I was hit from behind by a car on a windy, rainy day as I was waiting to turn left on a roundabout. Because of the location I had to move away once we had exchanged details. A pub car park was the nearest area I could pull in to.

It allowed me to check for damage, ring the dealer as the car was under a personal contract purchase, and recover from the shock.

I later received a £50 parking notice from Euro Car Parks for parking without buying a ticket.

I was told I could appeal to the independent arbitration service, Popla, but the bill would rise to £85 if I lost. If I paid up first, I’d lose my right to appeal, and if I did nothing I faced possible court action.

In the era of fake news nothing surprises, but how can this be proportionate? KB, Biddenden, Kent

You unwittingly entered one of the many grey areas of parking rules. It’s not illegal to stop a car anywhere after an accident if it is unsafe to drive. A parking warden recently resigned after ticketing a taxi that had stopped on double yellow lines after being damaged in a crash.

Your case is less clearcut, since your car was movable and you parked on private land. Common sense should conclude that it would have been dangerous to drive on while shaken and with unknown damage and, that under the circumstances, you could not be expected to examine parking charge signs.

However, common sense has little place in the world of private parking, which has changed from being a deterrent to inconsiderate motorists into a shameless revenue-raiser; the number of tickets issued has risen 13-fold in the last decade, often for tiny infringements.

Euro Car Parks ignored three requests for a comment. The Popla (Parking on Private Land Appeals) scheme says that while its code of practice does not specify mitigating circumstances, it expects member companies to act fairly.

“Where we see compelling mitigating circumstances we will refer the circumstances back to someone senior at the parking operator and ask if they are willing to cancel the parking charge. In many cases, the parking operator agrees to do so. Where the operator does not agree, we must make a decision based on facts and law,” it says.

Unfortunately, you can’t try your luck with an appeal since you have already paid up to avoid an increased charge.

That is another invidious element of the private parking sector. While companies are not allowed to increase a charge following a failed appeal, the British Parking Association requires members to offer a discount of at least 40% to those who pay within 14 days.

As appeals take longer than that, motorists who do challenge a ticket are effectively penalised.

Following soaring complaints from drivers, the law on private parking enforcement is being reformed to ensure charges and terms are visible and reasonable.

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