I'll only be an hour 97% of drivers want in-car payment system for tolls, parking, charging Any system should be easy to use and work for parking, fueling, and charging. Jonathan M. Gitlin – Apr 8, 2025 11:33 am | 49 Credit: Getty Images Credit: Getty Images Story text Size Small Standard Large Width * Standard Wide Links Standard Orange * Subscribers only   Learn more Imagine having a well-designed payment app for your car's infotainment system that let you effortlessly pay for parking, road tolls, EV charging, or refueling. Such a concept found universal appeal among US drivers, according to a study by a market research company. But simplicity is key: The moment it gets difficult to register or use such an app, interest wanes and people prefer to pay for things the older-fashioned ways, DriveResearch found. For instance, there was a high level of desire to be guided through the process of entering one's billing or credit card info into an in-car payment app. Seven in 10 participants said that they'd want such a thing to happen when the car is being delivered and while they're still in the "new car" mindset. But most don't want to do that at a dealership: 77 percent also said they would prefer to register for in-car payments at home, via the phone or a computer, with only 67 percent wanting to use the car's infotainment screen and just over half (53 percent) saying it would be OK to use the automaker's connected car app. Almost all drivers (87 percent) said it would be useful if the payment app let them know when it could be used, and 80 percent said they'd be frustrated if their cars didn't notify them, which DriveResearch says "shows that there is a significant opportunity for OEMs to deliver value connected services with intelligently perceived nudges for in-car payments." Nearly everyone questioned as part of the research study would probably be OK with that, as long as it translated to a discount for using the in-car payment system; while this was a motivating factor, the time-savings and efficiency of frictionless in-car payments were the main draw. And a single platform that can pay for parking, charging, and fueling would be valuable, according to 97 percent of drivers. People would even be prepared to pay extra, apparently. According to DriveResearch, 7 in 10 drivers would pay more for a car with in-car payment tech than a car without; some of them (36 percent) would be OK paying $700 or more for such functionality across the lifetime of the car, with more people (47 percent) preferring the cost be a one-time payment rather than a recurring fee (30 percent). Not everyone is trusted to look after those payment details, however. Apple's and Google's payment services come out on top, with 83 percent trusting them to securely manage their card info in their cars. Only 63 percent trust the actual credit card companies, and only 57 percent trust the automakers. That's still better than the parking app (47 percent) or parking operator (43 percent). Only 7 percent trusted local municipalities. DriveResearch says that the growing acceptance of in-car payment systems is happening faster thanks to the spread of EVs, many of which have what's known as "plug and charge," in which the car exchanges payment or billing information with a charger during the handshake process. Jonathan M. Gitlin Automotive Editor Jonathan M. Gitlin Automotive Editor Jonathan is the Automotive Editor at Ars Technica. He has a BSc and PhD in Pharmacology. In 2014 he decided to indulge his lifelong passion for the car by leaving the National Human Genome Research Institute and launching Ars Technica's automotive coverage. He lives in Washington, DC. 49 Comments