Parking garages are used by many drivers to park their cars safely and securely for some period of time. A parking garage is not available without a cost though. You will need to pay for a parking ticket at the parking garage.
With the paid ticket, you will be allowed to leave the building. But some people wonder if it’s possible to leave a parking garage without paying?” If so, how to get out of a parking garage without paying?
To get out of a parking garage without paying, read the signs in the parking garage and check if there is any attendant If there is no attendant available, put the car in drive, depress the accelerator, and drive out of the parking garage without paying.
Can You Leave a Parking Garage Without Paying?
Yes, you can leave a parking garage without paying but doing so is illegal and you can be punished. The best thing to do is to make your payment and continue to be a law-abiding individual.
Many parking garages require you to pay on foot and not while you are inside your car. When you park your car, you need to walk up to the pay station to collect a parking ticket.
You take that parking ticket to your destination and return with it to pay the parking fee.
Ways of Paying for a Parking Ticket
There are different means of paying for a parking ticket, they are:
Paying by Cash at Pay Station
This is the most popular way of paying for parking tickets. When you want to pay using cash, you should be aware of the following:
- All of the pay stations accept bills (as much as 20-dollar bills).
- All of the pay stations accept coins (excluding pennies).
- When you want to pay, you need to insert your ticket into the appropriate slot. It is the magnetic strip upwards towards the right.
- The pay station is configured to tell you the exact amount you need to pay. All you have to do is put your cash into the money slots to make payments.
- If you need a receipt, press down on the receipt button to get one.
- You might need some change so wait for the ticket to be printed and look out for the change beneath in the change bin.
- Go with your ticker and receipt to your car
- As you drive towards the exit gate, insert the parking ticket. This will give you access to exit the parking garage.
Paying by Credit Card at Pay Station
Credit cards are accepted by all parking garages. The cards you can use include Master Card, American Express, and Visa. The Discover card is not accepted for use in parking garages.
If you intend on paying for your parking ticket with a credit card, you should note the following:
- Insert your parking ticket into the appropriate slot when you want to pay.
- You will be shown the exact amount you need to pay at the pay station. In the same slot that you inserted your parking ticket, insert your credit card as well.
- If you need a receipt, ensure you press down the receipt button for your receipt to be printed.
- Move with your parking ticket AND the receipt to your car.
- Drive towards the exit gate and put in your ticket. Note that the magnetic strip should be up and at the right when you put it in. the exit gate will be opened to grant you access out of the parking garage.
Paying by Credit Card at Exit
If you want to pay for your parking ticket at the point of exiting the parking garage, it is very easy as well. Follow these steps:
- Put your parking ticket in the appropriate slot.
- The exact amount you owe will be shown to you in the slot. Put in your credit card in the same place you inserted your parking ticket. Insert it in the same direction as well.
- The machine will process the credit card you inserted, deduct the fee and print a receipt for you.
- As soon as you take your receipt, the exit gates will be made open for you to exit the building.
Those are the correct steps to follow in paying for a parking garage ticket, now, to answer the question above, is it possible to leave a parking garage without paying? The answer to that is yes.
How to Get Out of a Parking Garage Without Paying?
To get out of a parking garage without paying
1. Check for an Attendant
To get out of a parking garage without paying, read the signs in the parking garage and check if there is any attendant If there is no attendant on-site, it is a chance to leave the parking garage without paying.
However, this can only work if it it is a manual means of paying for using the garage. If it is a manual process of paying for tickets, if the attendant is not in his seat, some people exit the parking garage without paying a single dime.
2. Check if the Gate is Open
It is possible to leave a parking garage without paying if the exit gates are open or the attendants do not stop you to pay for the parking garage ticket.
Some people just zoom off as soon as they see the exit gates open. What if you hit someone’s parked car while trying to zoom off? It will be more problematic for you if you are tracked, hitting someone’s car and leaving is considered a hit a rin and it’s a crime punishable under the law.
What Happens When You Leave a Parking Garage Without Paying?
When you leave a parking garage without paying, many things can happen. Sometimes, your license plate might be tracked down using camera footage in the parking garage and then you will be issued a ticket straight to your mailbox.
Other times, you might not be contacted at all by the parking garage management. It varies!
What Happens if I Lost my Parking Garage Ticket?
When you lose your parking garage ticket, you will need to pay some fees. In many parking garages, a lost ticket costs 11.00 dollars. To pay for a lost parking garage ticket, you should follow these steps:
- Go straight to the parking garage with your registration and license. This is for verification of your identity and your car. Just for security purposes.
- The representative at the parking garage office will make some verification to be sure that you are the owner of the vehicle you claim and a new ticket will be issued to you afterward.
- You will need to pay the fee for a lost ticket. It costs 11 dollars. The price may vary depending on your location.
Can You Leave a Parking Garage After it Closes?
Is it possible to leave a parking garage after it has closed for business at the end of the day? Well, yes and no. I say yes because you can exit any parking garage in the world after its closing hours IF the exit gates are open.
Let’s say a parking garage runs from 7 am to 11.30 pm every day. You enter the garage at 7 pm, park your car, exit on foot to your destination, and come back to the parking garage by 1 am.
What do you do at that point? If you see that the exit gates are still open, won’t you drive through and make your way to your destination? Of course, you will.
Now, the other answer to the question above is no. Some parking garages have very strict policies that make it difficult for users of the garage to flout.
They follow their working hours devotedly. The closing time is the closing time, no extra minutes are added.
As soon as they close the exit gates to the garage, all cars remaining inside will be forced to stay there till the opening time the following morning. That is how it works.
How to Get Car Out of Closed Garage
Getting a car out of a closed garage is an uncommon task. Not everyone asks about this and not many people know how it is done.
In the event that you overstayed at your destination and on getting back to the parking garage, you discover that the exit gates have been shut, what do you do? I can almost picture the sight of agony and sadness on your face at that point.
For me, I will recommend you talk to the officer on duty at the parking garage office. The person will be able to help you if possible. That is the surest way out.
Some people prefer to do it the rough way though. They drive through the exit gates at full speed, destroying the gates and causing damage to other equipment at the gate.
This is not good though because your license plate will be captured by the CCTV systems and tracked down by the police. You will not only have to pay for the parking ticket, but you will also have to pay for the cost of repairs for the damage you caused.