Prestwick pensioner, 85, with £176 debt from £30 parking fine vows not to pay up

dailyrecord.co.uk:

A disgruntled Ayrshire driver has racked up a £176 debt after council bosses say he was “parking illegally” in a disabled bay.Angry Allan Heslop was slapped with a £30 parking notice in Prestwick’s Main Street on September 29, 2020.The 85-year-old’s ordeal began when he parked his Kia Venga car and left his wife of 60 years – Christine, 78, who has a disability – in the passenger seat while collecting her prescription from a chemist.A shocked Mr Heslop returned to the vehicle only 15 minutes later to find that a parking warden had issued the vehicle with a ticket for breaching two rules.The parking attendant said the first was because Christine’s disabled badge was out of date.And secondly, he added, she had been left waiting in the car’s passenger seat while Mr Heslop collected her prescription for a chemist.The Ayrshire Live app is available to download now.Get all the local news in your area – plus features, football news and the latest on the coronavirus crisis – at your fingertips 24/7.The free download features the latest breaking news and exclusive stories while you can customise your page with the sections that matter to you.The Ayrshire Live app is available to download now on iOS and Android.Mr Heslop, of Bearland Drive, Prestwick, appealed the parking ticket later that day.It was in vain, however, after the appeal was rejected by the Ayrshire Roads Alliance (ARA).But the defiant OAP refused to pay the fine out of principle and his debt soared to £176 after it had been passed on to sheriff officers.Mr Heslop declared: “The Ayrshire Roads Alliance management should be exposed.

You would think they would use some common sense."We are both in our 70s and 80s and in a vulnerable group, and we kept being told not to