Vacationers flying out of Denver this year are returning to an unpleasant surprise: a bright yellow ticket on the windshield. Thousands are getting fined not for speeding or reckless driving, but for letting their license plates expire.

Denver International Airport staff have aggressively targeted these lapses

So far in 2025, the airport’s parking and transportation team has written 6,858 expired plate tickets. They patrol the lots daily and issue fines on the spot when they find outdated tags.

The city is promoting the push

Denver parking enforcement officers have written more than 38,000 expired plate citations this year.

Together, airport and city enforcement have ticketed roughly 45,000 drivers. That figure rivals the output from Denver Police during special crackdowns on registration violations.

Last year also saw thousands of fined airport customers

In 2024, staff wrote 11,646 tickets, averaging nearly 1,000 each month.

This year’s tally suggests they will meet or exceed that total. Officials said the city collects all revenue from these tickets and deposits it into Denver’s general fund.

Unlike moving violations, these fines often hit when drivers are out of town

Travelers park, board their flights, and return days later to find a citation waiting. Airport officials defended the practice, saying they aim to keep vehicles in compliance.

According to 9 News, the number of ticketed vehicles by the end of August could match the combined capacity of the Denver International Airport’s east and west economy lots. Those lots together hold about 8,000 to 9,000 cars.