Season passes are now available via the Internet
http://www.parking.com/customer/OnlinePermits.aspx
Full Version: Season Passes Now Available Via Internet
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| Now get season passes online! The season pass this year is $90.00 and is valid from October 1, 2003 to September 30, 2004. There is also a $2.50 service charge for processing orders online. Payments can be made by credit card only. (Visa/MasterCard/American Express) Please allow 3 to 5 days for delivery of passes from the online system. Be sure to secure your vehicle and protect your pass. Lost, stolen or damaged passes will not be replaced. For more information, please call: (760) 344-1177 Bold added |
So, just out of curiosity, under what authority do they charge this $2.50 fee? I mean, don't they already get paid for collecting? I've not seen anything that authorized an increase in Demo Fee for ISDRA...
Or is this one just gonna slip by?
And, HOW THE HELL CAN THEY CHARGE MORE FOR SOMETHING THAT IS CHEAPER FOR THEM???
The DMV does this too... How can you say that it costs MORE for an internet site then it does to man a checkpoint or to service a pay machine?
Is it just me or are we not only being screwed by the fee, but being kicked in the ass afterwards for the priveledge of doing them a favor???
Ok, let the discussion begin!
The Pastor
It's probably to cover the percentage the card processor takes.
I know that when they were selling out of the ASA booth and the ASA let them use the ASA's credit card machine they lost something like $3 on each pass because the ASA insisted that they be repaid for the service charges they incur by using the credit card machine. The ASA didn't make any money on that but it did require that Central Parking pay the ASA back for the costs it made the ASA incur by doing central parking a favor.
I'm setting up a card site right now in another window and the percentages they get is outrageous. Heck even in a retail store you can normally figure there's a 2-3% surcharge on credit card payments but the merchant normally eats it. I know when I worked a retail job we were encouraged to play down the fact that we took cards (and employee purchases had to be in cash or check) because of that.
On-line because of the higher risk of fraud it's even worse. If you get away with a 5% cut you must have a really nice bank or have spent some major time dealing with the card companies (or be doing some MAJOR volume) .
Selling on-line you get hit twice - once by the processor and then again by the bank.
Verisign for example charges $60 a month for the first 1,000 transactions and then $.10 each for any above that. Then there's the percentage the bank takes for processing a card which like I said is usually 2-5% depending on your volume and risk.
Since on-line payments there is no signature and no card present the percentage they get charged is higher than what they get when you swipe a card at the machine (since the card has to be physically present) but since there's still no sig that's still going to be a higher percentage than if they had you sign a screen like at most stores now. On the phone they get a higher rate as well but not as bad as on-line since there's less reported fraud that way than on-line.
I'm betting the $2.50 just barely (if that) covers the additional costs of selling on-line.
There may be less labor involved in selling on-line (though even that is debateable since someone still has to put it in the envelope and mail it out...they just don't have to answer the phone and run a card) but there are fees above and beyond what they normally have to deal with.
I know that when they were selling out of the ASA booth and the ASA let them use the ASA's credit card machine they lost something like $3 on each pass because the ASA insisted that they be repaid for the service charges they incur by using the credit card machine. The ASA didn't make any money on that but it did require that Central Parking pay the ASA back for the costs it made the ASA incur by doing central parking a favor.
I'm setting up a card site right now in another window and the percentages they get is outrageous. Heck even in a retail store you can normally figure there's a 2-3% surcharge on credit card payments but the merchant normally eats it. I know when I worked a retail job we were encouraged to play down the fact that we took cards (and employee purchases had to be in cash or check) because of that.
On-line because of the higher risk of fraud it's even worse. If you get away with a 5% cut you must have a really nice bank or have spent some major time dealing with the card companies (or be doing some MAJOR volume) .
Selling on-line you get hit twice - once by the processor and then again by the bank.
Verisign for example charges $60 a month for the first 1,000 transactions and then $.10 each for any above that. Then there's the percentage the bank takes for processing a card which like I said is usually 2-5% depending on your volume and risk.
Since on-line payments there is no signature and no card present the percentage they get charged is higher than what they get when you swipe a card at the machine (since the card has to be physically present) but since there's still no sig that's still going to be a higher percentage than if they had you sign a screen like at most stores now. On the phone they get a higher rate as well but not as bad as on-line since there's less reported fraud that way than on-line.
