These are the fat cats creaming off millions as their private parking companies rake in cash from Britain's drivers at record rates.
Yesterday, MailOnline revealed government figures suggesting that private operators issued 12.8million fines in 2023/24 – or one every two seconds.
This is up nearly 90 per cent in just five years, despite various governments repeatedly vowing to stop predatory operators.
Last month the Labour government promised to crack down on some companies by banning them from accessing drivers' details from the DVLA, but for now, the gravy train zips along faster than ever.
MailOnline has identified some of the bosses riding in the train's first-class carriage, lining their pockets with fat salaries and pension payments, allowing them to live very comfortable lifestyles at the expense of ordinary motorists.
Motorists' groups highlighted how the private parking bonanza has become a goldmine for the companies.
Steve Gooding, director of the RAC Foundation, told MailOnline: 'Almost out of nowhere private parking management has become what must now be a billion pound a year industry.
'Just how lucrative it is for operators can be seen by the rapid growth in the number of firms vying for business.
Parkingeye's best-paid director, CEO Neil Boynes (pictured) was paid £338,000 including pension in 2023
Pictured: Mr Boynes's plush £800k house in a village near Warrington, Cheshire
Chief financial officer Sian Wicks, 57, was paid £318,000 in 2023, including pension
'Six years ago 125 companies sought vehicle keeper information from the DVLA to pursue drivers for penalties - this year it will be at least 176.
'That's something ministers should have in mind as they weigh up the implications of implementing the long-promised framework of rules for private parking managers to give motorists and landowners alike a fairer deal.'
Of the 172 parking firms requesting access to drivers' details, Parkingeye is by far the biggest and most active, buying 594,000 records just between July and September last year.
Their best-paid director, CEO Neil Boynes, 59, was paid £338,000 including pension in 2023 and lives in a plush £800k house in a village near Warrington, Cheshire.
Chief financial officer Sian Wicks, 57, was paid £318,000 in 2023, including pension. She lives in an even more desirable rural 'cottage' estimated to be worth around £1.4million, near Macclesfield, Cheshire.
But that's not all. Previously, MailOnline revealed that the two highest-paid directors of Parkingeye, believed to be Mr Boynes and Ms Wicks, earned £2.25million between them in the three years up to 2021.
Photographs and disparaging comments about Mr Boynes have appeared on the various social media groups set up by motorists who have fallen foul of the operators.
There's plenty of trolling on social media as well of the other bosses of parking firms.
In their most recent figures for 2023, the company's turnover had risen by nearly 17 per cent to £57.5million, but their pre-tax profit soared year on year by an incredible 49 per cent to £16.1million.
Parkingeye also owns parking companies in Germany Denmark and Austria, and its UK clients include three of Britain's top supermarkets, Aldi, Lidl and ASDA.
But there are also many large hotel chains, retailers and property management giants, along with NHS Trusts and some of the country's most prestigious universities.
Horizon Parking Ltd is partly owned by investment banker Ali Khanbhai (pictured), 49, who joined the board in 2023, following a substantial investment
Harvard Business School graduate Mr Khanbhai owns a plush £1.5m flat in Bayswater
The firm is owned by MML Capital Partners Europe Limited and Macquarie European Investment Holdings Limited. MML is a private Equity firm, which bought Parkingeye from Capita in 2018
Macquarie is an Australian-founded global financial services group.
Another company trapping thousands of motorists every year is Euro Car Parks, which runs sites on private and local authority land.
It is owned and run by London solicitor Barry Tucker, 69 and his German-born wife Rita, 68, who together were paid a generous dividend of £2.4million in 2023 and £1.5m the previous year.
The company's highest-paid director earned a tidy £186,154.
And the company's balance sheet is equally healthy. In the 2023 figures, their turnover went up by 30 per cent, although pre-tax profits hardly changed, staying steady at £12.5million.
On the website of his law firm, Tuckers Solicitors – motto: Standing up for you – Mr Tucker say he specialises in defending 'fraud, white collar and business crime'.
The Tuckers boast an £8million mansion in one of north London's most expensive roads. When, in 2022 the Mail last called, a man bearing a strong resemblance to Mr Tucker answered the door.
He asked what the enquiry was about before saying 'I'll tell him 'and disappearing into a side room.
Moments later he was back saying: 'He's unavailable and says he doesn't want to talk to you.'
Pictured: The parking at the home of Ali Khanbhai in London
Simon Abraham (pictured with wife Louise) founded Creative Car Park Ltd and a string of other parking companies, many of which come under the umbrella of Civil Enforcement Ltd
Neighbours said the four-storey property often looked like 'one of his car parks' with vehicles littering the driveway.
