– I was shocked.
That’s what Jon Vidar Jacobsen said after receiving a NOK 84 bill, after allowing himself to be tempted by an advertising banner for soft ice cream along the road near Hanko Marina in mid-July.
He and his wife went to the parking lot, parked the car, went to buy a couple of ice creams – and drove away again.
The trade took exactly seven minutes.
– If I had parked there for an hour or more, I would, of course, have understood that I had to pay. But we stopped here for seven short minutes, and after two weeks a bill of NOK 84 arrived, he says.
burning fee
Jacobsen contacted Hanko Marina to see if the fee was actually correct.
– I didn’t get much answer. He says the only thing they said was that I might have to call EasyPark.
The reason for the high bill was that Jacobsen did not use the payment options when he was parked, for example using the EasyPark app.
Because the parking fee itself is 25 NOK. On the other hand, the administrative fee is a whopping 59 NOK.
– I don’t care much about 84 kroner, but I think the process is miserable. Here, the place advertises soft ice cream, after which I think it’s great to send those who let themselves be tempted with a NOK 84 bill.
– We must have a system
At Hanko Marina, they think criticism is unreasonable.
The Marina’s Chairman, Atle Staff, believes they have made it easier and more affordable for customers by offering a camera solution.
– For the past 12 years there has been a parking fee for parking here, but unlike before, you will now be fined if you don’t pay right away. You already have several options for paying the tax afterwards. But if you don’t take advantage of it, you’ll be billed with an administration fee, says the staff.
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He says customers can pay at the machine, pay directly in the Easypark app, and activate parking automatically in the app — or go to a P-Norge location to pay the toll within 48 hours of parking.
Staff believe the marina is entirely dependent on the parking fee. Both because it entered, but also for having structure and control around the parking lot.
– There are always many people who “just have to”, but if we don’t have a tax here, there will be chaos at once. We’ve made it more affordable for customers to park here. For example, we have reduced the daily rate from NOK 260 to NOK 100. I am happy to accept input regarding summer places in the area where prices are reasonable, as is encouraged.
He had been fined last year
Do you feel that yelling from some people is unreasonable?
– Yes, to some extent I do. We are keen to have a good and good arrangement around the car park, so as to keep it under control and so that we can have a certain amount of income. You have to remember that our high season lasts for three weeks, and then it boils outside. If we didn’t have the parking fee, many places would be used by people who aren’t even in the marina, he says.
– You’ve spent a lot of time figuring out the best solution – both for us and for customers. The conclusion is that camera parking is the future. If this customer had done exactly the same last year, he might have received a fine of 600 NOK. In that sense, we saved him a lot of money, he says.
– Jacobsen status has been shared on Facebook nearly 600 times – what do you think about that?
We always get scolded by someone when it comes to parking. But again, there are many ways to avoid these administrative fees. He says we simply can’t please everyone when it comes to this.
In the comments section of Jon Vidar Jacobsen on Facebook, there are many who support him that the fee is unreasonable.
– The soft ice cream wasn’t good
– Didn’t you know the parking rules when you walked in, Jacobsen?
– I saw that there was a sign there, but I honestly thought that when they advertised soft ice cream and a kiosk, it would be possible to get in without paying. He said we were only in the area for a few minutes.
“The ice cream has been pretty good so far, but it wasn’t worth more than a hundred kroner, which is the price after parking,” he says.
Not feeling that Hankø Marina was particularly willing to respond to his query, he posted a Facebook post to warn his friends.
Two days after posting, nearly 50 people had commented, while nearly 560 had shared the post.
– He tells me that this is something that annoys a lot of people more than me. He says 560 stocks are too violent.
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