Parking charges designed to reduce driving in cities and major towns are contributing significantly to the death of the high street, two new studies have found.
Three in five drivers have been deterred from visiting their local high street due to parking chargers, research from Direct Line business insurance has found.
Meanwhile a poll of 11,333 AA members also reveals two-third of motorists would be turned off parking near the high street if it cost more than £10 for four to five hours.
Both confirm British Retail Consortium’s report that ‘high streets and shopping centres were hit particularly hard through 2024 as people veered towards retail parks to take advantage of free parking.’
Mark Summerville, SME product manager at Direct Line Business insurance, said: ‘It’s clear many people do want to support their local shops and businesses but are being put off by the cost of parking.
‘Keeping charges down, or lowering them, could help revive high streets, encourage local businesses to stay open and create additional employment – all of which may also boost council revenues.’
The British Retail Consortium (BRC) and Sensormatic data found that there was a 2.2 per cent reduction in overall retail foot traffic last year compared to 2023.
Parking charges are causing a significant drop in this footfall; 42 per cent of drivers responding to Direct Line said the cost of parking in high streets, villages and town centres around the UK has risen significantly in the past year.
During the run-up to Christmas, an AA check of the cost of four to five hours parking at 10 shopping centres in cities across the UK, excluding London, found that one was charging more than £20, three charged between £15 and £20, three between £10 and £15 and the rest between £5 and £10.
The cheapest was £6.90 and the most expensive was £23.70 (£26.40 for those parking between 11pm and 1pm at weekends and between 8am and 10 am on weekdays).
It is unsurprising then that these eye-watering prices have resulted in 56 per cent of drivers telling Direct Line that the cost of high street parking makes them more likely to visit a supermarket with free parking, and 52 per cent saying they’ll go to an out-of-town shopping centre with free parking instead.
And 44 per cent said they’d shop online instead of paying for parking.
Charges less than £5 – 15% (male 17.5%, female 10.5%)
Charges between £5 and £10 – 48% (male 48.5%, female 46.5%)
Charges between £10 and £15 – 28% (male 25.5%, female 32%)
Charges above £15 – 9% (male 8.5%, female 11%)
Sample of 11,333 AA members who might drive into a town/city centre
Online shopping is a key cause of the high street as we know it collapsing.
In the Autumn Budget the Chancellor suggested that tax burdens should be shifted to online, away from high street shops.
Rising parking costs are pushing even more people to shop on the internet instead of supporting local businesses.
It’s not just parking cost though, it’s the hassle that parking causes too: 62 per cent of drivers say that the lack of parking availability and parking restrictions that are putting them off, Direct Line reports.
And it’s clear where drivers are pinning the responsibility of the future of the high street because 82 per cent of respondents believe councils should help to save the high street by offering free parking.
How much are people willing to pay to park?
The AA survey found the breaking point for the majority of shoppers is when the cost of parking starts to rise above £1 an hour, with 48 per cent being turned off by a cost for four to five hours (which would be charged as having entered the fifth hour) of between £5 and £10.
While male shoppers are significantly less tolerant of parking charges even below £1 an hour, both men and women stand firm that they don’t want to cough up for the £5 to £10 parking bracket.
One in five drivers either consider the shopping experience in cities and major towns so poor that it is not worth the effort or prefer to stay out of those locations altogether.
While the AA ‘understands why councils might use the cost of parking to try and reduce traffic and congestion in town centres’, AA president, Edmund King, warns it’s ‘killing the traditional weekend shopping expedition.’
He adds: ‘Even before visitors reach the shops, a sizeable chunk of each trip’s potential spending is being sucked out of wallets by exorbitant council and private parking fees.’
He continued: ‘Why drive shoppers out to retail parks or online and punish a diminishing number who still drive in?’