[Nayra]

So this was a weird experience as the last place you expect to get scammed* is in a well reputed mall but I guess this is what the world has come to.
My parents and I decided to go shopping and which place is better than a mall for that sort of stuff. Well let me spare you from the boring details and let us get to the meat of the story.

We left for Phoenix at around 7:15pm in car but certainly not any time before 7pm.
This was around peak hours so keep in mind that despite being around a 8-9km drive, it usually takes upwards of 30-45 minutes. Entered Phoenix and the guy who gives us the parking ticket (people who have been to know the mall know what I am talking about) gave us the ticket and right about this time I got a call which I could not pick up as I was driving. Parked car and went about our business and decided leave around 9:30pm as this was when all the stores were starting to shut stop.

Got into the car and as we were leaving, there was a relatively long queue for the car parking fees counter and we could hear a few people get restless (started honking etc) so I decided to rush a bit and pay by cash to avoid the UPI delay (BIG MISTAKE). We gave the clerk the entry ticket we received along with the cash and he looked a bit anxious which I thought was being of the queue. He returned the change and as I was about to drive away my dad asked him for the receipt. He looked a bit lost but gave us a receipt and realized something did not add up.

We gave him a 100 rupee note and got back 10 rupees in change.
90 rupees for 2 hours barely did not make sense. For context, the parking rate at Phoenix is as follows- 50 rupees for the first hour and an extra 20 for every hour after that. The time in the receipt we got showed an entry time of 7:06pm.

Now I am a brisk driver sometimes, hell I am a TeamBHP member but even I am not a good enough driver to cover 8km in Bangalore traffic in less than 6 minutes and at worst, if I did leave at 7:15pm, time travel back 9 minutes into the past. Dad got out of the car to talk to them while I remembered the missed call I got. 7:46 was when I received the call just as I entered the mall.

When we confronted them about how this was possible, they first initially feigned ignorance and told us there is no possibility of this happening and we had no proof but when my dad asked for the entry ticket the clerk took from us a few minutes before, They told us he tore it and they cannot. Dad pushed on and told them he does not mind searching for it himself and they did not like that and would not have it. The parking coordinator then tried to appease us by telling us it is only 20 rupees extra and he would return the amount to us but at this point, it is not about the money. The fact of the matter was at best this was a pretty horrendous technical glitch and at worst, it is a fairly massive scam considering the amount of people who visit the mall.

About proof, thankfully we got the exit bill back from him and realized that the bill by nature does not have the number of the car being charged. It is literally a ticket with a bunch of numbers which can be given to anyone and I know a call I received is not exactly solid proof but thankfully my apartment has CCTV cameras and I can provide the footage of us leaving the apartment along with the time stamp if this post gets enough traction and interest.

*I will refrain from calling this out to be a certain scam because yes, there is always a chance this was a technical glitch but something about the entire series of events did not feel "correct". From the clerk's nervous behavior and hesitation in giving us the receipt to the parking co-ordinater's (No clue what his designation was but he did seem to have some amount of authority) statement of "It is just a matter of 20 rupees".
It is not. A theft of 1 rupee from a person is still wrong.

I have tried to be as unbiased as possible so as to give you guys as accurate of a description as I can. I have nothing against Phoenix because I do still want to believe this is a technical glitch that the parking management had no clue was even a thing

The point I want to make before I end this is to
ALWAYS ASK FOR A RECEIPT.

[GTO]

Originally Posted by Nayra

I will refrain from calling this out to be a certain scam because yes, there is always a chance this was a technical glitch

Unfortunate incident. Yeah, seems to be more of a technical glitch than a scam. Phoenix is a massive company and focused on bigger sources of revenue. They aren't in the business of gypping their customers of 20 bucks.

Mistakes happen & I hope they solve it soon. Do send them a link to this thread to escalate.

[ashis89]

^^
It might not be under Phoenix's control, afterall. The parking areas are often leased out to 3rd parties who manage the parking, collect the fees and pay fixed rent to the property owners.

[RaghuVis]

They seem to follow different protocols in different places. I recently drove to the phoenix mall in Pune. The guy gave me a receipt of 3 15 PM when it was already 4 PM. When I asked, he said it is a blanket charge of 50 bucks and not based on time. I did not fight then as I had to go in asap. We spent close to 3 hours there and at the exit, they just took the receipt and threw it into a box without even scanning it. I gave a 100 and got the 50 back.

[ninjatalli]

I believe it could be a problem that could be one or more basis the vendor management (who set the processes, systems), vendor staff (the guys at the counter) and/or glitches in the system.

Honestly, while your intentions were valid, I think you just wasted way too much time and effort; and more importantly, that of the guys waiting behind you in line, to prove / stick to a point of view. To them, the situation would have felt like being behind that guy at the highway toll gate who's fighting / arguing / discussing with the toll gate operator; and every car/vehicle behind would be lamenting why they had to pick that line and be delayed.

