Anger over no-change car parking fee rip-off

They are one of the ultimate council cash cows - hundreds of car park ticket machines which never give change.

Motorists all over the region are paying anything up to double the fee they need to when they go shopping or pop into town to the bank.

But councils in the Black Country and Staffordshire have defended their machines and said they do not know of any that would give drivers a fairer deal.

And it is a postcode lottery with some areas like South Staffordshire offering free parking all over and others like Wolverhampton which charge to park on the street as well as in car parks.

Motorists group the RAC Foundation today called for councils to rethink how they charge drivers.

It said the technology is available to offer change in parking machines but that councils conveniently choose machines that simply take what the motorist feeds it, creating thousands of pounds extra revenue per machine every year.

Foundation Spokeswoman Sheila Ranger said: "We think it is essential that councils give change in their machines. People who pay with a pound coin or a £2 coin could be losing 20p or more every time and that adds up to a lot of money.

"We would suggest a smart card scheme where people could top up and pay only the amount they owe if councils are unwilling to use machines which can give change."

Wolverhampton City Council has more than 50 kerbside parking meters and none of them give change.

Spokesman Tim Clark said: "All of our city centre parks other than the Civic Centre are manned by staff who give change. The Civic Centre car park is machine-operated and it does give change and receipts."

Dudley Council has 85 machines in 40 car parks but does not charge for on-street parking. Spokeswoman Katherine Finney said: "We are not aware of any standard pay and display machines which give change.

"There are payment machines available that do, but they are much larger and are linked to barrier systems at exits."

In Cannock Chase there are 33 parking machines, none of which give change.

Sandra Richards, spokesman for Cannock Chase Council said: "A majority of councils in the UK use machines which don't give change. If they did need replacing then looking at machines that do give change would be something the council would consider."