By . Sophie Jane Evans . A council has admitted telling its traffic wardens ‘not to bother’ putting parking tickets on foreign cars. Parking chiefs at Sevenoaks District Council in Kent said they considered issuing tickets to illegally parked vehicles with foreign registration plates a ‘waste of resources. They claimed this is because it is 'impossible' for them to enforce penalty charges against the owners of such cars. Confession: Sevenoaks District Council (pictured) in Kent has admitted telling its traffic wardens 'not to bother' putting parking tickets on foreign cars. It said it was a 'waste of resources' issuing tickets to such vehicles . A council spokesman said: 'While . we strive to enforce all parking restrictions, the DVLA [Driving and Vehicle Licensing Agency] has explicitly . told council not to ask for vehicle keeper request for foreign . registered vehicles. 'In practice this makes it impossible to enforce penalty charges notices issued against the owners of these vehicles.' The council admitted its policy following a complaint from local shopkeeper Nick Lawrence, who runs Regal Shoe Repairs in Sevenoaks. Mr Lawrence said he and at least five other shopkeepers had contacted the council to report a car with Polish number plates which had illegally parked in the town centre. Difficulty: Parking chiefs claim it is 'impossible' for them to enforce penalty charges against the owners of foreign-registered vehicles (file picture) He claimed the dark blue Volkswagen Golf had been parked on double yellow lines for nearly a month - and was causing problems for delivery lorries attempting to get to the shops. He added that the car had not yet received a parking ticket, but a customer of his was given a £60 fine ‘within minutes’ after parking her UK-registered car behind the vehicle last week. 'Last Friday, one of my customers pulled up on double yellows behind the Polish car and ran into my shop for a couple of minutes,' he told the Sevenoaks Chronicle. 'When she went back she was being given a parking ticket. I was outraged - My customer was there for a few minutes and the Polish car had been parked illegally for weeks and weeks. 'It’s discrimination against British drivers and I think it’s absolutely unbelievable.' Today, a DVLA spokesman confirmed that there would be ‘no point’ in British councils contacting the government-run agency about foreign-registered cars - as it doesn’t hold any details about . them. The spokesman said that, by law, foreign vehicles must be registered with the DVLA after being in the . country for six months. If the owner of a car did not declare . the vehicle being in Britain by then, it would be 'a matter for the police to enforce’, she said. 'The DVLA will only have a record of a foreign-registered car if the owner contacts us after six months,' she said. 'They are entitled to be in the country for six months, but after they it must legally be registered with the DVLA.' Steve Farmer, 31, from Sevenoaks, condemned the policy towards foreign vehicles as a 'total joke'. 'The . [Polish] car has been a right pain for the past month - it had parked on double . yellows outside shops which need the space for early morning deliveries,' he said. Complaint: The council admitted its policy following a complaint from local shopkeeper Nick Lawrence. He said a Polish-registered Volkswagen Golf had been illegally parked for nearly a month without a ticket (file picture) 'It’s . a total joke that if you have a foreign car you can park where you like . and not get a ticket, but if you’re in a British car you get clobbered . within a minute of parking.' Today, the Volkswagen Golf 'suddenly vanished' after Mr Lawrence confronted the owner of the illegally parked vehicle. Mr Lawrence said: 'I saw the guy and had a word . in his ear and he moved the car. 'He . won’t be back again, but he’s probably parked on double yellows . somewhere else in town safe in the knowledge he won’t be getting a . parking ticket.' The Sevenoaks District Council spokesman said they know who . the owner is and have written to him. 'We have written to the owner informing him that he is not . permitted to park in this location and advised him that he has a legal . duty to register the vehicle with the DVLA once it has been in this . country for six months,' he said. It is estimated that there are between 30,000 and 40,000 foreign-registered cars on Britain’s roads illegally.
Sevenoaks Council in Kent told wardens not to put tickets on foreign cars .
Parking chiefs say it is 'impossible' to enforce penalty fines against owners .
Locals have branded the council's policy a 'total joke' and 'discrimination'
DVLA has confirmed there is 'no point' councils reporting foreign vehicles .
Claims it does not hold details about cars that are in UK under six months .
By . Sophie Jane Evans . A council has admitted telling its traffic wardens ‘not to bother’ putting parking tickets on foreign cars. Parking chiefs at Sevenoaks District Council in Kent said they considered issuing tickets to illegally parked vehicles with foreign registration plates a ‘waste of resources. They claimed this is because it is 'impossible' for them to enforce penalty charges against the owners of such cars. Confession: Sevenoaks District Council (pictured) in Kent has admitted telling its traffic wardens 'not to bother' putting parking tickets on foreign cars. It said it was a 'waste of resources' issuing tickets to such vehicles . A council spokesman said: 'While . we strive to enforce all parking restrictions, the DVLA [Driving and Vehicle Licensing Agency] has explicitly . told council not to ask for vehicle keeper request for foreign . registered vehicles. 'In practice this makes it impossible to enforce penalty charges notices issued against the owners of these vehicles.' The council admitted its policy following a complaint from local shopkeeper Nick Lawrence, who runs Regal Shoe Repairs in Sevenoaks. Mr Lawrence said he and at least five other shopkeepers had contacted the council to report a car with Polish number plates which had illegally parked in the town centre. Difficulty: Parking chiefs claim it is 'impossible' for them to enforce penalty charges against the owners of foreign-registered vehicles (file picture) He claimed the dark blue Volkswagen Golf had been parked on double yellow lines for nearly a month - and was causing problems for delivery lorries attempting to get to the shops. He added that the car had not yet received a parking ticket, but a customer of his was given a £60 fine ‘within minutes’ after parking her UK-registered car behind the vehicle last week. 'Last Friday, one of my customers pulled up on double yellows behind the Polish car and ran into my shop for a couple of minutes,' he told the Sevenoaks Chronicle. 'When she went back she was being given a parking ticket. I was outraged - My customer was there for a few minutes and the Polish car had been parked illegally for weeks and weeks. 'It’s discrimination against British drivers and I think it’s absolutely unbelievable.' Today, a DVLA spokesman confirmed that there would be ‘no point’ in British councils contacting the government-run agency about foreign-registered cars - as it doesn’t hold any details about . them. The spokesman said that, by law, foreign vehicles must be registered with the DVLA after being in the . country for six months. If the owner of a car did not declare . the vehicle being in Britain by then, it would be 'a matter for the police to enforce’, she said. 'The DVLA will only have a record of a foreign-registered car if the owner contacts us after six months,' she said. 'They are entitled to be in the country for six months, but after they it must legally be registered with the DVLA.' