In Rick's book he says ".. I just pull into the most central 'disk' or 'pay and display' parking lot I can find. Disks can be bought at nearby shops."
In looking at the aa site and other sites about parking, the first thing they say is wrong is to park without a disk. Do they allow time to go to a nearby shop to purchase these? Should one person remain in the car? Am I getting too paranoid about this?
Where, Barry? In Ireland, several of the lots we parked in had machines where you bought the disks right there in the parking lot.
I should have said Rick's Ireland book.
A disk is a cardboard clock affair. If you pull into a spot at noon that has two hour parking, you set the kiddie-clock at the time you arrive and you won't get a ticket if you're back within the two hours.
They're often provided in the side pocket or glove box of the rental car.
When I've needed one and didn't have one, I'd toss a piece of paper with the corresponding time on it on the top of the dash and never had a problem.
Most of the 'discs' have been replaced with pay machines in the last few years.
Park, go to the machine, insert coins (always have coins), get a ticket from the machine, put it on the dash.
The disks I have purchased in the past were actual disks, not cardboard clock thingies (and I've never seen a cardboard clock in any of the cars I have rented in Ireland). You purchased them from a machine in the parking lot, and I'm not surprised to find out that they are now basically receipts that you display instead of actual disks. In some places, like parking garages, you take a ticket as you enter, pay at a pay station before you go back to your car, and insert the marked ticket in the machine at the gate to let you out again.
Although called "disks" I have never seen a round one. This really confused me at first, but fortunately I was with my sister who lives in Scotland and she explained it to me. They are rectangular and have dates, hours and minute boxes which you mark off with the time you put it on your dash and the value of the ticket determines when the expiry time is. Yes, you can walk to the nearest pay station, often a nearby store, and return with the ticket without penalty.
Cars I have rented in Spain, Germany, Sweden & Finland all had cardboard or plastic parking disks in the glove compartment. I've also drawn a disk on paper and left it in the window: it serves the same purpose and I can easily believe a policeman wouldn't give you a ticket unless he wants to be a bit of a dink.
