When looking for car parking recently, we found the option to pay by the RingGo app was available for the majority of car parks in South Devon while on holiday. However, all these same car parks were classed as a RingGo “Stop/start location,” which was a new concept to me. The official blurb states:
RingGo Start/Stop parking allows you to begin a parking session without specifying the duration upfront, and then stop it when you leave. This means you only pay for the time you actually spend parked. To use it, you’ll need to find a RingGo location that offers this feature (usually indicated by signage) and then use the RingGo app to start your session when you park, and stop it when you leave.
I wasn’t initially convinced that this was really about convenience and making your life easier. I get that many may not know how long they wish to pay to park for, but if you forget to “stop” the charging, there is a risk you could pay much more by accident.
I had no choice but to use these RingGo “Stop/Start” car parks as all the main car parks in the area that I was staying in was run by them. For each stay, they then pre-authorised charges for the cost of the longest possible parking stay. So each time I used this system, my bank had charges pre-authorised for amounts of around £9.75 and £11.30, etc. The reality was that for each stay I just wanted a few hours’ parking, so I hoped I would not forget to stop the charging. While they do just gain a pre-authorisation, I had about £50 pre-authorised in 24 hours for when my various car parking costs were only about £12.
Initially, I was concerned that I was actually being charged the max stay amounts (to then be refunded the difference at a later date). Thankfully, that was not the case, as my bank app confirmed “pending,” and then the true charge is later confirmed and the lesser amount taken. But is this really convenient?
For anyone regularly using RimgGo car parks or getting low on bank funds, it could cause issues. The pre-auth is, after all, blocking the funds in your account until the final charge is confirmed, and this can take varying amounts of time depending on your bank.
The good news is that when I returned to the car parks, I did receive notifications on my Apple Watch as the location triggered an alert to stop paying. However, I nearly made a mistake and forgot to stop the charging as I was thinking the system already knew I was leaving. It is important that you do confirm you wish to “stop” the car parking charges.
I suppose it could be argued that the system is convenient if you do not know how long you wish to stay or don’t want to keep extending your car parking. I am still not convinced, and is this a case of a service we really don’t need? Surely the older original app system is easier when you pay a confirmed parking fee, and then the timer advises when it is due to run out. it is then your choice whether to extend and buy more car parking time.
My thoughts are that the system would certainly be better with number plate recognition to auto-finish your stay and finalise payment. That way, the system would be seen as fair and truly only changing for the real length of stay. It also eliminates the risk that a customer forgets to stop the charging and ends up being penalised. Personally, I would like the choice with RingGo to decide how I wish to pay via the app, with the choice to use “Stop/Start” or just pay for a set time.
Thankfully, while on holiday, we did not forget to press stop on the charging within the app, but you could easily do so. This offering needs to be improved to safeguard users from extra, unnecessary charges by accident. That way, customers will have a more convenient and positive experience. Yes, you can put the responsibility on “stopping” the charges on the consumer, but if they forget, they are penalised and may not favour the company in a good light.
If using a RingGo “Stop/Start” car park, make sure you follow the instructions and stop the charging when needed if you come across one of these car parks. If using a RingGo “Stop/Start” car park, make sure you follow the instructions and stop the charging when needed if you come across one of these car parks. I’m not a real fan of this system but understand some benefits may exist for some. It is also important to note that the preauthorised summon your bank account often appears as a normal debit that likely will have consumers misunderstanding the charging. For me, it was only when I clicked on the charges in my banking app that the charge was then confirmed as pending only.
With so many parking apps on the market and the requirement to download different apps, this is another reason why you could get caught out if not careful. Too many apps, all operating differently.
Thankfully, the government may be intervening, and I hear that there are plans to introduce a more universal system to allow electronic payment at car parks. How that will work, I do not know. I expect that you will still have many apps on the market but may then be able to choose a preferred app to use for all your parking.
Have you got caught out with this practice? Do comment below.
