The number of bailiffs sent to the homes of drivers has doubled since the pandemic, new figures reveal.

Four million penalty charges for road offences were passed onto enforcement agencies in 2023-24, up from 2.4m in the year prior and 1.9m in 2019-20.

The surge has been partially attributed to the rise of clean air zones, such as London‘s controversial ULEZ, but bailiffs have also blamed ‘selfish’ drivers deliberately ignoring the rules of the road.

It comes after a spare of videos appeared on social media showing drivers arrogantly using bus lanes as a VIP lane, and parking clearly on double yellow lines.

The Civil Enforcement Association gathered the most recent data from organisations working in collaboration with local authorities. 

Their chief executive, Russell Hamblin-Boone, attributed the sky-rocketing figures to a pile-up of court cases due to Covid-19. 

However, he has also says new nationwide policies such as Ulez, clean air zones as well as a ‘fracturing of the social contract’ – which he claims is a by-product of the pandemic – have all played a role.  

Ten years ago over four fifths of PCNs were parking-related, however as of 2022 that figure dropped to less than half, whilst 8 per cent were handed over due to clean air zone violations and 19 per cent being a result of road tolls. 

He told The Times: ‘[National policies] have supported things like clean air zones, Ulez and other emission reduction strategies, so there has been a big increase in the use of PCNs to enforce that.

Relating the rise in fines to the recent spate of riots throughout the country, he added: ‘The social contract says, “We will forgo freedoms to be protected by the government”, and people are saying, “I don’t feel protected, I’ll do what I want.”

‘People have given themselves permission to act with impunity. Antisocial behaviour is being normalised and we see selfish actions daily. 

‘Motorists not respecting rules, parking where they want and ignoring traffic regulations.’

Mr Hamblin-Boone also noted that the cost of living was also having an impact on motorists ability to pay fines. 

Edmund King from the AA branded the latest statistics as a ‘stark reminder to drivers that you can run but you can’t hide’ from PCNs. 

However, he also acknowledged there are now various new rules, such as bus lanes and low-emissions zones that make it more challenging for motorists. 

‘Our concern is that sometimes drivers can’t concentrate on the road and driving safety because they’re paranoid about being snapped with a camera,’ he said.

‘Drivers who aren’t intending to break the rules do get caught by the system.’

But, Mr King dubbed bus lanes and junctions as ‘cash boxes’ for councils, who he says should be bettering the roads.

‘Some local authorities get dependent on that income, and rather than change the layout of a junction they leave it as it is,’ he said.

This comes after recent figures emerged that councils are struggling to fill the gap in public funding.

The respected IFS think-tank warned that all the main parties have been ‘silent’ about the scale of the problems facing local authorities.

In a report, it calculated that even if council tax was increased by 3 per cent, with another 2 per cent for social care, in each of the next five years it will not meet the funding gap.

In thousands of cases, enforcement ages seize cars and sell them on as motorists refuse to pay the fine.

That would push the average band D bill of £2,171 up around £600 by 2029. 

Figures show that around a third of drivers pay their fines once they receive a warning letter, however the remaining cases are left to bailiffs. 

Around 0.1 per cent of motorists have their vehicle auctioned off to cover the debt incurred via the PCN. 

Among those who were had bailiffs turn up at their door was  Paula Rosevear from Plymouth, who had been slapped with a £508 fine from Bristol City Council. 

Ms Rosevear, who is a full-time carer for her son and mother, had been hit with the fine after unknowingly driving through the city’s Clean Air Zone. 

‘The bailiff said to me he clamped my car. He said, ‘You’ve got ten minutes to pay this £500 or we’re taking your car away’,’ the 50-year-old told the Times. 

‘I was absolutely distraught. I care for my mum with Alzheimer’s and I have my son with special needs. My car is my lifeline.’

The carer appealed claiming she did not see any signage for a toll but the council reject it – and her childhood friend took their own life shortly after. 

‘It made me very poorly, mentally very poorly, and I wasn’t in the right place at all to be dealing with [the PCN],’ she added.

‘Obviously, my own fault, I should have gotten back a bit quicker and the next thing we received another fine.’

A spokesperson for the Local Government Association said: ‘Councils strive to ensure they have fair collection and enforcement policies and we agree that bailiffs should only ever be used as a last resort.

‘If any motorist believes they have been fined unfairly, then they have the right to appeal against it.

‘Money raised from fines and charges is used for running parking services, with any surplus spent on essential transport improvements, including fixing the £16.3 billion road repairs backlog, reducing congestion, tackling poor air quality and supporting local bus services.’

A British Parking Association spokesperson said: ‘Local Authorities now manage a wider range of traffic related schemes than ever before. 

‘These range from on and off street parking to banned turns, school clearways, bus lanes and clean air zones. This naturally means that there will be an overall increase in enforcement activity.

All Local Authorities take enforcement seriously and endeavour to make sure they are acting within statutory guidance whilst providing those issued with a Penalty Charge Notice (PCN) information about how to pay and how to appeal.

‘However, the BPA believes that changes are needed to make the system work more efficiently in England. 

‘This includes increasing the value of the PCN in order to ensure it acts as an effective deterrent, as has happened in Scotland to positive effect. 

‘There is growing evidence that the deterrent effect has diminished over time, enabling a small, but problematic minority, to act with impunity when it comes to parking and driving behaviour.’