By . Lizzie Edmonds . PUBLISHED: . 03:51 EST, 20 September 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 10:08 EST, 21 September 2013 . A Motorist was hit with a £70 parking fine after pulling over for just seven seconds to drop off his elderly mother-in-law. Ian Hardman, 58, fell foul of a council-run spy car when he stopped in an empty taxi rank to let 82-year-old Audrey Harrison out. He later received a letter from Bolton council, giving him 28 days to pay the fine – which works out as £10 for every second of his good deed. Stopped: Mr Hardman's car is pictured pulling over on Bolton high street at 14.22.28 . Driving off: In this next picture, the driver is about to pull away in his car at 14.22.35 . Close-up: The images were taken by a council 'spy car' parked a few metres away . The council-run car recorded the moment Mr Hardman stopped his Ford Focus at the side of the road that afternoon at 14.22 and 28 seconds. It then took a second snap of Mrs Harrison getting out of the car at 14.22 and 33 seconds before grabbing a third photo as her son-in-law was driving away at 14.22 and 35 seconds. The retired firefighter received a four-page letter from Bolton Council saying he was guilty of ‘parking contravention’ and was given 28 days to pay the fine. The council refused his appeal, warning that parking for just a few seconds could have prevented a cab driver from picking up a fare. If he had parked just yards further up the road in a loading bay, he would have avoided the penalty notice. Pay up: Mr Hardman received a letter  from Bolton Council saying he was guilty of a 'parking contravention' Today . Mr Hardman joined other drivers who also fell foul of the spy car by . complaining to Bolton Council claiming motorists were being targeted as . 'cash cows'. Mr Hardman, who . is a blue badge holder and registered disabled due to a spinal injury . he suffered when in the fire service, said he had never been given a . parking ticket before. He said: 'People talk about the death of the British high street and it’s hardly surprising when the people in authority allow this sort of thing to happen. Penalty charge: The driver thought this letter he received from Bolton council 'was a joke' 'It just puts you off going into town for fear of being spied on by these council snoopers. 'When the fine came through the post my first reaction was just to be very angry. I have never been in trouble in my life and never even had a parking ticket. 'I thought it was a joke. I could have just pulled over on the road but I thought I did the right thing by getting off the road and not causing an obstruction to other traffic. 'The taxi rank was empty anyway it was two in the afternoon, not in the rush hour or peak time and there was not a soul waiting for a cab. 'I didn’t even turn my engine off. How can you get a parking fine when you haven’t even parked up? It has all been a big shock. It took me a while to realise what the offence was and when I did I burst out laughing. 'The council must be very hard-up if they’re charging people for seven seconds. It is just ridiculous - whoever has seen this and then sent it out ought to be demoted. 'Our town centre is dead now, full of charity shops and empty buildings and it’s no wonder. Shoppers don’t want to come here any more because of these jobsworths.' Local shopkeepers near the layby in Knowsley Street said Bolton Council’s camera car, which films from inside a small Toyota IQ car, has been located at the layby for weeks trying to catch out motorists. One driver complained after pulling up for 12 seconds to drop off his wife and daughter in the same area. Ilyas Dajkatar, who runs Royal Cafe in Knowsley Street, said: 'Lots and lots of drivers, more than 100, have been caught. 'I got a ticket when I popped into the . shop with a small delivery a couple of weeks ago. I can’t believe that . they are trying to catch people out like this. 'When . I got my fine I had been stopped for less than 20 seconds. I think it . is affecting business. When people are so worried about parking then it . puts them off coming into town.' 'Spy car': The vehicles, which are fitted with CCTV cameras, have been called council 'cash cows' by critics . The council said parking and stopping, for any time, in taxi ranks contravenes the Highway Code. A Bolton Council spokesman said: 'The taxi rank is reserved for the use of Hackney Carriage drivers only and no other vehicles are permitted to stop there. 'We acknowledge this driver may feel that the fine is unfair because he was there for only a short period of time. However, the taxi rank is clearly signed and stopping in the rank, even for a few seconds, could prevent a taxi from parking and picking up a fare.' Today, figures released by car . insurance company LV showed that motorists are being stung by almost . 900,000 parking fines a month at a cost of £30million. This is an increase of 4 per cent on the previous year. The . figures also showed that tickets issued on Sundays have increased by 13 . per cent – with nearly 300,000 tickets issued on that day of the week . in the first five months of 2013. The AA have said that traffic wardens often target Sunday church-goers and choristers. Mr Hardman is just one of a string of drivers hit with fines from the so-called 'CCTV cars'. The camera cars were originally introduced to provide traffic safety outside schools, but have been increasingly used to capture motorists who park illegally - even for a few seconds. There have been reports of drivers who didn't even stop their vehicles being fined. In May, a London council was accused of ordering the 'spy' cars to hit minimum targets for issuing penalty notices - despite the practice being illegal. The alleged policy, carried out on behalf of Haringey Council in north London, was revealed in a series of leaked emails and showed that the cars were told to issue at least 260 fines a day. The council denied imposing a 87,360 per year quota for fines. In March, the Communities Secretary . Eric Pickles said he wanted to put an end to the 'over-zealous culture . of parking enforcement'. He said that shoppers visiting the high street should no longer be hit with fines for stopping at the local shop for 10 minutes.
Ian Hardman, 58, stopped in a taxi rank in Bolton, Greater Manchester .
'Spy car' photographed him pulling over on high street for seven seconds .
He received four-page letter from Bolton council saying he was guilty of 'parking contravention' and had to pay £70 within 28 days .
Nearby shopkeepers say 'cash cow' car has caught out hundreds .
'I thought it was a joke. I was very angry,' retired fireman says .
