PCN contravention codes
Every council Penalty Charge Notice (PCN) shows a two-digit contravention code, sometimes followed by a suffix letter or number that gives more detail. The codes are standard across England and Wales, although not every council uses every code.
There are two official lists, and they use the same wording for every code they share:
- London Councils' list, used by London boroughs and Transport for London (version 7.0, in force since 31 May 2022). Welsh councils are also told to use it.
- PATROL's list, used by councils in England outside London and in Wales (last changed 16 September 2026).
The level, higher or lower, decides how much the penalty is: see higher and lower band PCNs and PCN fine amounts.
On-street parking
| Code | Description | Level |
|---|---|---|
| 01 | Parked in a restricted street during prescribed hours | Higher |
| 02 | Parked or loading/unloading in a restricted street where waiting and loading/unloading restrictions are in force | Higher |
| 04 | Parked in a meter bay when penalty time is indicated | Lower |
| 05 | Parked after the expiry of paid for time | Lower |
| 06 | Parked without clearly displaying a valid pay & display ticket or voucher | Lower (Higher in Wales) |
| 07 | Parked with payment made to extend the stay beyond initial time ("meter feeding") | Lower |
| 08 | Parked at an out-of-order meter during controlled hours | Lower |
| 09 | Parked displaying multiple pay & display tickets where prohibited | Lower |
| 10 | Parked without clearly displaying two valid pay and display tickets when required | Lower |
| 11 | Parked without payment of the parking charge | Lower |
| 12 | Parked in a residents' or shared use parking place or zone without a valid virtual permit or clearly displaying a valid physical permit or voucher or pay and display ticket issued for that place where required, or without payment of the parking charge | Higher |
| 14 | Parked in an electric vehicles' charging place during restricted hours without charging | Higher |
| 16 | Parked in a permit space or zone without a valid virtual permit or clearly displaying a valid physical permit where required | Higher |
| 18 | Using a vehicle in a parking place in connection with the sale or offering or exposing for sale of goods when prohibited | Higher |
| 19 | Parked in a residents' or shared use parking place or zone with an invalid virtual permit or displaying an invalid physical permit or voucher or pay and display ticket, or after the expiry of paid for time | Lower |
| 20 | Parked in a part of a parking place marked by a yellow line where waiting is prohibited | Higher |
| 21 | Parked wholly or partly in a suspended bay or space | Higher |
| 22 | Re-parked in the same parking place or zone within one hour after leaving | Lower |
| 23 | Parked in a parking place or area not designated for that class of vehicle | Higher |
| 24 | Not parked correctly within the markings of the bay or space | Lower |
| 25 | Parked in a loading place or bay during restricted hours without loading | Higher |
| 26 | Parked in a special enforcement area more than 50 cm from the edge of the carriageway and not within a designated parking place (double parking) | Higher |
| 27 | Parked in a special enforcement area adjacent to a footway, cycle track or verge lowered to meet the level of the carriageway (dropped kerb) | Higher |
| 28 | Parked in a special enforcement area on part of the carriageway raised to meet the level of a footway, cycle track or verge | Higher |
| 30 | Parked for longer than permitted | Lower |
| 35 | Parked in a disc parking place without clearly displaying a valid disc | Lower |
| 40 | Parked in a designated disabled person's parking place without displaying a valid disabled person's badge in the prescribed manner | Higher |
| 41 | Stopped in a parking place designated for diplomatic vehicles | Higher |
| 42 | Parked in a parking place designated for police vehicles | Higher |
| 43 | Stopped on a cycle docking station parking place | Higher |
| 45 | Stopped on a taxi rank | Higher |
| 46 | Stopped where prohibited (on a red route or clearway) | Higher |
| 47 | Stopped on a restricted bus stop or stand | Higher |
| 48 | Stopped in a restricted area outside a school, a hospital or a fire, police or ambulance station when prohibited | Higher |
| 49 | Parked wholly or partly on a cycle track or lane | Higher |
| 55 | A commercial vehicle parked in a restricted street in contravention of the Overnight Waiting Ban | Higher |
| 56 | Parked in contravention of a commercial vehicle waiting restriction | Higher |
| 57 | Parked in contravention of a bus ban | Higher |
| 61 | A heavy commercial vehicle wholly or partly parked on a footway, verge or land between two carriageways | Higher |
| 62 | Parked with one or more wheels on or over a footpath or any part of a road other than a carriageway (pavement parking) | Higher |
| 63 | Parked with engine running where prohibited | Lower |
| 99 | Stopped on a pedestrian crossing or crossing area marked by zigzags | Higher |
In codes 22 and 90, "one hour" may be replaced by the time on the signs. In codes 10 and 94, "two" may be replaced by another number.
