Leading connected vehicle services provider Parkopedia has partnered with APCOA PARKING Group, Europe’s leading parking operator, to deliver automated, seamless digital parking payments that drivers now expect from within their vehicles.

By leveraging ANPR technology at APCOA’s car park locations across 13 European countries, drivers will be able to seamlessly enter and exit car parks without requiring a ticket or needing to stop at a pay station. Known as ‘Access and Pay’, this will make parking payments quicker, easier, and more convenient. Drivers will no longer need to worry about additional stay costs or fines, as the solution allows digital payments for the total time of the stay without requiring any further action from the driver. The platform also accommodates APCOA’s dynamic pricing structure, which covers different tariffs depending on the occupancy of the car park, ensuring drivers can effortlessly cover the total cost of parking sessions, regardless of any price fluctuations.

The integration onto Parkopedia’s platform modernises frictionless payments and meets the demand for in-car commerce services, currently growing significantly across Europe. Deeply integrated into the vehicle systems for unparalleled driver convenience services, Parkopedia’s easy-to-use, single-sign-on technology replaces dysfunctional ‘Bring Your Own Account’ marketplace solutions, where drivers previously needed to manage multiple accounts and encountered limited service coverage, combined with unsafe external solutions such as’screen mirroring’ through smartphones, which distract drivers while at the wheel.

APCOA FLOW, the company’s digital platform payment service, will integrate seamlessly into Parkopedia’s in-car payment platform, which allows drivers to pay for both on and off-street parking, as well as EV charging, tolls, and ‘pay-at-the-pump’ fueling, all via the vehicle’s infotainment screen. The platform solves the time-consuming and expensive task of aggregating a large number of service suppliers and payment providers for automakers, uniting them into a single integrated solution.

Parkopedia and APCOA previously collaborated as part of Mercedes-Benz’s Intelligent Park Pilot for the S-Class, enabling reservations and parking payments for vehicles parked using Autonomous Valet Parking (AVP) technology.

Frank van der Sant, Chief Commercial Officer at APCOA PARKING Group, said: “Our partnership with Parkopedia allows us to take our already successful automated parking and charging payment solution to the next step in driver convenience and mobility services. Our customers will now be able to benefit from our technology directly from their in-car infotainment screens without taking their focus off the road and allowing drivers to get valuable time back with peace of mind that their parking and charging payments are completely taken care of.”

Hans Puvogel, Chief Operating Officer at Parkopedia, added: “Our partnership with APCOA is a  huge step forward for driver convenience technology and mobility services. Parkopedia is able to substantially increase our payment platform’s parking coverage across Europe, while APCOA can now integrate its successful parking payment services directly to the driver from within their vehicles as part of complete seamless mobility. Together, we will meet the demand for digital and automated parking services and provide lasting positive parking experiences across the continent.”