Paying for car parking

suttonj I partly agree except there have been several occasions when I have not had the right coins to pay the exact amount - and of course, the machines don't give change..

Nothing is vandal proof. Even the card machine can be damaged. By using card, it just limits the chance of vandalism as those taking apart are normally after the money in the machines themselves.

As for people not having cards, it's more likely that they just don't use them but that has to change. Many branches are closing and more and more car parks are becoming digital payment.

I know my In laws struggle at times to understand this, but it is the way banking and paying is going.

Using a card is becoming more simple and as for not knowing your number plate, unless it's a car you've recently bought, then that is information you should know!

No wonder so many people shop online
That sounds like a nightmare Nanny41 (what happens if you don't have one of those smart phones?)

suttonj, may I join you too?

Yes where we live in Sweden you cant use your card anywhere when parking, its a text message system which takes for ever to do, first register your car registration with the firm having charge of that particular parking area, then twirling around the time on an APP, you can prolong the time by phone of course, also they remind you a quarter of an hour before the time expires, if you want to renew or get back to the car in time! The pay stations wih MONEY were so much easier, och dear, technology can create problems.

Broadland District Council in Norfolk has free car parking, but go over the border into North Norfolk and you have to pay.

I am surprised so many people mention they have free parking. I haven't seen free parking anywhere for many years.

suttonj
May I join you?
?

Not everyone does. My friend in his 70s only uses cash, no cheques or cards. If a cheque is needed his wife pays.

By the time you've added up the charge for the texts telling you how much longer you've got left to park, it adds up to a bit more than what you've had originally paid to park. I avoid using those parks where the credit/debit card system is in operation. Somebody somewhere is making money out of it.

Charleygirl5 I consider myself usually capable but in Oxford carparks with phone payments it's a nightmare! Luckily my friend finds it the same so that gives me moral support!

Thankfully, parking is free where I live, but I wonder for how much longer.

If there’s money kept in it, sadly, someone will want to steal it. A FB friend posted cctv footage of a lad stealing £2.75 from a locked, secured money box in an egg shed 2 miles from our house. He even paused to stick a middle finger up at the cctv camera before exiting!

Frankly I am outraged at this pay by card/phone/app mullarkey. There is nothing more convenient for me than good old fashioned cash. I don't trust internet banking. And I will now crawl proudly back into my cave.

I guess in saying 'vandalise' the machines the OP means to get at the cash? Machines that will take cards only can still get trashed - on one near me, they installed one of the sort where you enter your Reg and you could pay with cash or card - but someone decided to pour some sort of glue over the keyboard - so the machines monitor worked but you could not follow the instructions!
Was a bit surprised by gillybob - thought she of all posters would be aware that the private companies cannot 'fine' you; only the council or the police can do that. Otherwise they are just sending you an invoice.
As for the middle-class vandals at the resovoirs - I bet they still expect the area to look 'nice' for them but guess thay are happy for someone else to pay that bill...

Firstly, we who do not own mobile 'phones are definitely starting to feel discriminated against. Everything these days is App this, App that, App the other.
Secondly, all our car parks here in our area of France are free, especially in large supermarket areas. However, across the border in Swizzle, some stores have been charging for parking. We simply do not go there and shop elsewhere that is free.

I went to a funeral in a busy area of London and found I had to phone up to pay for my car. I would have gone by bus but following the service I had to cross town and out of London to the crematorium and couldn’t have done it on public transport.

I’m afraid I phoned my daughter, gave her my card number and details of the zone I was in and she did it for me. I’m becoming chicken in my old age.

You would be surprised at how many people on low incomes don’t have accounts with debit cards only a cash card this is because many of them have poor credit and banks won’t offer a normal bank account or else because they worry about getting over drawn. Some of these people will also be running cars so I imagine this new trend will be very unwelcome! Also I have noticed that there is a hefty surcharge added for paying in this way! My local car park charges £1 for two hours parking using the machine but adds 40p if using your card!
I do use the app on my phone but resent the profit made by the council on paying by card!

I think most people could pay by card if they chose to, but it's the option to pay by cash or card, and not have the card only option. We prefer to pay car parking by cash if possible. At our local hospital this was a real advantage. Having had many appointments for regular treatment for over nine months, we found the queues so long for the card option that we always took cash to pay. There are three pay machines at our local hospital which is a very large training hospital as well. One pay machine inside, two outside. We would use the inside one, and be back to our car while the queues were snaking around the car parks as we drove out. Sometimes having the option is preferable in many cases.

Sorry - Jalima!

Totally agree Jamila - shop rates, rentals, difficult and expensive car parking have all added to the decline. It seems councils would rather have empty shops than do anything to encourage shoppers.

I hardly ever go into our town centre but if I do. I use Debenhams car park-like an hour's free parking..that's enough for me..don't stay long would rather jump on the train and go into Manchester!!

The new machines in our area give the choice cash or card.

Town councils wonder why town centres are dying - do they not realise that parking charges are adding to the reasons?
People would rather drive to out-of-town shopping centres where there is plenty of free parking.

It is constantly assumed that everybody has smart phones and are computer savvy. The problem is that all these schemes are thought up by young whizz-kids (that phrase dates me ?). It's similar to a young financial adviser who couldn't understand why I didn't want to tie up most of my savings in 10 year schemes.

I use an app called RingGo. It works very well and saves trying to find £1 coins. It brings up the numbers of the parking meters near you. I click on that. Then it brings up my car number and I select how long I am going to be. If I have a different car I can enter it’s number instead It then tells me how much it will cost and I press accept. It texts me when I get within 10 mins of using up all my time and offers me the opportunity to extend the time without having to go back to the car. Then it sends me a receipt by email. Saves a lot of faffing.