What is considered an illegally parked car

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Parking rules exist to ensure Queensland roads and streets stay organised and safe for all road users and pedestrians. Parking signs show you where and when you can park or stop. If you do not follow the rules and the signs, you may get a fine.

Parking fines are issued by the Queensland Police Service and authorised officers from local councils using a traffic infringement penalty notice. The notice will tell you what the fine amount is.

If a local council administers parking in its area, a different fine amount may apply.

Parking fine enforcement

The Queensland Police Service is responsible for enforcing Queensland’s parking rules. Also, some local councils are responsible for enforcing Queensland’s parking rules in their area and regulate fine amounts.

Look up and contact your local council to find out their parking fine fees.

Common parking fines

Parking and stopping rules apply at all times unless the signed area lets you know otherwise. You may receive a fine if you commit one of the following offences:

• Park or stop along the length of the road indicated by a no stopping sign.
• Park or stop where there is a no parking sign unless:
  • you are dropping off, or picking up, passengers
  • you are delivering or collecting goods
  • you do not leave the vehicle unattended.

  In these instances you can stop for a maximum time of 2 minutes unless the sign states otherwise. If you are dropping off or picking up passengers with a disability, the maximum stopping time is 5 minutes.

• Park or stop where there is a continuous yellow line painted along the edge of the road.


• Park or stop within 20m of any intersecting road where there are traffic lights at the intersection.


• Park or stop within 10m of any intersection without traffic lights unless:
  • there are road signs that tell you that you can
  • or it is a T-intersection and you are parking along the continuous side of the continuing road
• Park or stop on a children’s crossing or within 20m before, or 10m after, a children’s crossing (unless there are signs telling you different).


• Park or stop within 20m before, or 10m after, a pedestrian crossing (unless there are signs telling you different).


• Park or stop within 10m before the traffic lights of a marked foot crossing that is not at an intersection—or 3m after the crossing (unless there are signs telling you different).


• Park or stop on a bicycle crossing or within 10m before bicycle crossing—or within 3m after the bicycle crossing (unless there are signs telling you different).


• Park or stop on a level crossing—or on the road 20m before, or 20m after the tracks (unless there are signs telling you different).


• Park or stop on a clearway unless:
  • you are a bus, taxi or limousine and are dropping off, or picking up, passengers
  • there are clearway signs showing days and times on the sign telling you different.
• Parking or stopping on a freeway—unless you are stopping in the emergency stopping lane because it is necessary for your safety (you must not stay parked in the emergency stopping lane any longer than you have to).


• Parking or stopping in an emergency stopping lane—unless you are stopping for your safety or your passenger’s safety.


• Park or stop in a loading zone unless you:
• are a bus dropping off, or picking up, passengers—stopping no longer than 30 minutes
• are a truck dropping off, or picking up, passengers or goods—stopping no longer than 30 minutes
• have a commercial vehicle identification label issued by the local government for that area (stopping no longer than 30 minutes)
• are dropping off or picking up passengers (stopping no more than 2 minutes)
• are dropping off or picking up passengers with a disability (stopping no more than 5 minutes)
• are dropping off or picking up goods (stopping no more than 20 minutes)

The sign may show a different  length of time.

• Park or stop in a truck zone unless you are driving a truck and are dropping off, or picking up, passengers or goods.


• Park or stop in a works zone—unless you are driving a vehicle used in construction works.


• Park or stop in a taxi zone—unless you are driving a taxi.


• Park or stop in a bus zone—unless you are driving a bus.


• Park or stop in a permit zone—unless you have a permit to do so.


• Park or stop in mail zone.


• Park or stop in a bus lane, transit lane, or truck lane unless you are:
• driving a bus, taxi or limousine
• dropping off, or picking up passengers.
• Park or stop in a shared zone unless:
• there are parking bays to park in and you’re allowed to park there
• you are dropping off, or picking up, passengers or goods
• you collect waste or garbage.
• Double parking—parking between the centre of the road and another vehicle already parked on the side of the road (or between the far side of the road and another vehicle already parked on the side of the road, if it is a 1-way road or street).


• Park or stop in a safety zone or within 10m before and after the zone (unless there are signs telling you different).


