£2.2 billion wrong change bill

• 62 per cent overpay for parking
• £139.36 is wasted on parking charges per person every year
• £222 million is spent on parking fines each year across the UK
• Drivers hate paying for parking at hospitals, wasting time and the expense of parking
   

Drivers across the UK waste nearly £2.2 billion every year1 because they don’t have the right change to pay for parking, reveals new research from Churchill Car Insurance2.  A reliance on cards and mobile payments means less people carry cash, which helps explain why just under two thirds (62 per cent) overpay for parking because they don’t have the correct change.

The average amount overpaid is £2.68 per week, working out at £139.36 every year per person. ‘Over spenders’ are buying more than an hour’s extra time every week that they do not need. Parking costs £1.33 per hour on average across the UK, although an hour in London will set drivers back on average £1.81 compared to Scotland where it is just 98p an hour. Drivers aged 18-34 waste a substantial £211.64 a year (£4.07 a week) while those over 55 overpay by £60.32 a year (£1.16 a week). 

The research also found drivers are forking out millions a year on parking fines. On average, those who have been fined spend £29.96 a year paying off parking tickets, working out at £223 million collectively across the UK every year. When combined with the amount wasted because of the wrong change, British drivers are individually unnecessarily wasting nearly £148 every year on parking.

Steve Barrett, head of Car Insurance at Churchill said: “Spending an extra £2.68 a week may not sound like a huge amount but it soon mounts up, with drivers throwing nearly £140 away every year. That’s enough for a family day out or to make a decent dent on household bills.  In an age of contactless payment machines it is a shame that drivers are still being short changed because they simply do not have the correct change. Car parking companies and local councils should further embrace contactless technology and parking apps to make paying for parking as easy as possible.”

Those who pay for parking spend £7.10 on average per week or £369.20 each year. Across the UK, £180 million is spent every week to pay for parking or £9.3 billion every year. Drivers aged 18-34 spend three times the amount that drivers over the age of 55 do on parking each week (£11.26 vs £3.63), while those in London fork out nearly six times the amount paid by Welsh drivers (£16.15 vs. £2.84). 

The aspect of parking which annoys people the most is when they have to pay to park in places like hospitals, which many feel shouldn’t charge for parking (68 per cent). This, as well as being forced to pay for more time than needed (49 per cent) and the overall cost of parking (45 per cent) make up the top three parking annoyances.

Table one: Most annoying aspects of parking for Brits

Source: Churchill Motor Insurance 2017

Regional Findings

Of the London drivers who use paid-for car parking, the majority (83 per cent) overpay on their parking costs, spending an extra £5.78 a week (£300.56 a year). This is nearly four times the amount overpaid by Welsh drivers who waste just £1.48 a week, the equivalent of £76.96 a year. Despite this, Welsh drivers are still wasting the equivalent of the cost of an hour’s parking each week. Drivers in the South West are the most time-efficient, wasting just 35 minutes a week.
 

Table two: Regional breakdown of money and time wasted each week

Source: Churchill Motor Insurance 2017

ENDS

Notes to Editor
 

1 Annual spend is calculated as follows: 30% of adult population overpay for parking = 15,627,141 * £2.68 (average amount overpaid for parking each week) = £41,821,815.12 * 52 weeks = £2,174,734,386

2 Research conducted by Opinium amongst 2,004 adults, between 13 – 16 June 2017

3 Please note that figures for the North East are indicative only due to a low base size

For further information, please contact:

Antonia Green

Citigate Dewe Rogerson

Tel: 0207 282 2967

Email: Antonia.Green@citigatedr.co.uk

Churchill

Founded in 1989, Churchill is now one of the UK's leading providers of general insurance, offering car, home, travel and pet insurance cover over the phone or on-line.

Churchill general insurance policies are underwritten by U K Insurance Limited, Registered office: The Wharf, Neville Street, Leeds LS1 4AZ. Registered in England and Wales No 1179980. U K Insurance Limited is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority. 

Churchill and U K Insurance Limited are both part of Direct Line Insurance Group plc.  

Customers can find out more about Churchill products or get a quote by calling 0300 200300 or visiting www.churchill.com