Phone app pays people £10 to snitch on illegally parked cars
UK phone app to pay £10 to snitchs
A private car park company is offering £10 to users who take photos of illegally parked cars on private land through a new app.
Car Park Management has launched an app that automatically produces parking tickets of up to £100.
The UK based company runs car parks for the likes of Tesco and McDonalds and now they are encouraging users to download the app and simply upload a picture of the offending vehicle with its number plate if it has been parked where it's not supposed to be.
The app is designed for small businesses who cannot pay to patrol their own car parks and who want discourage unauthorised parking around town centres or other busy locations.
After users download the i-Ticket app they can create an account, after which Car Park Management (CPM) will send them signs to put up around their designated parking spaces. If a car is parked in the wrong spot they can snap a photo on their phone, upload it to the app with the licence plate number.
CPM then uses DVLA data to send a parking ticket to the vehicle owner for £60. The fine rises to £100 if not paid within two weeks and the photographer receives £10 for every paid ticket.
The company is saying that ‘the service’ is"completely confidential" and they offer"complete privacy". However, has raised quite a few concerns about private companies issuing large fines for minor offences.
Simon Williams of the RSA in the UK SAID, "The sharp practices of parking companies are already regularly called into question with paid officials dishing out fines, but with members of the public being financially encouraged to shop motorists who overstay, it’s a recipe for disaster,".
Parking enforcement by private companies is increasingly embracing new technologies in their efforts to catch unauthorised parking. In recent years, for example, they have been using devices such as automatic licence plate readers.
Author
Justin Kavanagh
Justin Kavanagh is a recognised leader
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