Commercial Aspects of Parking Fines

James_N

This thread discusses private parking fines issued from car parks serving shops, especially larger shopping complexes with several and varied outlets. It uses Parc Tawe, Swansea and Morfa Park,Swansea, as examples. It concerns the commercial impact of fining your customers to carry out normal shopping activities.

Both the above locations have a very wide range of shops, and both have a "problem" with parking. At Parc Tawe, this is because it's on the edge of the city and people park there to shop in town, the on-street parking in Swansea having largely been removed by anti-car councils: at Morfa Park the situation is different. Despite being on the far edge of town, both Swansea City FC and the Rugby Union Ospreys are located at the stadium almost within the complex. Despite a large number of "sport" car parks being available on match days (from the adjacent Park and Ride facility to blokes renting out yard-space for a fiver) I suppose there is still a problem. They only apply their parking restrictions on match days - so together with the tides we also keep a list of Rugby and Football matches up on the fridge.

My point is simple: it's perfectly easy for anyone to spend over the two hours at these complexes. Three quarters of an hour spent in any two shops and a food shop, or a wait for a prescription or a "special order" to be retrived from the back of the shop in Homebase or B&Q, or a refund to be issued or a query to be .. you surely get the picture? This is without going to a food outlet or the vets or the cinema (Parc Tawe).

Where are the shops in thinking this through? A recent request to the Pet shop with vet in-store produced the mesage that "We don't manage the car park." and I guess that's right and that the other shops will say more-or-less the same. But surely they SHOULD control the decisions for fear of systematically turning away customers?

I feel that a campaign of public exposure for these practices would play dividends and that a Money Saving Sponsored targetted media campaign would be worthwhile. Local papers, Local TV consumer programmes, blogging and lobbying MPs and councillors.

What's the general feeling on this?

trisontana

I agree, that seems like a good idea. If the retail parks come back with the argument that they are trying to stop unauthorised parking, then the simple solution is to install barriers where exit is allowed when you show proof of purchase or a token, to show you have been a genuine customer at at least one of the establishments

flyingscotno1

It is a very difficult balance to be struck between encouraging your customers to park and getting people who you don't want there, filling up the car park. Is there a good solution- possibly not. Retailers don't own the car park or units, they are typically rented and will only pass comment on the landlords parking regime- indeed you are best writing to the retail park manager.

trisontana wrote: »

I agree, that seems like a good idea. If the retail parks come back with the argument that they are trying to stop unauthorised parking, then the simple solution is to install barriers where exit is allowed when you show proof of purchase or a token, to show you have been a genuine customer at at least one of the establishments

It is not a simple solution because it doesn't work!

These systems scare far more customers away than any other system and are expensive. They used to have it at an ASDA and Swimming Pool here and both are long since abandoned.

These systems have to be maintained (cost implication) you also need to watch that ou can get folk in and out the car park effectively.

Barriers can only handle 500-600 vehicles per hour max and if your exits are not wide enough you have to redesign your exits. Possible cost in the region of £20K for that. You'll also need a man there all the time the site is open.

Believe it or not more people are scared away from shopping from those systems than others. Retailers hate the system as they have staff to give out tokens etc, wasting their time. Consider this from a customer view point. You go into Comet to look at TV prices with no intention of making a purchase. You then have to get some token to get out of the car park as you have no receipt- just hassle to get one. You go to Homebase for paint, but it is out of stock- how do you get out? People will just go shop elsewhere to avoid the hassle. Similarly what stops anyone parking in there just popping into the shop to get a token meaning your expensive system does nothing?

Max stay is not perfect, but most visits are not longer than 2 hours and it suits most people.

James_N

[Max stay is not perfect, but most visits are not longer than 2 hours and it suits most people.[/QUOTE]

your post is sensible, but the simple fact remains that anyone parking at Parc Tawe to see a film at the cinema there, or to go bowling, or to visit the glasshouse is likely to see a £60 "fine" added to their costs.

flyingscotno1

your post is sensible, but the simple fact remains that anyone parking at Parc Tawe to see a film at the cinema there, or to go bowling, or to visit the glasshouse is likely to see a £60 "fine" added to their costs.[/QUOTE]

Operators obviously need to consider the type of venues at their location. If there is a Cinema, rather than DIY and other Warehouses then 2 hours might not be appropriate. The problem comes then from a football match being the same as a film and you have to determine a way of controlling it.

You can have no penalties and see what happens. You could make the whole car park 2 hours, but have a separate area for the cinema which is pay and display, with a refund voucher when you go into get a cinema ticket- not ideal, but might be the only way. It is just difficult in that circumstance.