When a business validates parking, it means that they are paying for at least a portion of their customers parking, up to 100% of the parking price. Validated parking is a solution for extending free or discounted parking to some parking lot users of a paid parking facility, and it is generally considered a perk of being a customer. When a customer gets their parking validated, they do not have to pay for parking when they leave. Validated parking is usually offered by businesses in busy commercial or downtown areas where there is limited space availability and paid parking becomes a necessity. It is common for stores, malls, outlets, and other shopping centers, as well as on-site service providers like salons, spas, and gyms, to offer parking validation. Validated parking is usually time-limited, such as 1-hour free parking with validation, for example. At the most basic level, validated parking is offered in the form of stickers or coupons, which must be presented in conjunction with the parking ticket to reduce the parking payment due.