• Park or stop on a bridge, ramp or causeway unless:
• the road is at least as wide on the bridge, ramp or causeway as the road is on the lead up to and exit from it
• there are signs telling you different.
• Park or stop in a tunnel or underpass unless:
• the road is at least as wide in the tunnel or underpass as the road on either end of it
• there are signs telling you different.
• Park or stop on or near a crest or curve of road that is not in a built-up area unless:
• you can be seen by other drivers approaching your vehicle from 100m away
• there are signs telling you different
• Park or stop within 20m before or 10m after a bus stop unless signs tell you otherwise.


• Park or stop on a bicycle path, footpath, shared path, dividing strip, nature strip, or painted island, unless signs tell you otherwise.


• Park or stop on a road in a way that blocks access to a path or driveway unless:
• you drive a bus and are dropping off or picking up passengers
• you are dropping off or picking up passengers within 2 minutes of stopping
• you park in a parking bay
• you do not leave the vehicle unattended.
• Park or stop on a road within 3m of a post box unless:
• you are dropping off, or picking up, passengers or mail
• there are signs telling you different.
• Heavy vehicles or long vehicles (7.5m or longer) must not park or stop along a length of road, outside a built-up area, unless it is the shoulder of the road. In a built-up area, the driver of a heavy or long vehicle must not stop along a length of road for more than 1 hour unless:
• permitted to stop as indicated by a sign
• to drop off or pick up goods
• local laws specify otherwise.
• Park or stop on a road where a bicycle parking sign applies unless:
  • you ride a bicycle
  • you are dropping off, or picking up, passengers.
• Park or stop on a road where a motorcycle parking sign applies unless:
• you ride a motorcycle
• you are dropping off, or picking up, passengers.
• Parking or stopping where there is a wheelchair sign or marking (unless you have a permit).


• Park or stop in a slip lane unless signs let you know otherwise.


• Failing to leave 1m of space in front of and behind your vehicle when you parallel park


• Failing to leave at least 3m between a vehicle and a continuous dividing line in the road. Also, failing to leave at least 3m between a vehicle and the opposite side of the road. Also, you must not obstruct the path of other vehicles or pedestrians.


• Leaving the keys in your vehicle or leaving the motor running and walking away (for example—into a shop). If you do leave your keys in the car with the motor switched off, someone 16 years or over must remain in the vehicle.

Last updated: 5 July 2021

Glen Eira City Council
Corner Glen Eira and Hawthorn Roads
Caulfield, Victoria

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PO Box 42 Caulfield South 3162

In most cases, it is very easy to determine who is at fault for hitting a parked car. The general rule is that the driver that hits the parked car is at fault for hitting a parked car. The reason the driver is usually at fault is because the car was parked and not moving, so the parked car could move out of the way to avoid the accident.

The driver that hits a parked car, on the other hand, usually does have the ability to move out of the way. The driver has a duty to pay attention to the road ahead and see what can be seen. Therefore, the driver usually has the opportunity to see the parked car and avoid it.

A parked car crushed in an accident. If you’ve ever found your car like this, you know how it feels to wonder who is going to pay.

Exceptions to the Parked Car Accident Fault Rule

Of course, every rule has exceptions. There are so many different possibilities that can occur when you hit a parked car that it is impossible to address every one of them. The general principle of comparative negligence can be used in most states to figure out who is at fault if you hit a parked car.

This means you compare the actions of the owner of the parked car to the actions of the driver that hit the parked car, then assign responsibility to the one that could have avoided the crash. If both had some ability to avoid it, your car accident lawyer and the defendant’s attorney will assign a percentage of responsibility to both.

There might be some circumstances where it is fair to ask the question, “Can a parked car be at fault?”

Who Is At Fault for Hitting an Illegally Parked Car?

Deciding who is at fault if you hit an illegally parked car depends on why the car was parked illegally.

When the Reason It’s Illegal to Park Has Nothing to Do with Visibility

The general rule still applies in most cases of illegally parked cars that the driver has fault. However, sometimes the illegally parked vehicle might also share a percentage of fault. This will depend on why it is illegal to park in a particular parking spot.

When the reason it’s illegal to park in a location has nothing to do with visibility of the car, then parking illegally does not make the owner of the parked car comparatively at fault for the crash. If you hit a car parked in a fire lane or you hit a double-parked car, you, the driver, are probably still 100% at fault.

