Kia has introduced CarPay, an innovative in-car payment service that enables drivers to pay for goods and services from their vehicles. The service, first launched with the Kia EV3 electric car, is accessible through both the Kia Connect App and the vehicle's touchscreen, with payments linked to the drivers’ payment card. Kia will gradually launch CarPay in other key models sold in Europe.

The first service, for which Kia EV3 drivers will be able to make payment through CarPay, will be Parkopedia, a major supplier of parking services in Europe. Parkopedia provides access to over 1.7 million parking spaces across on- and off-street locations in 19 European countries.

“Adding an in-car payment service is a significant advancement for customer convenience as software and connectivity continue to expand the capability of a vehicle,” said Sjoerd Knipping, vice president of Product & Marketing at Kia Europe.

According to the Parkopedia 2023 Global Driver Survey, about 92% of drivers find it difficult to locate an available parking spot across France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK and the US. Wrong parking leads to the issuing of millions of parking tickets every year in Europe.

“Kia CarPay adds significant convenience and from launch helps to alleviate one of the key pain points for drivers, simplifying the process of finding and paying for parking,” said Hans Puvogel, COO of Parkopedia. “Not only does this reduce the amount of time drivers spend searching an area to locate an available space, but it also bypasses the frustrating process of having to find an operational parking machine or downloading various phone apps to try to activate and pay for parking sessions.”