The Need for Payment Choice in Parking
Aug 27, 2024
The UK’s cashless car parks ‘are piling on extra charges and trying to sell us services we don’t need’ according to a Sunday Times article that makes a persuasive argument for the benefits of payment choice in parking.
The article—written by financial reporter Ali Hussain—opens with the story of a couple visiting friends in the seaside town of Southwold in Suffolk who were charged a £240 ($310) fine for not paying their parking fee within the required 15-minute window. The reason for this, they explained, was the poor phone reception in the area, which meant the parking app took longer than 15 minutes to download and register.
Hussain notes there are around 30 different apps used for parking on land owned by local authorities and private firms, meaning travellers are unlikely to have the required app installed on their phone, adding time, stress and potentially late payment fees to what could be a simple, instantaneous transaction with cash.
On top of this, many apps come with added fees, such as a ‘convenience fee’ to cover the cost of the app (despite this often being the only payment option) and this is just the beginning of monetisation possibilities opened up by removing the option to pay with cash.
The apps we are all forced to download now come with many different layers of fees; from green levies, “convenience” and “service” charges, to parking insurance and costs for getting a text message to confirm your parking. Some firms make extra revenue from commercial tie-ins, with one, bizarrely, advertising counselling services to users.
Hussain reports that some apps assess a vehicle’s emissions when customers enter their registration number by checking the Driver and Vehicle Licensing database, and use this to apply fuel surcharges that can add as much as 40 percent to a ticket. Other apps ‘require you to cancel your session when you leave’, rather than paying for a period of parking in advance, adding the risk of forgetting to close the session and incurring large fees for time a vehicle was not using the car park.
Helen Thompson, who was charged more than double for parking in Southwest London after forgetting to close a session, said: ‘I had already paid a convenience fee of 18p and for text confirmations which cost 50p, surely that should also include a reminder to end the parking session? When you have the kids with you and you are rushing about it is too easy to forget. I would much prefer to pay with a card or cash.’
Hussain also reports that data from UK insurer Churchill shows hourly daytime parking rates have risen 11 percent in just two years ‘as councils try to balance their books.’
With local budgets stretched, drivers are the cash cow when it comes to revenue raising. More councils are investing in apps in an effort to ease the management of their car parks.
This is a strong example of digitisation being a vehicle for increased monetisation, introduced in such a way as to offer no choice but compliance and—ultimately—paying extra for services that were previously free, or lower cost.
These added expenses are just one more problem arising for cashless parking, with other issues we’ve previously reported on including exclusion of people with disabilities and those who do not own or can’t easily operate a smartphone, and the increased fraud opportunities presented by the introduction of QR codes and other technological payment interventions.
To ensure the fairest, simplest and most inclusive parking service is offered nationwide, cash payments should be offered everywhere, alongside card and app options, allowing people to choose the method that works best for them.