Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the DVLA is required to pass on personal information to third parties such as private parking companies.

Regulation 27 of The Road Vehicles (Registration and Licensing) Regulations 2002 allows information about the keepers of UK-registered vehicles to be disclosed to third parties in certain limited circumstances, subject to appropriate safeguards. This includes the release of information to help manage parking on private land.

To help ensure that motorists are treated fairly when any parking charges are levied, vehicle keeper information is disclosed only to companies that are members of an accredited trade association and adhere to an enforceable code of practice.

The British Parking Association and the Independent Parking Committee are the relevant accredited trade associations for the parking industry.

Regulations allow the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency to charge a fee for releasing information to private parking companies. HM Treasury guidance dictates that fees are set to recover the cost of providing the information and this ensures that the cost is borne by the requester and not passed on to the taxpayer.