A motorist was slapped with a £70 fine for parking on the pavement moments after his tyre unexpectedly burst after making room for a police car. Matt Fellows was in his car with partner Sadie Elliott when the vehicle’s tyre “exploded” out of nowhere.
Matt said his tyre came apart after driving over the kerb to make way for a police car while driving through Alfreton. However, he believes the tyre was first damaged after striking a pothole in Cragg Lane in Newton, Derbyshire.
Matt told the BBC: "We knew we'd hit it, it made a rather loud noise as we went through it, but we hadn't realised the damage at that point. We had to come up on to the kerb and in doing so clearly the tyre wall had already been compromised and it exploded on us."
After feeling the damage, Matt pulled up on the pavement in Alfreton Town Centre, leaving his hazards on to alert road users of the danger. The pair went to a local cafe while an expert was called in to come and fix the damage to get the car running.
However, on his return, Matt was left stunned when he noticed a Penalty Charge Notice had been applied to his windscreen despite the catastrophic damage. Matt has claimed that replacing the tyre had cost him £109.94, but Matt was more frustrated at the parking ticket than claiming compensation for damage.
Matt told the BBC: "When we got back we were met with a nice yellow parking ticket on the front of our vehicle. We assumed the flat tyre and hazard warning lights would have prevented that, but unfortunately not."
Councillor Charlotte Hill, the cabinet member for potholes, highways and transport at Derbyshire County Council, stressed a decision has been made to cancel the notice.
A statement issued to Express.co.uk read: "In this particular case, the penalty charge notice was issued as the vehicle was seen by a warden to be parked in contravention of the yellow line waiting restriction in operation along High Street, Alfreton, and no-one was with the vehicle.
"Once a PCN is issued, there is a comprehensive process which allows people to appeal and, having reviewed the evidence provided in this case, we will be cancelling the notice and notifying them of the decision.
“We’ll also be investigating the condition of the road at that location and would advise the owner to submit a compensation claim for the damage caused to the vehicle if they wish.”
