Rules for paid, attended vehicle parking facilities

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1. The law applies to parking facilities operated as a business: a space is provided for parking a motor vehicle, with duties of surveillance and custody, for a price based on how long the vehicle stays. Excluded are regulated parking zones and on-street parking, free or ancillary parking, and any facility that does not meet those requirements.
2. The parking operator must provide a space, hand over a receipt identifying the vehicle and stating whether the keys were left, return the vehicle with its fixed and ordinary accessories, clearly display prices, schedules and rules of use, and have complaint forms. Non-fixed, removable accessories such as cassette players or cell phones must be removed by users, and the operator is only responsible for other belongings if there is a special service, an express declaration by the user and acceptance of custody.
3. Users must pay before removing the vehicle, show the receipt or prove ownership if it is lost, declare belongings when there is a special custody service, and follow the operator's rules and instructions. The operator is liable for damages caused by breaching its obligations, users for theirs and for careless driving inside the facility, and an owner who is not the user is jointly liable, unless the keys were handed over. The operator may keep the vehicle as security for payment, and users can seek mediation or arbitration through the consumer arbitration boards.
4. If a vehicle stays parked in the same spot for more than six months and there are signs of abandonment, the operator may use the removal procedure under the Traffic Law, but must prove the abandonment and the six-month period. For anything not covered, the parties' agreement and general contract rules apply. Public authorities must ensure accessibility rules are applied and promote approved warning devices with visual and sound signals at entrances where traffic volume or danger makes it advisable.

Who it affects

• Operators of paid parking facilities: Must provide surveillance, issue receipts, return vehicles, display prices and rules, keep complaint forms, and are liable for damages.
• People who park their vehicle: Must pay before removing the vehicle, keep the receipt, remove non-fixed accessories, and follow the facility's rules.
• Vehicle owners who are not the users: Are jointly liable for damages caused by the user, unless the keys were handed to the operator.
• People with hearing or visual impairments: Authorities must promote approved warning devices with visual and sound signals at parking entrances.

Words worth knowing

Zona de estacionamiento regulado

On-street areas where parking is limited in time, usually for a fee.

Derecho de retención

The right to keep the vehicle until the debt is paid.

Responsabilidad solidaria

Several people can each be required to pay the full damages, not just a share.

Juntas Arbitrales de Consumo

Consumer arbitration boards that resolve disputes between businesses and consumers quickly, without going to court.

Régimen supletorio

Rules that apply only when the law and the parties have not provided otherwise.

It summarizes the law as published in the BOE. It is written by artificial intelligence and may contain mistakes: the official text is what counts. Read the official text · How we make summaries