One said: 'If that was one of his car parks he would be issuing a lot of fines as the vehicles are parked all over the place at several different angles. It's a bit of an eye sore.'
Pride of place on the drive was given to a £200,000 Bentley Bentayga parked in front of a garage. There was also a £60,000 Volvo XC90, and an old Jaguar XJ6 .
Later Mr Tucker emailed our reporter saying he was in meetings all day, but 'would revert'.
Horizon Parking Ltd is partly owned by investment banker Ali Khanbhai, 49, who joined the board in 2023, following a substantial investment.
Harvard Business School graduate Mr Khanbhai owns a plush £1.5m flat in Bayswater. He is boss of private equity business Trimountain Partners which has previously invested in YoSushi and Red Driving School among others.
According to 2024 accounts filed with companies house, seven directors were paid £815,000 between them with the highest paid getting £146,772.
Turnover rose by 10 per cent to £33.4million and pre-tax profits by 12 per cent to £4.45million.
Mr Khanbhai has pledged to expand Horizon which is based in Chelmsford, Essex, and already runs more than 3,000 car parks in retail (including Tesco), leisure, residential, education and government settings.
Smart Parking Ltd is an Australian-owned company run in the UK by its MD Johanna Hiney, 55, who earns a salary of £180,700.
Mr Abraham and his wife live in a £4million mansion (pictured) in an exclusive private road in north-west London
Smart Parking Ltd is an Australian-owned company run in the UK by its MD Johanna Hiney, 55, who earns a salary of £180,700
Ms Hiney, who comes from a sales background, lives in a £250k house in leafy Cheadle, Greater Manchester. According to her LinkedIn profile, she brings 'passion and a drive for success' to her role, which will be of little comfort to those motorists hit by swingeing fines by Horizon.
In their latest figures, turnover rose by 14 per cent to £20.5m in 2023 and pre-tax profits by an incredible 60 per cent to £4.3million in the same period.
Civil Enforcement Ltd is ultimately owned by a firm called Project Neptune Topco Ltd, though to many the company will be more familiar as Creative Car Park (CCP).
Their founder Simon Abraham, 50, lives in a £4million house in an exclusive private road in north London.
Chief executive Stuart Cummings, 50, lives in a £1million house in Marlow, Bucks.
The highest-paid director, believed to be either Mr Cummings or Mr Abraham, earned £355,000 in 2023.
In the latest year's accounts at Companies house, the firm's turnover rose 17 per cent, though their pre-tax loss rose by a hefty 31 per cent to £23.4million.
Mr Abraham is something of a pioneer in private parking, as CCP was the first company to use a fully automated number plate recognition enforcement service.
In 2019, the company was bought out by venture capitalist firm Inflexion and Mr Abraham and his wife Louise received a multi-million windfall.
He and his wife are believed to have received the lion's share of the £83.7million buyout of their firm by Inflexion in 2019.
When we called in 2022, a gleaming silver £150,000 Aston Martin and a new £75,000 BMW iX electric car were parked in the driveway of the Abraham's home.
Parking 'guru' Andy Taylor has spent the last five years, along with a group of other experts on various Facebook group helping motorists save more than £200k in court claims alone.
Chief executive Stuart Cummings (pictured), 50, lives in a £1million house in Marlow, Buckinghamshire
Pictured: Mr Cummings's £1million house in Buckinghamshire
He told MailOnline: 'I am not at all surprised that the figures are increasing, parking management has gone from asking a fair price to park to issuing charge notices for the slightest error because it results in more income.
'Why be content with £5 for parking for a few hours when you can take that £5 and follow it up with a £100 Penalty Charge Notice?
'We know from the [industry body] British Parking Association and the International Parking Community's own statistics that the vast majority of charges are paid immediately without question, probably because motorists are afraid of the consequences, but at court, we win more than 80% of all claims, and that includes the 'hopeless' ones where the driver was in the wrong and simply ignored the charges.
'What we need is to put pressure on the government to act and release a Statutory Parking Code which can be used to bring the private parking industry into line.
'The 'Single Code of Practice' issued by the BPA and IPC last year actually REDUCES protection for the motorist.
'Ideally they would also prevent the use of ANPR which times cars from entry to exit meaning that motorists end up paying for the time they spend queuing to get in and out of a car park and not the time actually parked.
'ANPR should be linked to payment machines to prevent miskeying errors. Also 0/O and 1/I errors should not result in a PCN being issued in the first place.'
All the parking companies were contacted by MailOnline. Parkingeye declined to comment.
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