Warning issued after authority tickets car parked on paved area in Portsmouth

The woman, who did not want to be identified because of the sensitive nature of her job, was visiting relatives in Quinton Close, Somers Town, on a Sunday afternoon when she parked on a paved area near the flats.

The 51-year-old said she was shocked to find a parking ticket on her vehicle a couple of hours later as it was a space she had used in the past – and a space that she had seen being regularly used by vans carrying out work on behalf of Portsmouth City Council.

Despite challenging the ticket, issued on March 12, the council has said she must pay and now she wants to warn others so they don’t get an unwanted fine.

She said: ‘It is absolutely farcical. I have seen vehicles parked there for hours without getting a ticket.

‘This was a Sunday afternoon, when the residents’ parking zone was not in force.

‘Relatives of mine have been parking there for several years, but ever since work has begun on the flats nearby and the bollard was removed, residents have been getting tickets. It is so infuriating.’

Now her appeal has been turned down, she must pay £35 in the next two weeks – or the fine rises to £70.

She said: ‘I would be happy to pay the ticket if it was correctly issued in a fair manner – I do, however, believe this is a discriminatory money-making tactic to generate funds.

‘If I do end up paying it, it will be in pennies, so at least I’ll get my money’s worth.’

A spokeswoman from Portsmouth City Council said contractors do not receive special treatment from its parking enforcement officers.

She said: ‘Any vehicle parked on double yellow lines, or in contravention of parking restrictions, will receive a penalty notice if witnessed by a civil enforcement officer.

‘Contractor vehicles are no exception. If we’re told about a problem area where drivers are leaving vehicles we can then make regular, repeated visits if necessary, to enforce and ensure they aren’t causing an issue for others.’

Mountjoy, the firm contracted to Portsmouth City Council, which owns some of the vehicles pictured parking in the same spot without tickets, said it would be taking action.

A spokesman said: ‘Mountjoy expect our staff to park their vehicles in a considerate manner and observe all parking restrictions.

‘We only receive a very small number of complaints about parking given we undertake over 20,000 repairs a year to homes in Portsmouth.

‘Any fines we do receive are paid by the member of staff and not by the company or the council.’

‘‘The photos show Mountjoy vehicles parked near Handsworth House where we have been carrying out a number of repairs to resident homes.

‘We are experiencing particular difficulties with finding parking spaces at this location as there are several construction sites in the immediate area.

‘In this instance it appears that some vehicles were not parked in accordance with the restrictions and we would like to apologise for that.

‘We are taking action to try and prevent a reoccurrence. This includes looking at the potential to create additional contractor parking for daytime use in conjunction with Portsmouth City Council.’