When It Is Illegal to Park Because of Visibility

Deciding who is at fault when hitting an illegally parked car is less clear when the reason it was illegal to park in a particular location was because it is difficult to see a parked car there. The reason is that the owner of the illegally parked car may have comparative fault for the crash. Examples include when a building or other object blocks the view of the parking space, or the parking space cannot be seen at night.

Another common example involves a car that parks in front of a driveway, and the driver backs out of the driveway and into the vehicle. In most places, it is illegal to park on a street in front of a driveway. The fact the driver was backing up does not mean they couldn’t see the vehicle. So, the driver would still be responsible.

On the other hand, if it was dark out, and the street was not well lit, the car may have been hard to see. That may be a circumstance where the car owner is comparatively negligent. How much responsibility is assigned to the owner of the parked car depends on how difficult it is to see the illegally parked car.

When It’s Impossible to See the Illegally Parked Vehicle

In some extreme cases, it is so difficult for a driver to see the illegally parked vehicle that the owner of the illegally parked car could be 100% responsible for the crash. Take the following example. In these circumstances, would you see this car?

• A car stops on the side of the road with part of the car in the lane.
• The car is stopped in the middle of a severe curve on the road.
• The road has two lanes, it’s dark, and there is no lighting.
• The car has its lights off.

It’s easy to see how a driver may not be able to see the stopped car as the driver rounds the curve in the dark. Under these extreme circumstances, the illegally parked car may be 100% at fault because the owner should have been able to anticipate that a driver could not see them.

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Who Is At Fault for Hitting a Parked Car in a Parking Lot?

Parking lots are usually privately owned, but that doesn’t really change anything regarding the laws. The same rules apply to accidents in parking lots as apply on the roadways. This means that deciding who is at fault when hitting a parked car in a parking lot will be the same as when hitting a parked car on the roadways.

The person or persons that have the opportunity to avoid the parking lot accident will be at fault for the accident. The following are common parking lot accidents:

• Parallel parking
• Pulling into a parking space
• Backing out of a parking space
• Striking a car with your door when opening it

In all of these situations, the driver has the opportunity to see the parked car and avoid it, so the driver will most likely be at fault. A lawyer for personal injury in Tampa will use evidence that was gathered from the accident scene to prove liability.

What Should You Do if You Hit a Parked Car?

Hitting a parked car is not a crime, but leaving the scene of an accident is against the law in every state. Hitting a parked car is considered an accident. The right thing to do is to notify the owner of what you have done.

You may think because the owner of the parked car is not around that it is okay to leave without saying anything, but it’s not. Furthermore, it’s not just the owner you have to worry about; there may be witnesses that report you and there may be surveillance cameras that record what you did.

In most states you are required to make reasonable efforts to find the owner and notify them of what happened. You may have to walk up and down the street and ask people if they are the owner. If it happened in a parking lot, you may have to go into the businesses in the parking lot to try and find the owner.

Leave a Note for the Owner

If you have looked around and there is no owner in sight don’t just leave. leave a note. The note should contain the following information:

• Name
• Address
• Contact phone number
• Explanation of the accident
• Your insurance information

Anything you put in the note is evidence that can be used against you. So, make sure the note is short and to the point. Put the note in a conspicuous place. Usually the best place in under a windshield wiper.

Gather Evidence from the Scene

The most important evidence will be photographs of the damage and the license plates. The photos are important to protect you from the owner trying to claim more damage than was actually caused and or claiming a different car was damaged.

Next you will want to see if there are any witnesses to what happened. If so, get their name and phone number as well. If they will let you video or write down their description of what happened.

Why You Need to Report the Accident to Your Insurance

You may be tempted to skip reporting the accident to your insurance company. The number one reason people do not report these events is to avoid their insurance rates to go up. This may happen if you report it. But the cost of paying for the repairs yourself is usually more than the rate increase.

If you fail to report the accident immediately after the event and you try to report it later, you risk the company will not pay for the damage to the other car. Attorney Scott Distasio recommends reporting your accident and calling a personal injury lawyer as soon as possible after a wreck.

If you have been injured in an automotive accident, contact one of our dedicated car accident lawyers near you now for a free consultation by calling 813-259-0022 today.

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