ESTATE agent Jeff Nethaway is fuming after getting a parking penalty line call worthy of a John McEnroe tennis tantrum.

"They cannot be serious, it was on the line," said Mr Nethaway after Christchurch council traffic wardens spotted the wheel of his Mercedes was not INSIDE the markings of the parking bay in the town's Wick Lane car par park.

When Mr Nethaway, boss of the Bullock and Lees estate agents in Wick Lane, which pays £300 a year for a permit to use the car park, queried the unspecified excess charge notice town hall staff initially thought it was the work of pranksters.

But on Monday he received a letter from the council enclosing a photograph taken by the warden of the offending wheel on the line.

Now Mr Nethaway is appealing against the £60 excess charge notice.

He said: "I was not causing any obstruction to the adjoining spaces or the access. It is so, so petty as to be unbelievable."

"It is officialdom gone crazy. In any sport if the ball is on the line it is deemed to be in, not out."

And he claimed over zealous traffic wardens coupled with the steep increase in parking charges which took effect from April 1 was eroding goodwill between the council and the business community, shoppers and visitors.

After being contacted by the Daily Echo, council car park 'umpires' studied the photographs again and at first concluded the warden's line judgement was correct, but on closer scrutiny conceded Mr Nethaway may have had a point.

A council spokesperson said: "It does seem to be that in this instance the ticket may have been issued incorrectly.

"There are guidelines which parking attendants follow. We will look at these again and ensure that they are interpreting them as we intend them to.

"If the person concerned would like to come into the Civic Offices the matter will be dealt with."

First published: April 6