AN ELDERLY man has labelled the price difference between app payments and in-person payments at a city centre car park as "discriminatory".

Tony Dean, 79, of Chelmsford Drive, slammed the parking prices at the NCP Cathedral Square car park, highlighting the vast difference between in-app payments and on-the-day payments.

According to the NCP website, parking at the NCP car park for five to six hours costs £5.70 on the NCP app, rising to £11.70 if you want to pay using the parking machines.

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The full list of differences are as follows:

Mr Dean said: "I will always tell the truth, and I honestly feel this is discriminatory.

"I live off a state pension and can just about afford to run a small car.

"Due to my mobility issues, the NCP car park is crucial for me to access parts of the city centre, but I find it ludicrous that people can get more reasonable charges if they use the NCP app.

"If people like me cannot afford the initial cost and monthly rates of a Smartphone, then we pay through the nose. It is pure discrimination as I see it."

The NCP car park has access from Cathedral Square and Friar Street and is popular due to its location at the top of the High Street.

Age UK Worcester and Malvern Hills recently spoke out about the impact of cashless options at car parks and the effect it has on the elderly.

The charity said it had experienced calls in Worcestershire regarding fears about cashless parking saying they are being 'digitally excluded'.

READ MORE: Cashless parking can digitally exclude older people says Age UK

An NCP spokesperson said: "We do accept that app payments are not the solution for everyone, however, we do encourage customers to use our app so that they too can benefit from the best deals we can offer at the time.

"NCP offers a dual tariff board at all our car parks in our leased estate. There are tariffs for roll-up customers that can pay on-site, and then there is the tariff for customers who use the NCP App. 

"Like many companies we like to work closely with our customers and our relationship with customers who use our app means that we have the ability to share offers in the future, allowing us to have a better relationship and understand their needs more, and enabling those customers to have a more seamless parking experience and save money as well.    

"This can only happen when you have the data on your customers that they provide for you when they sign up to the app. 

"This is no different to many loyalty schemes that are on offer in, for instance, supermarkets or garden centres where loyalty card members get discounted prices from the price on the shelf."