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Council parking apps add service fees worth up to 40% of the posted tariff
Councils moving to app-only parking leave drivers paying 10p to 30p in service fees, up to 40% above the advertised tariff, the Guardian found. Fees are set contract by contract, so an organisation that outsources payments sets its customers' real price there.
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Fee as share of tariff. Harrogate town centre: 30p on an 80p tariff, a 38% rise. Lancaster (RingGo): 20p on £2, 10%. Littlehampton (MiPermit): 10p on £1.90, about 5.3%. Birmingham (PayByPhone): 15p on £5.10, about 2.9%.
- 38 % on tariff Harrogate town centre, claim 7 Mandatory 30p charge on an 80p tariff
- 10 % on tariff Lancaster, Kings Yard (RingGo), claim 20 Desk calc: 20p fee on a £2 tariff
- 5.3 % on tariff Littlehampton (MiPermit), claim 23 Desk calc, approx: 10p on £1.90 charge
- 2.9 % on tariff Birmingham (PayByPhone), claim 21 Desk calc, approx: 15p on £5.10 tariff
| Figure | Value | Note | Claim |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harrogate town centre | 38 % on tariff | Mandatory 30p charge on an 80p tariff | 7 |
| Lancaster, Kings Yard (RingGo) | 10 % on tariff | Desk calc: 20p fee on a £2 tariff | 20 |
| Littlehampton (MiPermit) | 5.3 % on tariff | Desk calc, approx: 10p on £1.90 charge | 23 |
| Birmingham (PayByPhone) | 2.9 % on tariff | Desk calc, approx: 15p on £5.10 tariff | 21 |
What happened
- Apps save councils the cost of installing and maintaining ticket machines, and while a few pay providers directly, many leave drivers to pay some or all of the bill.
- None of the apps the Guardian tested clearly displayed the fee until the payment stage, and some required a click on an information symbol to explain the higher price.
- In Harrogate, North Yorkshire, app payers in the town centre face a mandatory 30p charge, a 38% rise on an 80p tariff.
- Drivers who opt for booking confirmation and expiry alerts pay extra again, typically 10p to 30p per text.
Why it matters
- cost A flat charge in pence takes the largest share of the cheapest tickets, so drivers on short, low-tariff stays pay the highest percentage extra and the council's sign understates their bill by the most.
- constraint Where machines have gone, a driver cannot avoid the fee, and because each council agrees terms with its own provider, no driver can predict the charge from one car park to the next.
- contradiction Providers say the all-in price is shown before payment confirms; the Guardian found the breakdown behind small links and icons. Both hold, so the dispute is over where a quoted price begins.
- decision For any organisation outsourcing customer payments, fee level and sign display are settled in the provider agreement, so the choice is made when the contract is signed or renewed.
The 40% figure is the top of the range, and it comes from cheap tariffs. In Chester the two-hour tariff at Christleton Road is 50p and the convenience fee is 20p [8]. The Guardian tested four apps by booking an hour's parking at car parks around the country [19], and on those bookings the fee added about 3% to 10% to the price [24].
A fee set in pence does not scale with the ticket. RingGo's 20p is 10% of a £2 tariff [20]. PayByPhone's 15p is about 3% of £5.10 [21], JustPark's 12p is about 3% of £3.50 [22], and MiPermit's 10p is about 5% of £1.90 [23].
Each app places the fee a little differently. RingGo shows a small "see prices" link above its "Next" button once a location is chosen [10]. PayByPhone explains its charge only on the payment page, behind the Apple Pay button, and customers must scroll to the end of the page to see it [11]. JustPark's fee sits behind a tiny pale grey "i" beside the final price [12]. MiPermit lists its fee above the final price at the end of the booking [13].
The providers dispute the framing. "Nothing is added at the payment stage," said a JustPark spokesperson [16]. "The pricing elements related to parking, SMS options and service fees are presented before payment confirmation," said a PayByPhone spokesperson [17]. "In line with existing regulations, wherever pricing information is shown in the RingGo app, we also display any additional fees," said Adam Dolphin at Arrive, RingGo's parent company [15]. All three can be true of the app screen. The car park sign is a separate question: many signs fail to mention that app payments may carry a fee [3], and RingGo said it is up to its council clients whether to show the fee on signs [14].
The legal footing is unsettled in the reporting. The Advertising Standards Authority says a contract is valid only if the quoted price includes every mandatory fee, and a driver contracts with the council on accepting the car park's terms and parking [25]. The Guardian notes that a driver who pays online also enters a separate contract with the app provider, so app fees may not legally have to appear on council signs [26]. We do not know yet whether that reading would survive a challenge. The Guardian said it contacted MiPermit for comment [18].
