Oireachtas Committee to discuss private clamping

An Oireachtas Committee is to discuss the issue of private clamping companies today.

Last year, Transport Minister Leo Varadkar announced that laws are to be drawn up to protect motorists from aggressive and unfair clamping.

It is proposed that clamping companies will have to apply for a licence before they can operate.

Concerns have been raised that a lack of regulation in Ireland could lead to a culture of rogue clamping, as it did in the UK.

According to Conor Faughnan of AA Ireland, under-regulation of the private clamping sector has to be tackled with legislation.

"When you're clamped by one of the City Councils, for example, in Dublin or elsewhere, there's a proper appeals mechanism through the City Council, with is fair and it is transparent," he said.

"No such mechanism exists for private clamping. They are in a legal vacuum, they are literally a law unto themselves, and while they are by and large behaving reasonably well, there's just no legal basis for their activity."