POPLA vs IAS: Which Independent Appeals Service Handles Your Case?
If a private parking operator rejects the appeal you sent them directly, that's not the end of the road. UK private parking companies are required, as a condition of their trade association membership, to give you access to a genuinely independent appeals body — and which one applies depends entirely on who the operator's trade association is.
POPLA — for British Parking Association (BPA) members
The Parking on Private Land Appeals service (POPLA) reviews rejected appeals from operators who are members of the BPA's Approved Operator Scheme. According to POPLA's own published guidance, you must submit your appeal within 28 days of the date the operator issued its rejection.
IAS — for International Parking Community (IPC) members
The Independent Appeals Service (IAS) performs the same role for operators who are members of the IPC instead. The IAS also works to a 28-day standard appeal window from the date of the operator's internal rejection. If you miss that window, the IAS may still accept a "non-standard" late appeal, but only with the operator's agreement and a £15 contribution towards the cost.
How to tell which one applies to you
You don't need to guess. The operator's own rejection letter (or their website) will name the specific independent appeals service you're entitled to use, along with instructions for submitting your case. In practice, it usually lines up with which trade association's logo appears on their signage and correspondence — BPA or IPC.
What both services have in common
- Both are free for motorists to use.
- Both only consider appeals that have already been rejected once directly by the operator — you can't skip straight to POPLA or the IAS.
- Both review the case independently of the parking operator, based on the evidence and arguments you (and the operator) submit.
Whichever route applies to you, the strength of your written appeal — citing the specific POFA 2012 or signage/grace-period issue in your case — is what actually decides the outcome. See our guide on appeal deadlines for the full timeline from ticket to independent review.
Received a Parking Charge Notice from a private operator? Generate your POFA 2012 appeal in about 2 minutes.
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