Signal failure: Drivers struggle to pay for parking via apps due to poor connectivity
Mon, 11 May 2026
Seven in 10 drivers who use parking apps have struggled to pay due to poor phone signal, a new survey has revealed.
VodafoneThree has discovered growing frustration faced by drivers trying to pay for their parking using apps in places where there's poor or no phone signal.
The problem is only exacerbated by car parks ditching pay-and-display machines in favour apps, with those surveyed having an average of three or more parking apps on their phone. With fewer people carrying cash, parking app is often their only payment option.
Notspots leading to fines
The study of 2000 motorists conducted earlier this year found that a hugely significant 70% of those use apps to pay for parking have struggled to do so due to poor mobile connectivity.
That frustration is only compounded for many, with almost half (48%) delaying or abandoning trips completely after failing to download or use an app, with no other solution to be found. Two-thirds added that poor connectivity is more stressful during holiday periods.
The survey also discovered that over a third of people (37%) who struggled to pay via an app have been fined as a result.
Phone operators doing their part
In a bid to help solve the UK's notspots, where there's no phone signal to be found, VodafoneThree claims to have eliminated 16,500 square kilometres of notspots across the UK – an area 10 times the size of London.
The firm has targeted popular places in the Cotswolds, Pembrokeshire Coast National Park, Exmoor National Park and the Yorkshire Dales to improve mobile phone signal, helping reduce parking stress.
“Reliable connectivity has never been more important," says Andrea Dona, Chief Network Officer at VodafoneThree. "By eliminating 16,500 square kilometres of notspots across the country, we’re removing some of the everyday frustrations that millions of customers face when simple things like paying for parking or downloading an app don’t work."
