Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Teenager creates website allowing motorists to fight parking tickets in just minutes

Joshua Browder, 18, came up with the idea after getting 30 tickets in London

Rose Troup Buchanan
Thursday 03 September 2015 10:48 BST
Comments
Millions get parking tickets each year - but there could be a solution
Millions get parking tickets each year - but there could be a solution (Getty)

Your support helps us to tell the story

This election is still a dead heat, according to most polls. In a fight with such wafer-thin margins, we need reporters on the ground talking to the people Trump and Harris are courting. Your support allows us to keep sending journalists to the story.

The Independent is trusted by 27 million Americans from across the entire political spectrum every month. Unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock you out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. But quality journalism must still be paid for.

Help us keep bring these critical stories to light. Your support makes all the difference.

A teenager has created an innovative way for motorists to fight parking tickets in seconds.

Joshua Browder, 18, from North London, created the website donotpay.co.uk after he received numerous parking tickets in the months since passing his driving test.

The website directs motorists to pick 12 options, asks them to fill in their details and then creates a customised appeal – generated by the website – to the relevant council.

The entire process, including signing up to the service, takes less than a minute.

It proved so popular that the website crashed a few days after launching with the student now rapidly expanding its capacity, as well as introducing new features.

Woman drives off after getting clamped - London Live

Mr Browder, who will study Computer science and economics at California’s Stanford University this autumn, said he realised councils operate a “tickets first and ask questions later” policy after receiving 30 tickets parking around his school in Camden.

“I was given the parking tickets for trivial reasons. I have had to spend around one hundred hours of valuable study time writing appeals to these tickets, many of which have been successful,” he said.

“Unfortunately, many recipients of these tickets don't have the time, legal knowledge or energy to appeal,” he added.

The website was built over the summer by the student – who taught himself code aged 12 – had scanned thousands of pages of documents released by a Freedom of Information request. He had the legal complexities fine-tuned with the help of a leading traffic lawyer.

Mr Browder intends to keep the website free for users and claims that not only is it quick to use, it also offers the best possible chance for motorists to win their appeals.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in