Dear editor, I RECENTLY parked my car in the Haverfordwest riverside multi storey car park and bought a ticket for a full days’ parking, even thoughmystay was likely to last no longer than four hours.

On my return to my car at about 1.15pm I was dismayed to find that there was a parking penalty charge of £50 on my windscreen. I immediately went to find one of the resident council staff who advised me that the ticket had been issued because I was parked on the wrong floor of the car park and I was advised to submit a written appeal. This has subsequently been turned down.

I feel that this is very sharp and unfair practice. I am a regular user of the car park as I work in a local charity shop.

I often park on the top floors when spaces permit but I have never once received any warning of this policy when parking on one of the lower levels. The information boards at each of the paypoints simply do not make it clear that car owners will be penalised for parking in the wrong place.

I have noticed that additional signs are now on display in the car park offering ‘telephone top up’ for those who overstay their parking time. I wonder whether those who might use this facility, having parked on a lower floor, will also fall foul of this policy by discovering that they have a parking fine for being parked in the wrong place at the wrong time.

I appreciate the need by Pembrokeshire County Council to manage parking places on the site, but car owners beware. With town centres in decline, I would have thought it important to have policies which welcome shoppers and others to the town by dealing with them in an even handed way.

As a minimum, the signage in this car park needs to be updated to warn others of the financial consequences of incorrect parking.

I for one will not be parking there again.

BERNARD GEORGE Hakin