As we continue to evolve into a cashless society, parking is at the forefront of development and innovation. In private car parks, the days of a ticket displayed in a car windscreen are a thing of the past. Private parking operators continue to develop and enhance the customer journey with new technology. The latest tech offers a host of payment options that can be integrated into any car park site that uses ANPR cameras. This system is the asset management tool for private management of car parks – it allows for a significant reduction in operational expenditure and provides unlimited data insights in real time. This helps with asset management and strategic planning of the property or car park, as well as improving the customer journey.
ANPR camera technology can work at any car park, whether there is a barrier or no barrier (free flow car park). The camera system will protect the car park income or, where there is no income, the system will maximise the space availability by enforcing the maximum stay period.
ANPR cameras operate 24/7 and 365 days per year and it’s estimated that 99.00% of users are compliant parkers, with just 1.00% known as non‑compliant parkers. Non-compliant customers are issued a Parking Charge Notice for loss of revenue or overstaying the maximum stay.
The British Parking Association (BPA) reported that in 2023, under their approved operator schemes, an estimated 10,187,395 Parking Charge Notices were issued. Of those, 90.7% were issued with the use of ANPR camera technology and 9.3% by a warden patrol officer.
The approved operators’ schemes operates a discounted rate – those that are non-compliant are issued a Parking Charge Notice. If this is paid within 14 days of the contravention, then the registered keeper is entitled to a 40% reduction of the initial fee. During 2023, 81.4% were settled at the discounted rate and the overall payment rate, inclusive of cancellations, appeals and goodwill gestures, was 47.5%.