New research indicates that a majority of drivers are growing increasingly frustrated with parking apps rather than finding them helpful. According to an Autocar survey, more than 80% of drivers prefer using cash or contactless cards for parking payments instead of relying on their smartphones.
The main reasons for this discontent include the inconvenience of having to download multiple parking apps, confusion about which app to use, and concerns about potential fraud. With around 30 different parking apps already available across the country, the proliferation of options has contributed to an 83% dissatisfaction rate among drivers.
As the number of parking apps continues to rise, traditional payment machines are disappearing from car parks. The CEO of JustPark, Anthony Eskinazi, predicts that local authorities will stop purchasing traditional pay and display machines by 2025, phasing them out within the next decade.
A 2023 study by The Daily Mail suggested that over two million people may struggle to pay for parking in the future, partly due to the shutdown of 3G networks by telecom firms before the 2033 deadline. Despite this, only 14% of Autocar survey participants prefer using parking apps over physical payment machines.
Drivers in favour of using smartphones highlight convenience, such as avoiding queues, remotely extending parking stays, and easily expensing parking fees at work, as the main advantages. However, older participants in previous surveys have shown reluctance to adopt parking apps, with more than half of those over 65 expressing discomfort using platforms like JustPark, Ringo, and PayByPhone.
Campaign groups and politicians are raising concerns that the shift to app-only parking may disadvantage elderly and vulnerable individuals who struggle with app navigation. Silver Voices Director Dennis Reed and Levelling Up Secretary Michael Gove have both criticised the potential discrimination against older people by forcing them to use smartphones for parking payments.
To address these issues, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Transport Secretary Mark Harper have proposed a national parking platform to streamline the app-based parking process. This initiative, supported by 54% of Autocar survey respondents, aims to simplify access to parking apps and potentially prevent fraud – a major concern highlighted in the survey.
The initiative gains additional significance as fake parking apps, warned against by Which? at the end of 2023, have surfaced on Google. These fraudulent apps, impersonating popular platforms like Ringo and Just Park, appear in search results and may deceive victims into paying for non-existent parking sessions, resulting in financial losses. Which? advises users to only download parking apps from official app stores to avoid falling victim to such scams.