In our view the decision sits in the contract. Service fees are agreed between each local authority and each app provider, and they vary by location [27]. The Guardian did not report how many councils pass the full fee on to drivers, only that many pass on some or all of it [4]. An organisation that signs or renews a payment-provider agreement this quarter settles who pays the fee and who decides where it appears. The cost of that choice arrives later, as the gap between the tariff on the organisation's own sign and the amount its customer is charged.
What to watch
- Whether the Advertising Standards Authority's rule on mandatory fees is applied to app fees charged under a separate provider contract.
- Whether councils start printing the app fee on car park signs, since RingGo says that choice is theirs.
- Whether MiPermit responds to the Guardian, and whether any council discloses how much of the fee it passes on to drivers.
Clarity's read
What the record supports and how the coverage leans. The claims behind it follow.
Reality
- Evidence58
- Adoption
- Insufficient
- Hype gap+30
- Incentives55
- Confidence60
Claim ledger
Ranked by verification strength, evidence, and original report placement.
- [1]
Drivers are paying up to 40% more to park as more councils switch to app-only payments and customers pick up the tab.
- [2]
Many councils across England have removed pay and display machines and replaced them with app payments, including a number in London.
- [3]
Many car park signs fail to mention that app payments may incur an additional service fee.
- [4]
Parking apps save councils money by removing the cost of installing and maintaining ticket machines; a few councils pay app providers directly, but many leave drivers to foot some or all of the bill through convenience or service fees.
- [5]
Service fees typically range from 10p to 30p, are not included in advertised car park tariffs even when an app is the only payment option, and are often not strongly flagged within the apps.
- [6]
Of the parking apps tested by the Guardian, none clearly displayed the service fee until the payment stage, and some required customers to click an information symbol to find out why the price had increased.
- [7]
In Harrogate, North Yorkshire, drivers who park in the town centre and pay by app are hit with a mandatory 30p service charge, a 38% rise on an 80p tariff.
- [8]
At the council's Christleton Road car park in Chester, the price of two hours rises by 40% when a 20p convenience fee is added to the 50p tariff.
- [9]
Extra fees are added if drivers agree to receive booking confirmation and expiry alerts, typically between 10p and 30p per text.
- [10]
RingGo's convenience fee added 20p to the £2 tariff at Kings Yard in Lancaster; drivers must click a small 'see prices' link above the prominent 'Next' button to see the charge, and it is mentioned again on the payment page only when the 'i' symbol beside the final price is clicked.
- [11]
PayByPhone charged a 15p service fee on top of the £5.10 tariff at Dudley Street car park in Birmingham; the charge was not explained until the payment page, was hidden behind the Apple Pay button, and customers have to scroll to the end of the page to see it.
- [12]
JustPark customers have to click a tiny pale grey 'i' symbol beside the final price at the end of booking to discover the transaction fee, which added 12p to a £3.50 charge at Charmouth Road car park in Lyme Regis, Dorset.
- [13]
MiPermit listed its 10p convenience fee above the final price at the end of the booking, on top of a £1.90 parking charge in Littlehampton, West Sussex.
- [14]
RingGo said the fee funded the service it provided and that it was up to the councils it worked with whether or not to display it on car park signs.
- [15]
"In line with existing regulations, wherever pricing information is shown in the RingGo app, we also display any additional fees," said Adam Dolphin at RingGo's parent company Arrive.
- [16]
JustPark said mandatory fees were included in the price quoted during payment; a spokesperson said: "Nothing is added at the payment stage," and that the 'i' icon simply shows how the all-in price is made up.
- [17]
PayByPhone said its pricing was transparent; a spokesperson said: "The pricing elements related to parking, SMS options and service fees are presented before payment confirmation."
- [18]
The Guardian contacted MiPermit for comment.
- [19]
The Guardian tested the apps by booking an hour's parking at car parks around the country.
- [20]
RingGo's 20p fee is 10% of the £2 tariff at Kings Yard, Lancaster.
- [21]
PayByPhone's 15p fee is about 2.9% of the £5.10 tariff at Dudley Street, Birmingham.
- [22]
JustPark's 12p fee is about 3.4% of the £3.50 charge at Charmouth Road, Lyme Regis.
- [23]
MiPermit's 10p fee is about 5.3% of the £1.90 charge in Littlehampton.
- [24]
Across the four tested bookings the fee added about 3% to 10% to the price.
- [25]
According to the Advertising Standards Authority, quoted prices must include all mandatory fees for a contract to be valid; drivers enter a contract with a council as soon as they accept the car park's terms and conditions and park their vehicle.
- [26]
Few drivers realise they enter a separate contract with the app provider if they pay online, so app fees may not legally have to be displayed on council signs.
- [27]
Service fees are agreed between local authorities and individual app providers and can vary by location, so drivers have no way of predicting what they will be charged.
Sources
1 independent publisher whose own reporting we read for this story.
- theguardian.comDrivers forced to use parking apps can pay up to 40% more
1 article · October 11, 2026
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