Coventry Parking: The Worry-Free Guide

Use the council's permit-zone map and eligible-street list. Check the property as well as the street, then read the rules for that zone before applying.

Council guidance · Permit information checked 13 October 2026.

Start from the council's residents permit page and follow its Permit Portal link. Resident permits are for qualifying residents in a permit zone and vehicles registered at the property.

Council guidance · Permit information checked 13 October 2026.

Daily visitor vouchers run from midnight to 11:59pm on the selected day. They can be booked ahead; an overnight visit may need vouchers for more than one date.

Council guidance · Permit information checked 13 October 2026.

Wait for confirmation that the permit is active. Submitting an application does not itself authorise parking in the permit area.

Council guidance · Permit information checked 13 October 2026.

Coventry City Council is responsible for enforcing parking restrictions on streets across the city. Civil Enforcement Officers who issue penalty charge notices are council officers, not police officers or traffic wardens. West Midlands Police may also take action at some locations, such as pedestrian crossings with zig-zag markings. Bus lanes are enforced by fixed number plate recognition cameras that record all vehicles using the lanes. Near schools, the council uses a car with a number plate recognition camera. It drives around the city and issues parking tickets to vehicles seen illegally parked.

Once a traffic regulation order is made, the council says it publishes the parking orders, amendments and plans on its website. The council lists proposed and made traffic regulation orders in a table, showing roads affected, type of order and current status. Traffic regulation orders let the police, or civil enforcement officers in the case of parking, enforce traffic restrictions. Proposed orders are advertised by formal notice. A 21-day objection period starts on the day the notice is advertised. Parking restrictions are shown on the street by road markings, signs or both. To ask for a new or changed parking restriction, the request is made online and needs the support of a local Ward Councillor. Bus lane signs show the hours of operation. If no times are shown, the bus lane operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. In the two city centre permit areas (Trinity Street and Burges, and Greyfriars Lane and High Street), access is limited to permit holders and authorised vehicles, 10am to 6pm, Monday to Saturday. The Earlsdon residents permit zone page gives its restriction times as Monday to Saturday, 8am to 6pm.

Residents permits are for people who live in a permit zone. Residents permits are registered to vehicles registered at the property. The Earlsdon zone page lists a permit cost of £10 and a permit duration of one year. It gives no date or tax year. The Earlsdon zone page lists a maximum of three residents permits. Visitor vouchers are digital and last for one day only. A resident can hold a maximum of three daily visitor vouchers at the same time. Houses in multiple occupation and students are not eligible for resident or visitor permits. Businesses in permit zones can get business permits online through the Permit Portal. Landlords can apply for a landlord permit. Blue Badge holders can apply for a permit for the city centre Zone TS area (Hales Street, Trinity Street, Burges and Palmer Lane).

The council lists its city centre on-street zones as Pay and Display or Pay by Phone. Maximum stay in the on-street Premium Rate Zone is up to 2 hours. Maximum stay in on-street Zone 1 is up to 2 hours. Maximum stay in on-street Zone 2 is up to 4 hours. Maximum stay in on-street Zone 3, outside the city centre, is up to 4 hours. The council lists five apps for paying by phone: APCOA connect, JustPark, paybyphone, RingGo and Appyway. Paying by app is cashless and means there is no physical ticket to display in the vehicle. In disabled bays on street, parking is free with no time limit for vehicles clearly displaying a valid Disabled Badge, unless signs say otherwise.

The parking penalty charge is £70 for serious offences and £50 for less serious offences. The parking charge falls by half, to £35 or £25, if paid within 14 days. After the 14-day discount period ends, the full amount is due. For a bus lane contravention the charge is £70, reduced to £35 if paid within 21 days. The page says the bus lane charge increases to £105 if the notice remains unpaid within 28 days. If the charge is not paid, a Notice to Owner is sent to the registered keeper asking for the full amount. If nothing is done after a Notice to Owner, a Charge Certificate is sent and the charge rises by 50 percent. If a Charge Certificate is not paid, the council says the charge is registered as a debt in the County Court and a court fee is added. The council says it has adopted powers to remove (tow away) vehicles belonging to persistent evaders.

The council says the challenge process may include an informal challenge, a formal representation after a Notice to Owner, and an appeal to an independent adjudicator. For a ticket on the windscreen or handed to the driver, the informal challenge must be made within 28 days of the notice being issued. Informal challenges can be made in writing or online, using the notice number and vehicle registration. Written informal challenges go to Coventry City Council at PO Box 7097, Coventry, CV6 9SL. The council page labels its online challenge link "Challenge a PCN online". That link goes to a portal at parkingmax.co.uk. An informal challenge received within 14 days holds the charge at the reduced £25 or £35 until it has been considered. An informal challenge received between 14 and 28 days after the notice attracts the full charge of £50 or £70. If an informal challenge is rejected and the notice stays unpaid, a Notice to Owner is served on the registered keeper. After a Notice to Owner, or for notices issued by post, formal representations must be made within 28 days of the notice being served. Formal representations can be made online using the notice number and vehicle registration shown on the Notice to Owner. Formal representations can also be sent to the postal or email address given on the Notice to Owner. Formal representations are considered at the full charge, not the discounted rate. If formal representations are rejected, the registered keeper can appeal to the Traffic Penalty Tribunal, an independent adjudication service. The appeal to the Traffic Penalty Tribunal must be made within 28 days of the Notice of Rejection being served. Appeals can be made online using the appeal details and PIN code on the Notice of Rejection. If the tribunal refuses the appeal, the penalty charge must be paid within 28 days of the decision. The independent adjudicators' decision is final and binds both the driver and the council. For bus lane, bus gate and moving traffic notices, only the registered owner can appeal. For bus lane and moving traffic notices, the notice itself serves as the Notice to Owner, so the first stage is a formal representation.