Are you having trouble when it comes to parking?
Most people believe that parking is as easy as finding a spot and leaving your car there. However, there are a lot of common parking mistakes that one can commit easily. These often result in a parking ticket, which can affect you as a driver in many ways.
To avoid parking tickets and make parking easier for you, you need to know how to avoid the mistakes mentioned above. Read what’s below to learn about the common mistakes and master parking in terms of both skill and etiquette today.
- Parking on the Wrong Side of the Road
One of the most common parking mistakes that most people don’t even realize is a mistake is wrong-side parking. This happens when you don’t park on the side where the driver should be. This is a much bigger deal than you may realize, as it can cause a lot of difficulty in moving out later on.
Parking on the wrong side of the road means that you’ll be blind to the oncoming traffic when you’re backing out. You won’t be able to see if you have enough clearance on the road, or if someone may snag your car as soon as it peeks from the spot.
This can lead to a lot of disasters, which is why there are a lot of signs to guide you when parking. Be on the lookout for them when parking to make sure you’re clear of trouble. Failing to follow these signs is a surefire way to get yourself a ticket.
- Insufficient Parking Space
While looking for a parking space in a crowded area, you may find one that’s vacant, but smaller than most. It can be because the spot is nicely sandwiched between two bigger cars. While you can park there, it’s best not to.
This is because you’ll have trouble maneuvering yourself out of your car later on. The tight squeeze may not leave you with enough room to swing your door open to get out. This also means that you’ll have trouble getting in if you come back and the cars are still there.
Parking in a tight space also means you’re more likely to damage the cars next to you. If not the cars, then you’ll either damage your own vehicle, or the landscape around the spot. Either way, you’re sure to end up spending on something you had no plans on spending on.
- Carrying an Expired Parking Coupon
Parking coupons are great in allowing us to park in specified areas without worry. However, you need to make sure that your parking coupon is up to date. Presenting an invalid parking coupon means that you’ll get fined up to $30 depending on the area you’re in.
This can go up to $1,000 if you’re caught intentionally using an invalid coupon. Many people try to cut costs by reusing old ones to pass off as a valid parking coupon. If you’re caught doing this more than three times, it can lead to serious legal action against you.
Avoid this predicament by looking up the areas you want to park in. When thinking of parking at airports, look up the airport’s website to see if they offer coupons for parking. You can also renew your coupons in several stores like certain 7-11s and such.
- Parking Too Far From Your Destination
One of the biggest hardships when finding parking spaces is looking for one close to where you need to be. This can hinder you a lot more than you think. For one, it causes you to take time traveling to where you needed to be on foot.
You may even get blocked by security checkpoints along the way. A lot of factors can cause you to arrive late and possibly miss what you’re going to.
While this isn’t necessarily your fault, you can do a lot of things to avoid this. A simple way of doing so is by arriving at the venue earlier. This ensures you get a parking spot close to, if not on the venue itself.
- Parking Where You’re Not Supposed to
If you’re running late and can’t find a spot to park in, you may find yourself tempted to park in the next empty spot available. While this may seem like a brilliant idea at first, it’s a surefire way to get your car towed.
A lot of people don’t realize that the space they’re parking on may be private property. This means that the owner of the property has every right to take action in removing your vehicle.
Some people do settle in parking lots, but often take up more space than they need. Often, it’s one car that’s taking up two parking spaces at once. This is what people refer to as double parking, and it will get you a ticket at best.
Park only where it’s allowed and within the specified spaces. This way, you won’t be the subject of legal action or public humiliation by the masses.
- Going Over Your Limit
Public and private parking spaces always have a limit to how long you can park. A common mistake made by most drivers is going over that limit. The degree of penalties you’ll face will be up to the establishment.
At best, you’ll get a ticket. At worst, you’ll find your car getting towed out of the spot. You can avoid these with the help of mobile parking apps.
Some apps allow you to pay to extend your limit even when you’re not around. You only need to have access to the Internet to allow your parking spot to get updated before the limit is up.
- Not Reserving a Parking Spot Well in Advance
This is a mistake you’ll experience when parking at stadiums. This is because these are the places where big events happen, and a lot of people come over to check it out.
You’ll find that you won’t have a parking space if you don’t make it to the venue early enough. This can be a major inconvenience, and you can solve it again with the help of mobile parking apps.
Lots of apps have cover large areas in their programming. You can use them to find the venue you’ll go to, and reserve a parking space well before you arrive. This way, you can experience stadium parking made easy.
Avoid These Common Parking Mistakes Today
Avoiding parking tickets has never been easier. With the help of the guide above, you’ll know what you need to do to avoid the most common parking mistakes. Make sure you’re in the clear before you settle into any spot today!
Do you want to learn more about parking ethics and etiquette? More of our guides can help you become a better driver! Check them out and see what you can learn with our help!
