not uncommon in big cities. Even if you only want to park for a few minutes, you often have to pay for it. Drivers who are in a hurry or have no change in their pockets often run the risk of being sanctioned with a ticket.

The idea behind this plan: The prices for parking are so expensive anyway that in some cases parking without a parking ticket is cheaper. At first glance, this calculation does not look so wrong: The penalties start at ten euros. But you can save yourself a few euros in parking fees. However, "free parking" becomes expensive if you take a little more time. Let's take a look at the current ticket tariffs in 2022:

Parking without a parking ticket: Fines at a glance

What else you should pay attention to

If you have bought the parking ticket at the machine, you should also make sure that the parking ticket is correctly placed in the vehicle. It is best to place it at the front on the upper right side of the dashboard. This is where the parking enforcement employees who check the validity of parking tickets and parking discs can see it best. When closing the car door, make sure that the gust of wind does not lift the parking ticket when closing and blow it off the dashboard or turn it to the wrong side. A parking ticket that is not recognizable is treated by traffic supervisors as if there were no parking ticket in the car at all.

There are also motorists who have the ticket for parking without a parking ticket sent to them. They speculate that the ticket is time-barred. This can also happen in exceptional cases: Illegal parking is an administrative offence. In Germany, the statute of limitations for the parking ticket usually expires after three months. If the ticket comes after this deadline, it no longer has to be paid. However, authorities can extend this deadline with various measures. Another option to avoid the penalty is to appeal the fine notice. Reasons for an appeal can be the following: the parking ticket machine did not work; the parking area is not clearly marked. If you want to file an appeal, you must observe a deadline of two weeks after receiving the ticket. The question is also whether you really want to take on this effort because of ten to a maximum of 30 euros - or whether you don't just pay the outstanding amount.

Parking without a parking ticket: When is there a risk of towing?

The maximum rate for parking without a parking ticket is usually 30 euros. It applies if you have parked for more than three hours (180 minutes) without a parking ticket. Cars are usually only towed if they obstruct traffic or endanger other road users. However, if you regularly park incorrectly, you can get into real trouble. There have already been cases in which motorists had collected masses of tickets and were summoned to a medical-psychological examination (MPU). If things go badly, the driver's license can be gone for a while.

What to do if the parking ticket machine does not work

You have parked and the parking ticket machine is out of order. At first you are happy. But the whole thing is not quite so pleasant. If a parking ticket machine is out of service, this does not automatically mean that you can park in the parking lot for free. First of all, you are obliged to look for another, working machine nearby. If there is none, then you must use a parking disc as an alternative according to § 13 paragraph 1 StVO. You can use the parking disc up to the official maximum parking time. The method of placing a piece of paper with the message "Parking ticket machine defective" in the car in a clearly visible way is not automatically promising. In this case, you can still get a ticket.

Rarity: Parking spaces with parking disc

They are becoming fewer and fewer, but they still exist: parking spaces where you can park your car with a parking disc behind the windshield. These parking spaces are usually the cheapest – provided you have placed and set the parking disc correctly. If the parking disc is missing or has expired, there is also a risk of a parking ticket – and this costs the same as parking without a parking disc.

What is the threat of a speeding ticket abroad?

The tariffs for illegal parking vary greatly in Europe. In Italy, for example, you will be asked to pay heavily. There you pay at least 40 euros. However, the amount of the fine can quickly rise to over 100 euros. The parking tickets should not be taken lightly. The ADAC advises: "Since 2010, fines within the EU can still be collected retrospectively. The Federal Office of Justice is responsible for us, which takes action if a German driver has not paid a ticket. Then the foreign authorities hand over the matter to the Federal Office. The Netherlands makes particularly frequent use of this option." By the way, if you get a ticket from Italy, you should pay quickly, because the amounts are staggered according to payment deadlines. The later you pay, the more expensive it becomes.

Tips for parking

• Place the parking ticket in a clearly visible place in the car
• If the parking ticket machine is defective, look for another machine or use a parking disc
• The longer you park without a ticket, the more expensive it can get
• Notorious parking offenders are threatened with drastic consequences, up to and including the withdrawal of their driver's license