text: Councils are pocketing thousands in change by forcing drivers to overpay for parking because their meters  do not accept five or 10 pence coins brought in three years ago. Town halls   have failed to recalibrate some of the 100,000 ticket machines in the UK - making it impossible for drivers to pay the exact cost of parking. In Manchester, where 240 machines are still not upgraded, motorists without old-style coins must use £1 and two 20p pieces for a typical £1.25 hour's parking - handing the council a 15p profit. Big profit: Town hall bosses in Manchester have been accused of pocketing thousands of pounds extra from 240 parking ticket machines in the city because they still do not accept new 5p and 10p pieces . The council also charges £1.85 for an hour and a half and £3.10 for two hours and 30 minutes, meaning that drivers without the right coins must overpay for them too. Nationwide there are 100,000 parking meters yet several councils are still yet to upgrade them to accept the three-year-old 5p and 10p coins. Many local authorities don't use machines that offer change because they could become targets for theft. Experts fear the problem could become even worse when the new 12-sided pound coin is released in 2017. This is because their hourly charges often end in 5p and 10p yet the machines do not accept new five or 10p coins, making it impossible for drivers to pay the exact fee. Manchester drivers have demanded refunds and want to know why the council is yet to upgrade its machines. Darren Edwards, 42, was forced to overpay for his parking as the machine could not take the correct change. He said: 'I know it is not much but if you think how often those parking spots are used, and if everyone is over paying that soon adds up.' Coin chaos: The 5p and 10p pieces introduced three years ago are slightly thicker than the old ones, which means that a considerable number of machines still reject them . The parking machine he used currently charges of £1.25 for an hour's parking, £1.85 for an hour and a half and £3.10 for two hours and 30 minutes. But a sticker says it will not accept the new silver coins. The new thicker nickel-plated steel coins were introduced in 2012 by the Royal Mint and since then, 330million are in circulation while older copper-nickel coins have been steadily recalled. Industry chiefs insist the bill for converting parking meters, vending machines and phone boxes to accept the new £1 coin could be more than £200million. The 12-sided coin, which resembles a classic threepenny bit, was announced as a way to fight a surge in the number of £1 in circulation - a racket that costs the economy some £45million a year. But roughly 1.2million machines on the market will have to be re-calibrated to fit the new piece, which is set to be introduced in 2017, according to one industry expert. Payphones, parking metres, betting shop fruit machines, launderette washing machines and supermarket trolleys are among the devices that will need to be upgraded. Last year the Royal Mint suggested that the cost of converting these machines would be around £20million. But company chiefs have today disputed the amount - calculating that it could me more than five times as much. Jonathan Hilder, CEO of the Automatic Vending Association, estimated that forgeries make up some 3.03 per cent of the more than 1.5billion £1 coins in circulation. He said that increasingly sophisticated technology meant that coins were easier to fake - and that 50 per cent of these counterfeit coins successfully passed through vending machines. The new coin  will be made from two types of metal, like the current £2 coin. A Freedom of Information request to Manchester council revealed the town hall made £14.8m from car parking in 2013/14. Coun Luthfur Rahman, the council's assistant executive member for environment, said: 'We are in the process of re-calibrating all the pay and display machines to accept the new 5p and 10p coins. 'This will be completed by the end of the month. 'There is also an alternative payment method - Pay by Phone - which doesn't require correct change as the tariff is charged directly to the customer's credit or debit card via their mobile phone. 'This cashless method also allows customers to purchase further parking time, up to the maximum permitted, with no need to return to the pay and display machine, as well as providing text reminders when their parking time is about to expire.' In recent years drivers have complained about similar problems in towns and cities all over the UK. Councils in Sheffield, Brighton, Telford, Hull and in Edinburgh are among many who admitted to problems. The vending industry said updating machines could local authorities as much as £100million to modify parking meters and called the coin charges 'a disaster'. Because of the cost of changing machines, or having machines able to give change, councils are encouraging people to pay in other ways. A spokesman for the British Parking Association said: 'Mobile phone technology is beginning to revolutionise the way parking is paid for and offers more flexibility than static coin machines. 'Parking providers are already offering other cashless payment methods including credit cards and pre-booking. Some smart phone apps allow motorists to scan QR codes on signage instead of feeding a machine, all of which cut time, offer variety and ease of payment'.
target: In Manchester 240 machines still don't accept coinage introduced in 2012 .
  A typical £1.25 hour's parking is costing many £1.40 - a 15p profit per ticket .
  Experts fear problem may get worse when new £1 is introduced in 2017 .