The areas of the UK where you are most likely to be hit with a parking ticket

Drivers in London are the most likely in England to be slapped with a parking fine, according to a car insurer.

Warranty Direct has named Barnet, Hammersmith and Fulham, Camden and Haringey as the most likely areas to receive a parking fine.

The insurance firm analysed data from 37 councils and said in Barnet 547,393 fines were issued from August 2016 to August 2018, followed by 505,228 in Hammersmith, 453,659 in Camden and 404,710 in Haringey.

Last year it was revealed 18,000 drivers a day across the UK receive tickets.

According the the research drivers in South Norfolk were least likely to be fined with just 401 in the same period.

The news follows the publication of a study which revealed councils have seen parking fine profits increase by some 32% in the past four years - generating £867m in parking fines from 2017 to 18 alone.

Bristol had the most fine issued outside of London with 198,159 in the two year period, making it the ninth highest area in England, while Medway followed in 10th with 167,439 fines issued.

In first place, Barnet’s most common violation is ‘no waiting’, issued to vehicles parked in a restricted area. The borough totalled 141,149 fines for this contravention.

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Simon Ackers, chief executive at Warranty Direct, said: “It’s no surprise many London boroughs are among the worst offenders, as parking in London is notoriously tricky.

However, it’s interesting to see recent changes made to parking restrictions in both Bristol and Medway have had such a significant impact on the number of fines, in a short timeframe.

“It’s also surprising to find out such a low percentage of fines end up being paid. Perhaps when some of the original penalties are reviewed, they are considered too strict for the circumstances, as many motorists contesting them are winning their appeals.”

The most common offences were parking in a restricted street, parking without a valid permit for a road and parking in a carpark without a pay and display ticket.