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LIVING IN FRANCE

Reader Question: How do you contest a parking ticket in France?

Returned to your vehicle to find an unwelcome surprise from French officialdom on your windscreen? He’s what you need to know…

Published: 15 April 2022 13:03 CEST
A uniformed French police officer issues a parking ticket on a car in Lille
A uniformed French police officer issues a parking ticket on a car in Lille. (Photo: Philippe Huguen / AFP)

Question: I recently got a parking ticket while parked in a small town in France, but I’m sure I had parked within the regulations – how do I contest this?

Parking tickets are as much a fact of frustration for motorists in France as they are elsewhere.

You know the score. You get back to your vehicle, and there’s an unpleasant surprise on your windscreen, informing you that you’ve parked illegally and that you have a fixed penalty to pay.

The notice on your windscreen is not the actual ticket. It’s a warning that you will receive a ticket. A ‘notice of violation’ – aka the ‘ticket’ – and a payment card will be sent by mail to the address of the vehicle’s registered owner.

In theory this includes cars that are registered outside France. In practice it depends on the country and there are mixed reports on whether fines are posted out to non-French addresses. 

This document indicates the amount of the fine and how to pay or dispute the fine.

The fines are set at the following rates:

  • Improper parking : €35 (this is the one you get if you haven’t paid in a pay-and-display space, or have overstayed the allocated time)
  • Inconvenient parking : €35
  • Very inconvenient parking : €135
  • Unsafe parking: €135  – you also lose three points on your licence – remember French licences come with 12 points loaded on them, and you lose them if you commit an office. You also risk a driving ban for up to three years.

How to pay

You can pay your fine in several ways.

Online – click here

By app – yes, there’s an app for that. You can download the Amendes.gouv app from Google Play or App Store

By phone – call 0811 10 10 10 at any time. Be aware, this is a premium rate number

By post – send a cheque payable to Trésor public to the address indicated on the ticket. Make sure you include the payment card shown on the notice of violation

In person at an approved tobacconist – one of the many services offered at a French tabac is the one that allows you to pay certain fines, including parking tickets.

In person at a Centre des finances publiques

Deadlines

You must pay the fixed fine within 45 days (60 if you pay electronically) of the date on the notice of violation – otherwise the amount you have to pay will go up. NB – The fine is reduced by 20 percent if you pay within 30 days.

How to contest a parking ticket

You can raise your objection to a parking ticket online or by mail, within 45 days of the original fine being sent – or three months in the case of a fine being increased.

To contest a ticket online, click on the ANTAI website here

Note: you cannot contest a fine after paying it – paying the fine indicates you acknowledge the offence.

Or you can do so by post, by completing the exemption request form on your notice of violation.

You will need to include the notice of violation, and a letter, written on plain paper setting out the reasons for contesting the fine. Be aware, this is a formal letter, and it must be sent by registered mail, with notice of receipt (LRAR). If it is not sent by registered mail, the letter may be ignored.

Member comments

  1. I got one of these once. I arrived at the car just as he finished the ticket. I said to the Gendarme that there was no sign to say there was restricted parking (i was in a public car park). The Gendarme then took me to a tent – inside the tent was a restricted parking notice saying that from 2pm that day I could no longer park in that spot.
    I did appeal – but basically the reply was – you were parked there – pay

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For members

HEALTH

The different ways you can make a doctor’s appointment in France

Booking a medical appointment in France can be time-consuming – especially if you are new to the country and are looking for an English-speaking doctor.

Published: 13 May 2024 16:52 CEST
The different ways you can make a doctor's appointment in France

You do not need a carte vitale to book a doctor’s appointment in France – anyone who needs medical help while in the country is entitled to it, but you may not be entitled to any reimbursement if you are not part of the social security system.

Booking a GP’s appointment can be as simple as phoning up your friendly neighbourhood GP, or using an online service such as Doctolib. 

It helps a lot, if you have a médecin traitant – an attending GP, who adds you (and your family, if they can) to their list of patients. 

READ ALSO Explained: How to register with a doctor in France

It is not always easy to find one. Some parts of the country are short of GPs, which means doctors’ lists can fill up very quickly. But it is important that anyone who lives in France is registered with a named GP, especially if they have a carte vitale.

As well as being the main point of contact between patients and the medical profession in all its guises, it is financially responsible to be registered with a GP in France.

Reimbursement on consultations is typically 70 percent through the French healthcare system, but just 30 percent for anyone without a declared doctor. Meanwhile, top-up mutuelle health insurance companies usually require you to declare a médecin traitant and if you don’t, you may not be able to receive reimbursements on certain treatments.

Bear in mind, it is your responsibility to register with a local médecin traitant. But, even after you have done so, you can still make an appointment with any doctor, anywhere in France, and arrange specialist treatment, if you need it. 

READ ALSO 5 things to know about visiting a doctor in France

How do you go about making a GP appointment in France?

There are several options.

Some health centres – more often in larger towns and cities – operate a walk-in policy. But expect waits to be lengthy. Do not, however, assume that your GP operates a system like this.

You can phone for an appointment. This is another very common method. Your GP will have their own system for making appointments – which may even include something that looks, to the uninitiated, very much like a casual walk-in policy. 

Some may have an assistant to deal with booking appointments and other administration. Others may deal with appointments themselves, and may – for example – operate some sort of triage system based on voice messages from patients. 

What about online booking systems?

And many practitioners are now attached to websites, such as Doctolib. As of 2023, about half of all GP appointments in France were made using Doctolib.

READ ALSO How to use: French medical website Doctolib

Be aware that other online booking systems are available. Doctolib is one of the best known, but your GP may be attached to another system, like the health ministry approved site ‘LeMedecin.Fr’.

This website also has a feature where you can take an immediate online consultation with whatever doctor is available at that moment. By clicking ‘Consultez en vidéo maintenant’ you will be connected to the next doctor who is free. This option may involve an additional charge between €5-10 on top of the price of the consultation, and you will be expected to pay when booking.

If you have any trouble with either of these websites, you can go through the list of registered generalists per département on the ‘Ameli’ website. If you use this option, you will need to call the doctor to see if they are open or available for appointments.

In terms of wait times, online systems have helped to significantly reduce the delay between booking and getting an appointment.

According to a 2023 study by Doctolib, about half of all GP appointments were available within three days from the time of booking on their platform.

Similarly, you can use online platforms to check the medical professional’s qualifications and languages spoken, as well as filter based on the doctor’s English abilities. However, this should be taken with a grain of salt because not every medical professional with English listed on their Doctolib page speaks fluent English. 

An increasing number of doctorsoffer video consultations, known as télémédecine in France. This allows professionals – particularly those in more rural areas – to diagnose less serious conditions remotely. This type of consultation is usually only available from those medical practices that are attached to online booking systems. 

Some pharmacies have also begun offering walk-in télémedicine consults, using ‘Medadom’ machines. More information here.

What about specialists?

In France, you book your own consultations with specialists, even if you are referred by a doctor (your GP may offer a recommendation, but won’t always). The good news is that many specialists do use online booking services. Those that do not usually have assistants to take care of the appointments.

READ ALSO: Urgent care: How to get non-emergency medical treatment in France

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