Motoring experts say there is a smarter way to avoid the problem and avoid fines
New research has revealed that 1.5 million motorists risk being fined for parking across multiple car parking bays in 2025. The average fine for parking across two bays in a car park is usually around £70 but can be closer to £130 in some areas of the country. The cost of the fine is usually dependent on the severity of the parking violation and who is issuing the fine.
Motorpoint found that one-in-20 car owners would park across multiple bays to try and prevent their car from getting damaged. According to the research, car owners aged 25-34 were almost twice as likely to park outside of a parking bay than any other age group – leaving them most at risk of being fined.
With a fifth of motorists returning to their car to find it has been damaged by another driver hitting their car when trying to exit their own vehicle, some car owners feel it is a necessary precaution.
Tim Rodie, driving expert at Motorpoint said: “While I can empathise with motorists who are worried about their car getting damaged in a busy car park, parking across two bays isn’t the answer. Not only does it leave car owners at risk of being fined, but selfish parking habits can exacerbate the issue motorists have parking their vehicles – adding to congestion and making the whole process slower.
“If you are really worried about your car being damaged while parked in a car park, your best option is to park towards the back of a car park where it’s normally quieter and you’re less likely to have other vehicles park directly next to you.”
While the Highway Code states that you should ‘use off-street parking areas, or bays marked out with white lines on the road as parking places, wherever possible’, it doesn’t explicitly state that motorists must park inside the marked bays. With that said, it’s undoubtedly inconsiderate for motorists to park across multiple bays or even a little over the line can be viewed as an obstruction – which is the reason you could be fined.
Whether you’ll be allowed to park across two parking spaces if you’ve bought a ticket for both will ultimately be down to the discretion of the car park. There have been examples where motorists have been fined, but other stories on social media where nothing has happened.
Ultimately, if you are going to park across two parking spaces, you should pay for each space you’re occupying, but don’t think this will be enough to prevent you getting fined.
While it might be tricky to manoeuvre in and out of parking spaces in a busy car park, there’s no car on sale in the UK today that would be too wide for a standard parking space. Even the Tesla Model Y , which is one of the larger family cars you see on UK roads, will fit in a standard bay – taking up around 79% of the space available – according to research from Motorpoint.
Being mindful to park centrally in a parking bay is important as it helps reduce the risk of your vehicle being damaged or your door touching a vehicle in neighbouring bays.