How often do you over pay carpark ticket machines?
How often do you over pay carpark ticket machines?
Author
Discussion

iandbeech

Original Poster:

2,709 posts

287 months

Saturday 12th March 2005
quotequote all
I often chuck a quid into a machine for an 80p charge as I never have the correct change. This morning however, I noticed the three people in front of me do exactly this (as well as me again) so just wondering how much extra the council claws from us.

Why can`t the machines give change or at least provide a corresponding time allowance for the money given!

minimax

11,985 posts

285 months

Saturday 12th March 2005
quotequote all
iandbeech said:
Why can`t the machines give change or at least provide a corresponding time allowance for the money given!


because they're run by councils and councils like to screw us as hard as possible for money to try to compensate for their own innate ineptitude.

that's life!


NEXT!

philthy

4,697 posts

269 months

Saturday 12th March 2005
quotequote all
Moral of the story? Get a motorbike, they can go round the barriers

Phil

Flat in Fifth

48,650 posts

280 months

Saturday 12th March 2005
quotequote all
iandbeech said:
Why can`t the machines give change or at least provide a corresponding time allowance for the money given!


This is what happened in a car park in Sweden. OK for the overpayment the extra time per extra sek calculation seemed a shade wonky but fairer than the UK council money grabbing system.

Also how many of us use the full time we have paid for? The ban on handing over tickets to another means the yield / space in busy parks must be staggering.

>> Edited by Flat in Fifth on Saturday 12th March 10:24

john75

5,303 posts

276 months

Saturday 12th March 2005
quotequote all
Do the same here

cotty

42,215 posts

313 months

Saturday 12th March 2005
quotequote all
why not leave some change in a wallet in your glove box, never know when you might need some. One of these days im going to turn up at the Dartford Crossing with no cash.

parrot of doom

23,075 posts

263 months

Saturday 12th March 2005
quotequote all
Or carry several bags of the smallest change the machine will accept. The more pennies you insert, the faster the machine fills up, and the more time and effort needed to service them.

Isn't small change legal tender in small quantities of less than a pound? You could complain that they're breaking the law by not accepting 60x1p coins

BliarOut

72,863 posts

268 months

Saturday 12th March 2005
quotequote all
I have often thought about this. Is there any law that could be used to force them to put in machines that provide change?

It makes me if I have to overpay.

condor

8,837 posts

277 months

Saturday 12th March 2005
quotequote all
I think it's 25pence in coppers

I was at a training course in Ware for 2 days, 1000-1630 - had to pay for a 4 hour ticket, then had to nip out in the lunchbreak to top it up with another 4 hour ticket so as not to interrupt the course.
Why can't they have full day charges?

sparkythecat

8,097 posts

284 months

Saturday 12th March 2005
quotequote all
Flat in Fifth said:

Also how many of us use the full time we have paid for? The ban on handing over tickets to another means the yield / space in busy parks must be staggering.

>> Edited by Flat in Fifth on Saturday 12th March 10:24


This may have been covered before but as the search facility isn't working I can't look.

What is the issue with handing over part used tickets?

Who's banned it?

I know some more modern ticket machines make you put the Reg.No in to stop this happening, but banning it? How?

Flat in Fifth

48,650 posts

280 months

Saturday 12th March 2005
quotequote all
sparkythecat said:

Flat in Fifth said:

Also how many of us use the full time we have paid for? The ban on handing over tickets to another means the yield / space in busy parks must be staggering.

This may have been covered before but as the search facility isn't working I can't look.

What is the issue with handing over part used tickets?

Who's banned it?

I know some more modern ticket machines make you put the Reg.No in to stop this happening, but banning it? How?


As I understand it they cover it by making part of the terms and conditions that the ticket is "Not Transferable."

On another issue re car park ticket machines. Back in 199? when Sheffield City Airport first opened, I turned up one morning to catch the early early early flight to Amsterdam.

Intending to be away for several days discovered that the long term car park was a Pay and Display. What!!

The staff on duty seemed very unconcerned about the impracticality of expecting someone to feed about thirty odd quid into a machine that did not accept notes or cards. £1 coins highest denomination accepted.

Seemed Sheffield councillors thought it would encourage people to use the bus. Yeah right, and then they wonder why the airport never really took off. pun intentional in case Streaky wonders


>> Edited by Flat in Fifth on Saturday 12th March 14:34

slinky

15,704 posts

278 months

Saturday 12th March 2005
quotequote all
sparkythecat said:

I know some more modern ticket machines make you put the Reg.No in to stop this happening, but banning it? How?



But a lot of the ticket machines in worcester only make you put the number in, so as soon as the new plates came out, they were near useless on new cars

slinky

minimax

11,985 posts

285 months

Saturday 12th March 2005
quotequote all
philthy said:
Moral of the story? Get a motorbike, they can go round the barriers

Phil


or get a Ginetta G33 that's so low it can go under barriers - like at BTaP

DocJock

8,722 posts

269 months

Saturday 12th March 2005
quotequote all
Slightly o/t, but I noticed today out local council (Eastleigh) has incresed the charges by 20%.

They increased by 25% last year as well, so that means a 50% increase in the last 2 years !!

Balmoral Green

42,561 posts

277 months

Saturday 12th March 2005
quotequote all
I used to do this regularly, I hate loose change and never carry it, so would often put a quid in the machine even if my stay was for just ten minutes. Did this for several years. Then on one occassion after having put the correct 20p in for half an hour, and gotten a penalty ticket for being five minutes late, I decided never again to use the pay car park, but the free one at the top of the hill and walk instead. My fine was £30, but in the 6 or 7 years since then I havent been putting my usual quid in the pay machine three or four times a week, so I reckon the council has lost several hundred pounds from me, for penalising me for just five minutes late.

simpo two

92,662 posts

294 months

Saturday 12th March 2005
quotequote all
One simple answer is to keep a mixed supply of change somewhere in the car.
I suspect some ticket machines are priced deliberately to capitalise on people's lack of change - I think I saw £1.05 once

If there's one thing I hate more than a socialist it's a capitalist one, grrr.

philthy

4,697 posts

269 months

Sunday 13th March 2005
quotequote all
minimax said:

philthy said:
Moral of the story? Get a motorbike, they can go round the barriers

Phil



or get a Ginetta G33 that's so low it can go under barriers - like at BTaP



I saw someone do this at a car park in Swindon yonks ago, I couldn't tell you what the car was. Several people saw it happen, and most of them were grinning.

Phil

docevi1

10,430 posts

277 months

Sunday 13th March 2005
quotequote all
Whilst fighting to get my car into reverse so that I could put my ticket into the machine to get out of The Gate car-park last night I noticed that I can get out of the car park without even lifting the barrier

Managed to get it into reverse (blumin 'box) and get the ticket in, but if the attendent hadn't been watching me thinks I'd have slipped under I had paid for the ticket either way.

Melv

4,708 posts

294 months

Sunday 13th March 2005
quotequote all
I keep a load of 'shrapnel' in a used 35mm film case (Gosh -remember them!!!)- a necessary evil in the London W & SW postals....