This van is worth £10,000: its driver owes £42,000 in fines

PROLIFIC parking offenders are being hunted down by a council for nearly £400,000 in unpaid tickets. This amount, which has doubled in the last six months, has been generated by 10 motorists who have collected more than 2,400 parking

WESTMINSTER'S most prolific parking offenders are being hunted down by the council for nearly £400,000 in unpaid tickets.

This amount, which has doubled in the last six months, has been generated by 10 motorists who have collected more than 2,400 parking tickets between them.

One white van driver who is the worst of the bunch, owes £42,660 in fines after racking up 264 tickets - none of which have been paid.

The council says it is eight per cent of drivers - about 5,000 - who are responsible for a quarter of all unpaid tickets issued in Westminster.

Transport boss Cllr Danny Chalkley said: "We are targeting a hardcore group of evaders who flout the law and simply refuse to pay their parking fines despite being sent reminders from the council. No-one likes getting a parking ticket but most motorists play fair and either pay the fine or follow the appeals process. We will pursue these persistent evaders to recover the money because often these vehicles are not properly licensed or display fake or stolen disabled blue badges."

Motorists who have three or more unpaid tickets and are spotted parking on Westminster's streets will have their cars towed and stored in one of the council's car pounds until they pay.