Supermarkets rely on AI to monitor parking – “Bread rolls get €20 in two minutes”

Artificial intelligence is increasingly used in everyday life. Parking inspections are now more common. But drivers are annoyed by the technology.

Munich – Parking spaces are a rare commodity, especially in city centres. Because parking spaces are scarce, free parking is no longer permitted in most supermarket car parks. Those who park illegally face high fees. Artificial intelligence (AI) is now being used more and more frequently to control parking. This results in automatic license plate recognition. Anyone who parks incorrectly will be recorded by the system and will receive a fine shortly afterwards.

Parkdepot, among others, is behind it. Their website states: “Our scanners capture license plates on entry and exit. Disproportionate parking transactions are identified and non-customers are filtered out. Valuable parking spaces are therefore exclusively available to your customers, even at peak times.”

€40 fine – Customers angry at AI parking monitoring: 'We went out to eat something and had a chat'

Anyone who violates parking rules in their parking lot will face a fine. Companies charge around 20 to 40 euros for parking violations.

But this technology is not well received by supermarket customers. In a Facebook post by Blaulicht-Report MYK about Parkdepot, one angry supermarket customer says: “Don't shop there anymore, that's it! They took 40 euros from a friend at Globus. We went there to eat something and talked. The ball is dead Floor for me.”

Other customers are also angry: “They parked there on Sundays and wouldn't take a parking space away from any customer because the store was closed. Still got a €30 fine. If you think this is good and right, fine,” one user wrote. The fine amount also seems excessive to some users, with one user commenting: “A two-minute roll gets you €20. But it's not just parking control, illegal parking also regularly causes heated feelings on the Internet.”

The AI ​​for parking monitoring is not error-free: customers have to pay 40 euros for half an hour of parking

But errors also occur when monitoring parking spaces. In one RBBIn an April 29 article, a supermarket customer reported that he received an incorrect fine notice from Parkdepot. He reportedly occupied a parking spot all day. The company is now demanding a fine of 40 euros. In fact, he only parked his car there for half an hour. After the customer opened the supermarket, he was proven right.

Park Depot explained that this was an isolated incident. But loudly RBB There have already been repeated errors. Other customers will report similar experiences. Lawyer Arndt Kempgens doubts that companies are counting on this. Because they make money from fines: “You have to think about whether companies care about such violations occurring.”

In Vienna, a woman was recently fined 399 euros for parking her car for three minutes. I resisted the request. (Law)