‘HEARTLESS!’ Broken-Down Upminster Woman Slapped With Parking Ticket While Freezing in Bus Shelter waiting for tow truck.

An Upminster woman says she was left “shaking with cold and disbelief” after a parking warden slapped a ticket on her broken-down car while she was standing just feet away, waiting three hours for a tow truck in bitter weather.

The woman, who did not wish to be named, broke down on Station Lane on Wednesday afternoon. With the help of a kind passer-by, she managed to push her vehicle safely out of the road and switched on her hazard lights before taking shelter from the freezing wind in a nearby bus stop.

But despite clearly being stranded, cold, distressed and waiting for recovery, a parking warden swooped in out of nowhere and plastered a ticket onto her windscreen, even though she told him it was her car and that it had broken down.

According to the woman, the warden shrugged, ignored her explanation, and began taking photographs as she stood just a few feet away watching in disbelief.

The incident is yet another example of wardens “targeting easy wins” instead of using common sense.

A spokesperson for Havering Council, said:

“The Council always looks to carry out any parking and traffic enforcement in a fair and balanced way. This is to help our roads be as safe as possible and to keep traffic moving. Enforcement acts as a deterrent to those whose actions could be dangerous or illegal.

“Where a vehicle is parked and cannot be moved due to a mechanical fault, the driver has the right to appeal against a parking ticket or traffic fine by providing evidence of the vehicles’ recovery or repair.”

Despite the reassurances, many residents say the damage is already done with this latest incident adding to the growing anger over what they see as heavy-handed, robotic enforcement with zero compassion.

The woman is now lodging an appeal, though locals say she never should have been punished in the first place.

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