Car parks across the country have been closed after the UK’s largest parking operator announced that it was entering administration.
National Car Parks (NCP) appointed administrators in mid-March after poor financial results and a shift in commuting, driving and parking patterns following the pandemic.
Consultancy firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) were brought in to oversee the management of the business as it closed sites across the UK.
Prior to entering administration, NCP, which is owned by Japanese company Park24, operated 340 sites and employed almost 700 people.
It confirmed that it would be closing 20 car parks on March 27, given that they were “commercially unviable”, while no further sites were being identified for closure at that time.
PwC cited financial difficulties as the main reason behind exiting loss-making sites, adding that NCP had “insufficient cash available to meet its financial obligations”, prompting the decision to appoint administrators.
A handful of sites have now closed across the UK, with 20 shutting on March 27, followed by four in mid-April and five at the end of April.
Some closed NCP car parks have already been overtaken by other parking operators as councils look to fill gaps left by the company.
NCP has already closed more than 20 of its car parks since going into administration
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GETTYSome former NCP car parks are already being reopened, including in Leicester, as the city looks to improve services for drivers.
The City Mayor, Sir Peter Soulsby, confirmed that Euro Car Parks had taken over the operation of three car parks across Leicester.
He said: “Although Leicester benefits from a good range of parking spaces, the re-opening of these car parks gives people more choice, and reassurance when visiting the city centre, so this news is very welcome.”
Euro Car Parks now operates three of five former NCP car parks, including St Nicholas Circle and East Street. The council will discuss the future of the Rutland Centre and Lee Circle soon.
Leicester’s City Mayor Sir Peter Soulsby assessed the future of its car parks
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LEICESTER CITY COUNCIL
NCP car parks closed on Thursday, April 30
- Bradford Southgate
- Chester Browns Yard
- Kidderminster Swan Centre
- Nottingham Huntingdon Street
- Southampton Portland Terrace
NCP car parks closed on Thursday, April 16
- Belfast Dublin Road
- Coventry Belgrade Plaza
- Leicester St Nicholas Circle
- Sheffield Blonk Street
NCP collapsed into administration in mid-March following financial issues
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PANCP car parks closed on Friday, March 27
- Ashford County Square
- Ashton-un-Lyne Cotton Street
- Banbury Marlborough Road
- Bexley Royal Oak Road
- Birmingham Gough Street
- Bournemouth Hinton Road (already closed)
- Bristol Nelson Street
- Bromley Travelodge
- Eastbourne Trinity Place
- Exeter Market Street
- Grantham Station 1-3
- Hinckley Britannia Shopping Centre
- Ipswich Portman Road
- Leicester Abbey Street
- Leicester East Street
- Leicester Lee Circle
- Leicester Rutland Centre
- London King’s Cross St Pancras
- London Knightsbridge
- Luton Regent Street
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