A Survey Exposed the Worst Parkers. Guess Which Car Brand Came in First?

Travel bloggers across Europe recorded which car brands parked outside the lines or illegally. Mercedes topped the list.

By Jonathan Small | edited by Dan Bova | May 14, 2026
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Have you ever circled around a packed parking lot looking for a spot, only to find that one selfish person is hogging up two spaces? Chances are they’re driving a Mercedes, according to a new survey. Car rental site DiscoverCars.com enlisted travel bloggers in five major European cities—Paris, Rome, Barcelona, Amsterdam, and Manchester—to observe parking habits in popular shopping mall lots. They recorded which cars parked outside the lines, took up multiple spaces, or parked illegally in handicap spaces without permits.

Mercedes drivers took the obnoxious crown, with 25 percent of spotted Mercedes vehicles parked incorrectly. Citroen drivers were a close second at 24.4 percent, followed by BMW at 21.7 percent. Tesla drivers ranked fourth at 20.5 percent, and Volkswagen rounded out the top five at 20.4 percent. Barcelona had the worst overall parking behavior, with 19 percent of all cars acting like they owned the place.

Toyota was the most popular brand observed but had one of the lowest rates of bad parking at just 10.5 percent. Mercedes drivers, meanwhile, already had a bad reputation—they ranked second in another study for not using turn signals.

Have you ever circled around a packed parking lot looking for a spot, only to find that one selfish person is hogging up two spaces? Chances are they’re driving a Mercedes, according to a new survey. Car rental site DiscoverCars.com enlisted travel bloggers in five major European cities—Paris, Rome, Barcelona, Amsterdam, and Manchester—to observe parking habits in popular shopping mall lots. They recorded which cars parked outside the lines, took up multiple spaces, or parked illegally in handicap spaces without permits.

Mercedes drivers took the obnoxious crown, with 25 percent of spotted Mercedes vehicles parked incorrectly. Citroen drivers were a close second at 24.4 percent, followed by BMW at 21.7 percent. Tesla drivers ranked fourth at 20.5 percent, and Volkswagen rounded out the top five at 20.4 percent. Barcelona had the worst overall parking behavior, with 19 percent of all cars acting like they owned the place.

Toyota was the most popular brand observed but had one of the lowest rates of bad parking at just 10.5 percent. Mercedes drivers, meanwhile, already had a bad reputation—they ranked second in another study for not using turn signals.

Jonathan Small Founder, Strike Fire Productions

Entrepreneur Staff
Jonathan Small is a bestselling author, journalist, producer, and podcast host. For 25 years, he... Read more
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