As of: March 2, 2024, 6:01 a.m
By: Robin Dittrich
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Fines in public parking spaces are a horror for many drivers.
But some companies make this their business model.
Munich – Many drivers in Germany have already received a traffic ticket once in their lives.
The tickets are particularly annoying in supermarket parking lots, where you don't have to insert a parking disc or ticket.
For some companies, the breach can be extremely expensive.
Fines in parking lots with AI: rip-off or “clever business model”?
In many public parking spaces, parking without a parking ticket or parking disc is now common practice.
This can be extremely beneficial for many drivers.
No more hassle of paying at the machine, and it doesn't matter if the parking ticket you took out gets lost.
To ensure that payments are still made in the parking spaces, an artificial intelligence checks each license plate and compares them when driving out.
The
WDR
program Servicezeit takes a close look at the business model.
Parking spaces with AI license plate recognition are becoming increasingly popular in Germany - is it a rip-off?
© Arnulf Hettrich/Imago (symbolic image)
The episode from February 27, 2024 will report on whether the business model is a practical method or a rip-off.
A company that offers the new service is also shown.
As they say, only the license plates and not faces are recorded during the check.
You can usually pay via app or at a machine where you only need to enter your own license plate number.
Many drivers see the AI business model as a rip-off
The opinions of the people surveyed by
Servicezeit
vary.
Some people think the new method is good because it is much simpler.
However, others still despaired of the technology during the test, which can be complicated for some people.
The lawyer Arndt Kempgens also states in the program that “the companies earn their money from the fact that violations are committed.” He points out that the companies could be aiming for violations to occur in order to do so to collect a fine.
As reported, the AI companies only make money from traffic tickets.
The AI doesn't seem to be completely free of errors.
A driver was accused of standing overnight in a parking lot where a maximum of two and a half hours of parking was permitted.
It was only when the person concerned complained to the supermarket that the situation was resolved.
A statement said it was a technical error.
A parking lot monitoring company in Austria has now been blocked by the court.
Simply driving out of the parking lot doesn't work with the new parking method.
Although there are no barriers that would stop drivers, anyone who doesn't pay will face a fine of 40 euros.
The companies responsible for monitoring can find out the license plates from the Federal Motor Transport Authority.
As
Servicezeit
reported, up to 1.5 million queries arrive there every year - in 2010 there were still 53,000.
(
approx
.)