Litter fine for ticketed motorist

If a parking fine is paid promptly a driver receives a 50% discount

A driver booked for illegal parking has been handed a second fine for littering after dropping his ticket on the floor.

Carmarthenshire Council said the unnamed driver was handed the £60 fixed penalty parking ticket in Llandovery.

He tried to hand it back to a parking attendant, but dropped it and refused to pick it up, before driving off.

The council gave him a £75 litter fine after tracing him from his licence plate, and said if he did not pay both, he would go to court.

The authority said it hoped the case would act as a deterrent.

It said if the driver had paid the parking ticket within 14 days he would have received a 50% discount, so it would have cost him only £30.

The combined total for the two fines now stands at £135 and the council said if either were not paid it would pursue the matter through the courts.

Council executive board member Pam Palmer said: "Dropping litter is against the law.

"This will not be tolerated and the culprits will face hefty fines."

If he fails to pay the parking ticket within 28 days, the penalty increases to £90, or more if it has to be pursued through the court.

He has 14 days to pay the litter fine or faces prosecution in the magistrates' court and a maximum penalty of up to £2,500.