A CAR park in Wellington has made the top 10 list in Somerset where motorists are most likely to receive a parking fine.

The fines, technically ‘penalty charge notices’ (PCNs) are issued by traffic wardens, these days known as ‘civil enforcement officers’, for a range of offences such as overstaying in a pay and display car park to parking on double yellow lines.

A Freedom of Information request has revealed Somerset Council’s income from PCNs has doubled in six years from £780,000 to more than £1.5 million.

The council said the money was spent on maintaining parking services, and it did not expect the income from fines to increase significantly in the coming years.

The list of the top 10 Somerset car parks for generating PCN income in 2025-26 includes at number nine, South Street car park, in Wellington, with 601 fines issued in the study period.

Most of the penalties were for overstaying the allotted time, with one motorist receiving a ticket for parking on a nearby zebra crossing.

The council said funds raised from parking fines had to be reinvested in parking or associated services and could not be used for any other services such as adult social care, children’s care, or day to day spending.

A spokesperson said: “Any surplus from parking penalties and parking charges is used to cover the costs of running parking services and meeting parking-related obligations.

“Once these costs are met, any remaining surplus is generally restricted to purposes such as public transport, road and highway improvements, parking provision, and local environmental improvements, in line with the statutory framework in England.”

Most Somerset PCNs were £50 for minor contraventions such as not paying for parking, and £70 for more serious issues such as parking on yellow lines.

In both cases, fines can be halved by paying within 14 days.