Parking fines drop ahead of ‘commonsense’ ban coming into force

It has taken months to come into effect, with some councils dragging their heels, but at last ticketless parking fines are no more.

The number of drivers being stung with parking fines has dropped across councils that have phased out ticketless fines ahead of the “unfair” practice being banned from today.

From today, councils will be forced to go back to issuing on-the-spot notifications for drivers who have been fined for parking offences, with the state government’s ticketless parking fine ban finally coming into force.

New government data reveals that in councils where rangers have already phased out ticketless fines, the number of overall penalties has dropped.

Canterbury-Bankstown issued fewer than 6,000 ticketless fines in the first six months of 2025, compared to almost 28,000 the year before, a 79 per cent decrease.

Comparing 2024 to 2025, the total number of fines issued by Canterbury-Bankstown dropped from 34,343 to 21,367.

In Cumberland, just under 3,000 ticketless parking fines were issued between January 1 and June 20 this year, compared to 13,206 the year prior. Overall parking fines issued by Cumberland City Council fell from 17,000 to 12,523 in the two periods.

On Hickson Road at Dawes Point by Sydney Harbour is parking meter 22240 which collected around $200,000 in the last financial year, the highest in Sydney. Picture : Richard Dobson

Parking fines are even falling in the City of Sydney, where Lord Mayor Clover Moore has refused to stop issuing ticketless penalties until the council is forced to comply.

City of Sydney Sydney council rangers issued 15,000 fewer parking fines issued from January to June this year compared to a year before.

A City of Sydney spokeswoman confirmed the council would begin to issue “paper fines” from today, “in line with NSW government regulations”.

Ticketless parking fines dropped around 15 per cent for the first half of this year compared to 2024.

In the first half of last year, councils issued 435,363 ticketless fines. Between January 1 and June 20 2025, councils issued 371,565 ticketless fines.

Legislation to ban ticketless parking fines passed parliament earlier this year, but councils were given until July 1 to implement the changes.

From today, council rangers will be required to leave an on-the-spot notification for anyone fined – except in very limited circumstances.

They will also have to send Revenue NSW photos of the offence, and collate data about parking fines issued.

Finance Minister Courtney Houssos said the changes were a win for commonsense.

“Today marks the end of the previous government’s unfair ticketless parking fine system,” she said.

“People shouldn’t be caught by a surprise parking ticket weeks after the fact. These commonsense changes bring fairness and transparency back to the system.”

NRMA spokesman Peter Khoury also welcomed the fact ticketless parking fines are finally banned.

“People deserve to know when and why they’re being fined — and to have a fair chance to challenge it if needed,” he said.

Originally published as Parking fines drop ahead of ‘commonsense’ ban coming into force