Scotland: debt wiped out after 5 years

In Scotland, a parking charge or penalty charge notice (PCN) is completely wiped out — not just time-barred — if five years pass without the creditor taking formal court action or you admitting the debt or making a part-payment. This applies to private parking charges, council PCNs, and low-emission zone penalties. Unlike England (where the limit is six years and a debt can sometimes be revived), once the five-year period expires in Scotland the obligation is gone for good and cannot be brought back to life.

Legal basis

Prescription and Limitation (Scotland) Act 1973 s.6 and Schedule 1; specifically Sch 1 para 1(g) (contract), 1(b) (unjust enrichment), 1(h) (statutory payment)

How to identify this in your case

More than 5 years have passed between the alleged contravention date and the most recent 'relevant claim' (formal court action) or 'relevant acknowledgement' (admission/part-payment) by the debtor.

Sample appeal wording

Dear [OPERATOR / COUNCIL], Re: Parking Charge / PCN [PCN_NUMBER], alleged event [ORIGINAL_DATE] The alleged contravention was on [ORIGINAL_DATE], more than 5 years ago. Under s.6 of the Prescription and Limitation (Scotland) Act 1973, any obligation arising from breach of contract or promise (Sch 1 para 1(g)) or arising under an enactment (Sch 1 para 1(h)) is extinguished by short negative prescription after a continuous period of 5 years without a relevant claim or relevant acknowledgement. In this case: 1. The alleged contravention occurred on [ORIGINAL_DATE]. 2. More than 5 years have elapsed. 3. No relevant claim within s.9 of the 1973 Act has been made — there is no court action raised against me, no formal court diligence, no statutory demand within Scottish law. 4. I have made no relevant acknowledgement under s.10 — I have not admitted the debt, paid any sum or made any part-payment in writing within the prescriptive period. The obligation is therefore EXTINGUISHED — not merely time-barred. Even if I were to make a payment now it would not revive the obligation (Sandison & Co v JK Findlay (1846)). Please remove this matter from your records and confirm in writing within 14 days. Any further demand will be reported to the Information Commissioner for unfair processing under UK GDPR Article 5(1)(d) (accuracy). Yours faithfully, [NAME]

Replace [PARKING DATE], [NtK DATE] etc. with your own dates before sending.

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Sources

legislation.gov.uk Prescription and Limitation (Scotland) Act 1973 s.6 and Schedule 1