By . Lizzie Edmonds . PUBLISHED: . 03:51 EST, 20 September 2013 . | . UPDATED: . 10:08 EST, 21 September 2013 . A Motorist was hit with a £70 parking fine after pulling over for just seven seconds to drop off his elderly mother-in-law. Ian Hardman, 58, fell foul of a council-run spy car when he stopped in an empty taxi rank to let 82-year-old Audrey Harrison out. He later received a letter from Bolton council, giving him 28 days to pay the fine – which works out as £10 for every second of his good deed. Stopped: Mr Hardman's car is pictured pulling over on Bolton high street at 14.22.28 . Driving off: In this next picture, the driver is about to pull away in his car at 14.22.35 . Close-up: The images were taken by a council 'spy car' parked a few metres away . The council-run car recorded the moment Mr Hardman stopped his Ford Focus at the side of the road that afternoon at 14.22 and 28 seconds. It then took a second snap of Mrs Harrison getting out of the car at 14.22 and 33 seconds before grabbing a third photo as her son-in-law was driving away at 14.22 and 35 seconds. The retired firefighter received a four-page letter from Bolton Council saying he was guilty of ‘parking contravention’ and was given 28 days to pay the fine. The council refused his appeal, warning that parking for just a few seconds could have prevented a cab driver from picking up a fare. If he had parked just yards further up the road in a loading bay, he would have avoided the penalty notice. Pay up: Mr Hardman received a letter from Bolton Council saying he was guilty of a 'parking contravention' Today . Mr Hardman joined other drivers who also fell foul of the spy car by . complaining to Bolton Council claiming motorists were being targeted as . 'cash cows'. Mr Hardman, who . is a blue badge holder and registered disabled due to a spinal injury . he suffered when in the fire service, said he had never been given a . parking ticket before. He said: 'People talk about the death of the British high street and it’s hardly surprising when the people in authority allow this sort of thing to happen. Penalty charge: The driver thought this letter he received from Bolton council 'was a joke' 'It just puts you off going into town for fear of being spied on by these council snoopers. 'When the fine came through the post my first reaction was just to be very angry. I have never been in trouble in my life and never even had a parking ticket. 'I thought it was a joke. I could have just pulled over on the road but I thought I did the right thing by getting off the road and not causing an obstruction to other traffic. 'The taxi rank was empty anyway it was two in the afternoon, not in the rush hour or peak time and there was not a soul waiting for a cab. 'I didn’t even turn my engine off. How can you get a parking fine when you haven’t even parked up? It has all been a big shock. It took me a while to realise what the offence was and when I did I burst out laughing. 'The council must be very hard-up if they’re charging people for seven seconds. It is just ridiculous - whoever has seen this and then sent it out ought to be demoted. 'Our town centre is dead now, full of charity shops and empty buildings and it’s no wonder. Shoppers don’t want to come here any more because of these jobsworths.' Local shopkeepers near the layby in Knowsley Street said Bolton Council’s camera car, which films from inside a small Toyota IQ car, has been located at the layby for weeks trying to catch out motorists. One driver complained after pulling up for 12 seconds to drop off his wife and daughter in the same area. Ilyas Dajkatar, who runs Royal Cafe in Knowsley Street, said: 'Lots and lots of drivers, more than 100, have been caught. 'I got a ticket when I popped into the . shop with a small delivery a couple of weeks ago. I can’t believe that . they are trying to catch people out like this. 'When . I got my fine I had been stopped for less than 20 seconds. I think it . is affecting business. When people are so worried about parking then it . puts them off coming into town.' 'Spy car': The vehicles, which are fitted with CCTV cameras, have been called council 'cash cows' by critics . The council said parking and stopping, for any time, in taxi ranks contravenes the Highway Code. A Bolton Council spokesman said: 'The taxi rank is reserved for the use of Hackney Carriage drivers only and no other vehicles are permitted to stop there. 'We acknowledge this driver may feel that the fine is unfair because he was there for only a short period of time. However, the taxi rank is clearly signed and stopping in the rank, even for a few seconds, could prevent a taxi from parking and picking up a fare.' Today, figures released by car . insurance company LV showed that motorists are being stung by almost . 900,000 parking fines a month at a cost of £30million. This is an increase of 4 per cent on the previous year. The . figures also showed that tickets issued on Sundays have increased by 13 . per cent – with nearly 300,000 tickets issued on that day of the week . in the first five months of 2013. The AA have said that traffic wardens often target Sunday church-goers and choristers. Mr Hardman is just one of a string of drivers hit with fines from the so-called 'CCTV cars'. The camera cars were originally introduced to provide traffic safety outside schools, but have been increasingly used to capture motorists who park illegally - even for a few seconds. There have been reports of drivers who didn't even stop their vehicles being fined. In May, a London council was accused of ordering the 'spy' cars to hit minimum targets for issuing penalty notices - despite the practice being illegal. The alleged policy, carried out on behalf of Haringey Council in north London, was revealed in a series of leaked emails and showed that the cars were told to issue at least 260 fines a day. The council denied imposing a 87,360 per year quota for fines. In March, the Communities Secretary . Eric Pickles said he wanted to put an end to the 'over-zealous culture . of parking enforcement'. He said that shoppers visiting the high street should no longer be hit with fines for stopping at the local shop for 10 minutes.
Ian Hardman, 58, fell foul of a council-run spy car when he stopped in an empty taxi rank to let received a letter from Bolton council, giving him Hardman's car is pictured pulling over on Bolton firefighter received a four-page letter from Bolton Council saying he was guilty of ‘parking contravention’ and was given 28 days to pay the parking ticket. 'I thought it was a joke. I could He said that shoppers visiting the high street