License plate recognition errors led to wrongful parking fines in Christchurch
License plate recognition cameras at a Christchurch car park misidentified brief visits to a childcare centre as all-day parking violations, causing dozens of parents to receive wrongful fines. Parking Enforcement Services acknowledged misreads occurred and waived fines when challenged, but did not fully admit fault.
What happened
Static license plate recognition cameras were launched at The Landing car park in Christchurch in August 2023 to enforce parking time limits. The system captured vehicles entering and exiting the car park and mailed fines to apparent overstayers.
Parents making drop-offs and pick-ups at Kindercare Wigram Skies, which operates in the same complex, were wrongly fined for all-day parking. Parking Enforcement Services conceded it had identified cases of misreads that resulted in incorrect breach notices, particularly for parents dropping off or picking up children at Kindercare.
Reported impact
Up to 40 parents contacted Kindercare because they believed they had wrongly received breach notices. One parent was fined $85 after cameras recorded his family car arriving at 11am and leaving at 4pm in October 2024, when the wife had only made two separate brief visits.
The situation created unnecessary stress for families, according to Kindercare's chief executive. The centre's director assisted affected families with appeals processes and provided documentation to demonstrate correct parking usage.
Index analysis
The license plate recognition system failed to distinguish between vehicles passing through the car park to access Kindercare's designated spaces and vehicles parked for the full duration of their presence in the complex. In at least one case, two images of a moving vehicle were used as evidence of parking violation.
Governance controls
When parents appealed fines, Parking Enforcement Services did not admit its cameras were faulty but waived fines as an 'educational opportunity'. Parking Enforcement Services installed an additional camera to cover the Kindercare car park area in response to the problems.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.