I'm betting the $2.50 just barely (if that) covers the additional costs of selling on-line.
There may be less labor involved in selling on-line (though even that is debateable since someone still has to put it in the envelope and mail it out...they just don't have to answer the phone and run a card) but there are fees above and beyond what they normally have to deal with.
BTW - I'm not saying I like or approve of the additional fees - I personally feel that CP should have to eat the costs involved because they already get a good enough cut.
But as someone who sets this kind of thing up all the time I wanted to point out that there ARE additional fees involved in selling on-line (espically when using automated credit card payments) that most people aren't aware of.
But as someone who sets this kind of thing up all the time I wanted to point out that there ARE additional fees involved in selling on-line (espically when using automated credit card payments) that most people aren't aware of.
Ahh what another convenient way to fleece the public out of their public lands fee use
and provide for more revenue producing personnel.
Gee?
are we not Lucky? 
and provide for more revenue producing personnel.
Gee?
are we not Lucky?
Yeah, I know about the credit card fleecing of the public, (Keeps alot of people out of business...)
But that doesn't change the fact that Central Parking has an approved contract which says that they can charge $90 for a season pass... not $92.50.
I'm guessing that this fee was tacked on simply because they knew they could get away with it.
I still do not believe they have the authority to raise the cost of the passes.
Why does any of this matter at all?
Simple. You see, Demo Fee allows for a certain amount of the fee to go towards the cost of collection. It is not allowed to cost more then 20% of collected fees to pay for the COST of collection.
The Forest service is already in hot water because they doctored their documents to the GAO to make it look like they are compling when in fact it appears that it's costing over FIFTY PERCENT to collect. They used all sorts of hidden things, like using Rangers for collection but not claiming their cost as a cost of collection. Sound familiar?
So, we have an UNAPPROVED fee increase which is chocked up to the cost of collection.
What's next? Tack a $5.00 fee on to the cost of using the machine because they keep getting vandalized and Central Parking has to pay to repair them?
The Pastor
But that doesn't change the fact that Central Parking has an approved contract which says that they can charge $90 for a season pass... not $92.50.
I'm guessing that this fee was tacked on simply because they knew they could get away with it.
I still do not believe they have the authority to raise the cost of the passes.
Why does any of this matter at all?
Simple. You see, Demo Fee allows for a certain amount of the fee to go towards the cost of collection. It is not allowed to cost more then 20% of collected fees to pay for the COST of collection.
The Forest service is already in hot water because they doctored their documents to the GAO to make it look like they are compling when in fact it appears that it's costing over FIFTY PERCENT to collect. They used all sorts of hidden things, like using Rangers for collection but not claiming their cost as a cost of collection. Sound familiar?
So, we have an UNAPPROVED fee increase which is chocked up to the cost of collection.
What's next? Tack a $5.00 fee on to the cost of using the machine because they keep getting vandalized and Central Parking has to pay to repair them?
The Pastor
uh.. I dont get it.. An on-line processing fee to cover the credit-card cost.. OK.. but I paid at the machine on wash road and I used a credit card there. Can you guess what my processing fee was? -0- nada nothing.. 90.00 was the CHARGE. The credit card companies still got their % out of that.
Do the math.. Im sure the fee is the same for weekly or season pass. So that means that the parking people are Cleaning up on this. They make 2.50 per person who orders the pass and that I am sure adds up to alot of money..
Its ONE BIG EFFIN JOKE ANYMORE.. HA.. my hats off to you EFFIN parking faggots..
THEY EFF YOU IN THE DRIVE THRU..
Do the math.. Im sure the fee is the same for weekly or season pass. So that means that the parking people are Cleaning up on this. They make 2.50 per person who orders the pass and that I am sure adds up to alot of money..
Its ONE BIG EFFIN JOKE ANYMORE.. HA.. my hats off to you EFFIN parking faggots..
THEY EFF YOU IN THE DRIVE THRU..
Not to mention I think they have a 15% buffer to supposedly cover the cost of selling the passes. Remember the proposed 15% discount to vendors and OHV groups?
The easy solution is don't use the internet to buy them.
The easy solution is don't use the internet to buy them.
I will bring this up at the TRT meeting on 1/23/04
Thanks
Thanks
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