Car parks (off-street)
| Code | Description | Level |
|---|---|---|
| 70 | Parked in a loading place or bay during restricted hours without loading | Higher |
| 71 | Parked in an electric vehicles' charging place during restricted hours without charging | Higher |
| 73 | Parked without payment of the parking charge | Lower |
| 74 | Using a vehicle in a parking place in connection with the sale or offering or exposing for sale of goods when prohibited | Higher |
| 78 | Parked wholly or partly in a suspended bay or space | Higher |
| 79 | Parked in a car park without registering for the free parking period (outside London only, added September 2026) | Lower |
| 80 | Parked for longer than permitted | Lower |
| 81 | Parked in a restricted area in an off-street car park or housing estate | Higher |
| 82 | Parked after the expiry of paid for time | Lower |
| 83 | Parked in a car park without clearly displaying a valid pay & display ticket or voucher or parking clock | Lower |
| 84 | Parked with payment made to extend the stay beyond initial time | Lower |
| 85 | Parked without a valid virtual permit or clearly displaying a valid physical permit where required | Higher |
| 86 | Not parked correctly within the markings of a bay or space | Lower |
| 87 | Parked in a designated disabled person's parking place without displaying a valid disabled person's badge in the prescribed manner | Higher |
| 89 | Vehicle parked exceeds maximum weight or height or length permitted | Higher |
| 90 | Re-parked in the same car park within one hour after leaving | Lower |
| 91 | Parked in a car park or area not designated for that class of vehicle | Higher |
| 92 | Parked causing an obstruction | Higher |
| 93 | Parked in car park when closed | Lower |
| 94 | Parked in a pay & display car park without clearly displaying two valid pay and display tickets when required | Lower |
| 95 | Parked in a parking place for a purpose other than that designated | Lower |
| 96 | Parked with engine running where prohibited | Lower |
Bus lanes and moving traffic
These codes are used by London boroughs and Transport for London, and by councils elsewhere that have been given the powers: 81 councils in England outside London by December 2025, and Cardiff, Carmarthenshire and Merthyr Tydfil in Wales. They have no higher or lower level in the lists: London charges one rate for them, and in the rest of England and in Wales they are charged at the higher level. Moving traffic penalties explains what each moving traffic code covers and lists the councils.
| Code | Description |
|---|---|
| 29 | Failing to comply with a one-way restriction |
| 31 | Entering and stopping in a box junction when prohibited |
| 32 | Failing to proceed in the direction shown by the arrow on a blue sign |
| 33 | Using a route restricted to certain vehicles |
| 34 | Being in a bus lane |
| 36 | Being in a mandatory cycle lane |
| 37 | Failing to give way to oncoming vehicles |
| 38 | Failing to comply with a sign indicating that vehicular traffic must pass to the specified side of the sign |
| 50 | Performing a prohibited turn |
| 51 | Failing to comply with a no entry restriction |
| 52 | Failing to comply with a prohibition on certain types of vehicle |
| 53 | Failing to comply with a restriction on vehicles entering a pedestrian zone |
| 54 | Failing to comply with a restriction on vehicles entering and waiting in a pedestrian zone |
London schemes, local codes and reserved codes
| Code | Description | Where used |
|---|---|---|
| 13 | Reserved for Transport for London (Low Emission Zone) | London |
| 17 | Reserved for road user charging | All |
| 39 | Reserved for Transport for London (Ultra Low Emission Zone) | London |
| 58 | Using a vehicle on a restricted street during prescribed hours without a valid permit | London Lorry Control Scheme |
| 59 | Using a vehicle on a restricted street during prescribed hours in breach of permit conditions | London Lorry Control Scheme |
| 60 | Reserved for parking whilst obstructing the pavement | England outside London, not yet in use |
