Ambulance given parking ticket outside Northwich Tesco Published duration 25 July 2018

media caption An ambulance was given a parking ticket outside a supermarket

An ambulance has been given a ticket for parking on double yellow lines outside a supermarket.

A Facebook video shows a North West Ambulance Service crew being ticketed outside a Tesco store in Northwich, Cheshire, on Tuesday.

Parking company Euro Parking Services apologised and said it would overturn the charge with immediate effect.

The landowner said it would review its parking contract and temporarily stop all enforcement at the site.

In the video, filmed by a member of the public, the ambulance driver says she stopped at the Kingsmead shop to get water during her shift.

She says the vehicle does not fit in a regular bay and she had not wanted to use a disabled one.

The parking warden says an ambulance cannot be parked on double yellow lines unless the crew is dealing with an emergency call.

image copyright SWNS image caption The parking attendant was filmed arguing with the paramedic over the ticket

Site owner LCP said it was "very disappointed".

"On this occasion, we do not agree with the parking officer's interpretation of the parking restrictions relating to emergency vehicles," a spokeswoman said.

'A mistake'

Adrian Nesbitt, HR manager for Euro Parking Services, said the ambulance should not have been given a ticket and said the warden had been called in for an investigation.

"It is a mistake on our part, we will contact the ambulance service to offer our apologies and put together a full training package to make sure it doesn't happen again," he said.

"The ambulance service is very important to our community, we don't want to hinder them and we're very saddened by the situation."

A spokeswoman for the ambulance service said it was aware of the video.

"As yet, we have not received notification of a parking fine and should we do so, it will be dealt with through the usual process," she said.

Where can an ambulance park?

Cheshire West and Chester Council's traffic regulation order makes emergency service vehicles exempt from parking restrictions but private property is "outside the scope" of its enforcement action.

The British Parking Association's (BPA) code of contact advises its members to "respect the needs of the emergency services" and allow them to carry out their duties without enforcement action being taken against them.

"This means that you must not issue parking charge notices to liveried vehicles being used for operational fire, police or ambulance purposes," the code states.