Record County Court Claims as Private Parking Cases Rise

Private Parking Claims Linked to Record County Court Figures

# Private Parking Claims Help Drive County Court Cases to Record High A record number of claims were lodged at county courts in England and Wales during the second quarter of 2026, with the Ministry of Justice linking much of the increase to claims over parking on private land. The latest civil justice statistics show that 571,250 new claims were issued between April and June 2026, an 11% increase compared with the same period in 2025. It was the highest quarterly number of new claims recorded since the Ministry of Justice began publishing quarterly figures in 2009. ## Parking Claims Behind Rising Numbers Money and damages claims accounted for 91% of all new claims during the quarter, with the Ministry of Justice saying the rise was likely driven by claims seeking to recover money relating to parking on private land. The number of claims valued at less than £500 also increased sharply, rising by 21% year on year to 245,000. The figures show how private parking disputes are contributing to pressure on the county court system, as more cases involving payments and damages make their way through the courts. The latest figures follow a period in which quarterly claims had generally remained around or above 500,000 before falling during the Covid period. New claims returned above 500,000 in the second quarter of 2025, reaching 513,780, before rising to 527,738 in the first quarter of 2026. The increase continued in the latest quarter, taking the total to 571,250 claims between April and June. ## Record Number of Judgments County courts also issued a record number of judgments during the quarter, with 368,000 judgments made between April and June. That was 26% higher than the same period in 2025, with the Ministry of Justice attributing the increase to the knock-on effect of the rise in claims received. Of those judgments, 94% were default judgments. The statistics also show that waiting times for cases reaching trial continued to fall for fast, intermediate and multi-track claims, with the median wait standing at 55.9 weeks. For small claims, however, the median time from issue to trial increased slightly to 41 weeks, compared with the previous year. Despite the recent improvement in some waiting times, average waits remain longer than before the Covid period, with the mean wait for small claims at 48.5 weeks and 69.1 weeks for other claims. For drivers facing disputes over private parking charges, the figures underline the growing number of cases entering the court system, although the statistics do not provide a separate total for parking claims. The Ministry of Justice’s comments indicate that the rise in claims to recover money relating to parking on private land was a significant factor behind the increase in money and damages claims during the quarter.