Budget Direct reveals widespread avoidance of parallel parking among Australians

Budget Direct reveals widespread avoidance of parallel parking among Australians | Insurance Business Australia

Motor & Fleet

Budget Direct reveals widespread avoidance of parallel parking among Australians

Alternative parking methods and use of technology on the rise

Motor & Fleet

By
Roxanne Libatique

A recent survey conducted by insurance provider Budget Direct has revealed a widespread aversion to parallel parking among Australian drivers.

According to the survey of over 1,000 car owners, 25% prefer to park elsewhere and walk or use public transport to avoid the stress of parallel parking. Additionally, 14% reported avoiding certain areas entirely due to parking difficulties.

Gender differences were evident in the survey results. Almost half (48%) of female drivers reported rarely or never parallel parking, compared to 31% of male drivers. Furthermore, 35% of women versus 16% of men admitted to feeling stressed or anxious while parallel parking.

Parallel parking might become less common in Australia as technology evolves

Budget Direct chief growth officer Jonathan Kerr suggested that parallel parking might become less common as technology advances.

He noted that younger generations tend to avoid parallel parking, and many drivers prefer smaller cars to make the task easier.

“Gen Z (25%) and Gen Y (26%) car owners surveyed are most likely to have minimal or no confidence when it comes to parking while 64% of the Silent Generation and just over half of Baby Boomers (52%) told us they are very or extremely confident,” he said. “Technology is certainly playing a bigger role with nearly half (48%) of car owners surveyed happy to have some help from technology in the form of reversing cameras or parking sensors, and nearly a quarter (23%) wishing they had the technology fitted to their own cars.

“Also, more than half of car drivers surveyed (52%) said that they had either already bought or would consider buying a smaller car simply to make parking easier.”

Australians’ main worries about parallel parking

The survey also found that 60% of respondents need to parallel park at least once a week, with nearly one in 10 doing so daily.

dealing with traffic (61%);
judging space or estimating distance (50%);
aligning the vehicle and timing turns (49%);
exiting from tight spots (34%); and
maintaining visibility, especially in larger vehicles (24%).

Car damage is another deterrent, with 15% of respondents stating their car had been damaged while parked, and 6% admitting to causing a parking scrape.