And I probably would assume - any higher ups in Phoenix management reading this would probably call this as a glitch or a vendor staff trying to make a quick buck or being lazy (and not doing his job properly); and do nothing about it (given the limited data). Still give it a shot and share it with them (feedback emails / Twitter / etc.).


Edit: Best parking process followed I have experienced is at Forum, Koramangala (Bangalore). Completely automated option integrated with FastTag; I didn't have to wait even a few seconds at the exit gate.

[itwasntme]

Originally Posted by GTO

Phoenix is a massive company and focused on bigger sources of revenue.

Parking services in BLR at least are invariably tendered out to third parties. There are very few exceptions.

Originally Posted by ashis89

^^
The parking areas are often leased out to 3rd parties who manage the parking, collect the fees and pay fixed rent to the property owners.

Very true!

Originally Posted by ninjatalli

Honestly, while your intentions were valid, I think you just wasted way too much time and effort; and more importantly, that of the guys waiting behind you in line, to prove / stick to a point of view.

Overall I agree but this could be the tip of the iceberg. Scam even a few customers per hour and the overall absolute amount at end of day is appreciably big. Multiply by 18 x 7 x 365 and $$$$$$$$!

[Nayra]

Originally Posted by ninjatalli

Honestly, while your intentions were valid, I think you just wasted way too much time and effort; and more importantly, that of the guys waiting behind you in line, to prove / stick to a point of view.

There was no proving my point of view. The fact was that we had not entered the mall at the time they stated and were charging us more than required. I fail to see any POVs over here apart from dishonesty and/or a technical glitch.
We ensured to pull forward and park ahead so there was absolutely no obstruction to traffic. The cars behind us were moving forward while the clerk was still collecting the tickets. Our main discussion was with the parking manager by the side who insisted we were lying and that there is no possibility for a technical glitch.

I do not believe standing up for what is right is a waste of time. This mindset of letting the small things go instead of standing up for ourselves is an ever growing disappointing thought process that seems to be propagating through our society

[TorqueyTechie]

As someone has rightly pointed every small change will eventually add up. Why let anyone get a free buck. I am happy you stood your ground and got the money back. I would have done the same too after all its my money. I do not have the habit of checking the entry ticket either but should start checking at least few times to ensure I am not taken for a ride.

[jkrishnakj]

Our habits have changed. I remember my mom and dad checking every single bill and item when the corner kirana guy used to deliver each month. The provision prices were compared to previous month bills etc. Basically, each paisa is treasured and valued.

Fast forward now. We pick items, drop into bags, swipe the card and walk away. Not because we are lazy, but we are slowly getting wired to trusting the process and systems. And when we come across like this, blood boils. It boils because someone is trying to dent the ‘trust’ factor, not because of 20 bucks.

I’m glad you stood up and exposed this here.

[Nayra]

Originally Posted by TorqueyTechie

I am happy you stood your ground and got the money back.

Did not take back the money though. It felt a bit incorrect to do so because as someone mentioned, it was about the misuse of trust rather than the monetary loss.
Sent an email to Phoenix and as expected, got no reply.
It might be just a matter of 20 rupees but something about this "small" incident is getting to me for some reason I cannot explain.
Hey but at the very least I will certainly be checking each every bill after any purchase
Cheers!

[Brumby]

Originally Posted by Nayra

thankfully my apartment has CCTV cameras and I can provide the footage of us leaving the apartment along with the time stamp if this post gets enough traction and interest.

[/b]

The parking lots in the malls have CCTVs, ask for the footage to check the entry time, I am sure it will help solve such issues quickly.

Always ask for the ticket at entry, and check the time mentioned, I do it always, more strictly for BMC parking lots managed by contractors.

Cheers.

[Aviatoraval]

I am sure this is a scam by parking vendor. Whenever I visit any place wherein I am charged for parking, I make sure that details on entry ticket is correct.

Also, they always charge you at the entry, however parking takes another 10 to 15 min due to queue, levels, distances and lift. Also they charge you right at the exit and you are waiting in queue for about 5 to 10 min to reach payment counter. On an average we end up paying for their inefficiency of about 30 min.

[manishk123]

If this were a glitch then the EXIT time would also be off by the same duration, since both are system generated. Definitely smacks of a scam by the parking agency.

[RunGaDa]

If you had done shopping or even a restaurant bill there should be nothing you have to pay for parking. The parking system as in Hyderabad malls was enforced to keep this rule.
Malls only need to make sure that no one goes and parks there for hours or days without giving any business to them.
This is a fair tradeoff.

[PreludeSH]

I dont usually check such things ! Maybe most of us assume the system to be working well. Its time we did that to make sure people don't take advantage of our attitude.