| 64 | Parked in contravention of a notice prohibiting leaving vehicles on a grass verge, garden, lawn or green maintained by a local authority | Essex only |
| 65 | Parked in contravention of a notice prohibiting leaving vehicles on land laid out as a public garden or used for the purpose of public recreation | Essex only |
| 66 | Parked on a verge, central reservation or footway comprised in an urban road | Exeter only |
| 67 | Using a vehicle on a restricted street without a valid HGV Safety Permit | London HGV Safety Permit Scheme |
| 68 | Using a vehicle on a restricted street in breach of HGV Safety Permit conditions | London HGV Safety Permit Scheme |
| 72 | Reserved for builders' skips contraventions | London |
| 75 | Reserved for littering from motor vehicles | All |
| 76 | Reserved for waste receptacle contraventions | London |
| 77 | Reserved for DVLA use | All |
| 97 | Driving a motor vehicle in an unrestricted street in excess of the posted speed limit | London |
Code 97 was added in 2021 for a trial in Wandsworth, where the council planned to enforce a 20 mph limit on two roads with penalty charges (London Councils, 14 October 2021). The government said in 2022 that speeding should stay a criminal matter for the police (London Councils, 24 March 2022), and speed limits are enforced only by the police: see police penalties.
Codes 03, 15, 44, 69, 88 and 98 are not used. Code 36 used to mean "parked in a disc parking place for longer than permitted"; that is now covered by code 30.
Suffixes
A suffix after the code describes the contravention more precisely. Councils outside London may use them but do not have to.
General suffixes
a) permit holder only electric vehicle charging bay
b) business bay
c) buses only
d) doctor's bay
e) car club bay
f) free parking bay
g) motorcycle bay
h) hospital bay
i) wrong type of voucher
j) camera enforcement
k) ambulance bay
l) loading place
m) parking meter
n) red route
o) blue badge holder
p) pay & display
q) market traders' bay
r) residents' bay
s) shared use bay
t) voucher/P&D ticket used in permit bay
u) electronic payment
v) voucher
w) e-scooter bay
x) disabled bay
y) electric solo motorcycle bay
0) local buses / trams only\
- electric vehicles bay\
- goods vehicle loading bays\
- bicycle bay\
- virtual permit\
- dedicated disabled bay\
- hotel bay\
- taxis only\
- zero emission capable taxis only\
- electric vehicle car club bay
Suffixes for particular codes
- Restricted street (codes 01 and 02): a) temporary traffic order.
- Permits (codes 01, 12, 16, 19 and 85): w) wrong parking zone, x) incorrect vehicle registration, y) obscured or illegible permit, z) out of date permit. On code 01, y and z are used only for Blue Badges.
- Taxi ranks (code 45): w) "waiting" instead of "stopped".
- Footway parking (codes 61, 62, 64, 65 and 66): 1) one wheel on footway, 2) partly on footway, 4) all wheels on footway, c) on vehicle crossover, g) on grass verge.
- Camera enforcement: j) shows the contravention was recorded by camera. On codes 01 and 02 it can only be used where there is also a mandatory cycle lane, and not in Wales.
Moving traffic suffixes
- 32: d) proceeding in the wrong direction, t) turning in the wrong direction.
- 33: b) buses only, c) buses and cycles only, e) buses, cycles and taxis only, f) buses and taxis only, g) local buses only, h) local buses and cycles only, i) local buses, cycles and taxis only, k) local buses and taxis only, q) tramcars and local buses only, r) tramcars only, s) tramcars and buses only, y) pedal cycles only, z) pedal cycles and pedestrians only.
- 38: l) must pass to the left, r) must pass to the right.
- 50: l) no left turn, r) no right turn, u) no U-turn.
- 52: b) buses, g) goods vehicles exceeding the maximum gross weight shown, m) motor vehicles, s) solo motorcycles, v) all vehicles except non-mechanically propelled ones being pushed, x) motor vehicles except solo motorcycles.
- 53 and 54: c) adds "and cycle" after "pedestrian".
This page was checked against the law in England and Wales on 22 October 2026. It is general guidance, not legal advice: see the legal disclaimer.