A pensioner received a ticket for parking in a spot he had used for the last 30 years and then wrongly had it overturned.

Mick Carter bought his house in Plains Avenue, Maidstone, 35 years ago.

Five years later a speed ramp was constructed outside his home - one of four in the road.

Ever since, he has parked on the speed ramp without issue - until last week.

He received a letter through the post advising him that he had been issued with a £70 penalty for parking in a “special enforcement area on part of a carriageway raised to meet the level of a footway, cycle track or verge.”

He said: “I couldn’t believe it. There are no yellow lines on the road, no parking restrictions, no notices to say you can’t park there.

“The ramp doesn’t have those dimpled paving slabs to tell blind people that it’s a crossing place."

There is a white line that runs along the pavement - which is legal to park on - and Mr Carter says he always makes sure his Ford Kuga is not on the pavement to avoid interfering with pedestrians.

He continued: “Why have I got a ticket? Everybody parks on the ramps when necessary. Parking can be difficult here.

“I went down the road and knocked on the houses at either end of the other speed ramps to see if anyone else has had a ticket, but no one has, just me."

The 70-year-old said he did not have a notice on his window but came back from his holiday in Wales to a letter.

Mr Carter does have a two-space parking area in front of his house - that is taken up by the family’s caravan and second vehicle.

The retired locksmith appealed the penalty and this week was told it had been incorrectly issued.

He received an email from the Civil Enforcment Team stating: “We agree that the penalty was incorrectly issued and I’m sorry for our mistake and any inconvenience caused.”

A delighted Mr Carter said: “It was pretty stressful. As I said, I park there all the time, so I didn’t know if a load more penalty charges were going to arrive.

“It did seem to contradict everything that I had read on the internet.

“I’d still like to know how I was issued with the ticket in the first place.

“Since there are no yellow lines in Plains Avenue, there would appear to be no reason for a parking officer to come here.”

However, when KentOnline contacted Maidstone Borough Council they said this decision was wrong.

A spokesman said: “The initial penalty charge notice was issued correctly.

“When the driver appealed against it, the appeals officer made the decision to waive the notice with a warning.

“However, an error by the appeals officer meant the incorrect notice letter was issued, which has led to confusion around the case. MBC apologies for any confusion caused.”

The council explained that Mr Carter lives in a Special Enforcement Area.

It said that both where the level of the footway or verge had been dropped to the level of the carriageway and also where the carriageway had been raised to the level of the footpath or verge it “assists pedestrians crossing a road, cyclists entering or leaving the carriageway and vehicles crossing a footway, cycle track or verge in order to access off-road parking.”

To obstruct that access was an offence under Section 86 of the Traffic Management Act for which a penalty charge may be issued if the offence occurs within a “Special Enforcement Area.”

The contravention requires no signage or road lining.

So what is a Special Enforcement Area?

A Special Enforcement Area is the new name given under the Traffic Management Act 2004 to what had been declared Special Parking Areas under the earlier 1997 Road Traffic Act. Any Special Parking Areas declared under that Act automatically become Special Enforcement Areas today.

In 1999, Maidstone council made an order declaring virtually the whole of the urban centre of Maidstone to be a Special Parking Area.

It stretches out to (but does not include) Otham, Thurnham, Boxley and East Farleigh.

However, Fant, Tovil, Shepway, Bearsted, Loose, Sandling and Allington are included.

The legislation suggests that anyone who parks in front of somebody’s dropped kerb, or on a section where the road has been raised to the level of the pavement within the area, is risking a £70 fine.

There are some exceptions to the rule - for emergency services, loading and unloading, and if the vehicle is prevented from proceeding due to circumstances beyond the control of the driver.

The full area covered can be viewed here.

A precise definition of the boundary of the area street by street can be found here.

Maidstone council has previously been criticised for over-zealousness after issuing 32 parking tickets to motorists attending a Remembrance Day service,

In the financial year 2022/23, Maidstone collected £3.172m from parking charges or parking fines.

It was the fifth-highest total out of the county’s 13 local authority districts (including Medway).