It’s that heart-sinking moment when you get back to your car – that little slip of paper under your windscreen wipers.
Parking tickets may fill us with rage, and then fill us with despair, because nearly every time we get one, it’s because we broke the rules.
But can you get more than one ticket if you overstay the parking time limit?
Well, it depends on where you’ve parked.
These decisions normally vary state by state and council by council, but odds are, you won’t get two tickets for the same breach.
Which is to say, if you parked in a two-hour zone at 10am, you probably won’t get a ticket at midday and again at 2pm.
A spokesperson from Blacktown City Council in Sydney’s northwest said overstaying would be just one fine.
“The fine would be issued for parking continuously for longer than indicated and would be one fine only,” she told nine.com.au.
“However, if someone physically removed the fine from the vehicle, then the same car may receive a second fine, but this could be contested.”
For Sydney’s Inner West council, overstayers should only expect one ticket per day.
But if the lane switches to a clearway or a no stopping zone, the lingering car would get a second ticket under the wipers.
The same rules apply in Melbourne City Council, so long as the car remains stationary.
If the offending car moves into a different bay then overstays, they can get a subsequent fine.
But parking inspectors further west aren’t so patient.
Which of these cars can go first?
Under South Australia’s Road Traffic Act, a driver can get a ticket for every hour they overstay the limit.
So if a South Australian is unfortunate enough to be dealing with a vigilant parking inspector, they can expect a litter of tickets.
Same goes in the City of Perth, where parking inspectors can issue multiple tickets for a car staying too long in one spot.
There’s a maximum of $500 a day for anyone who stays too long in one spot in Perth.
Have you had an outrageous parking fine situation? Let us know by emailing npearson@nine.com.au
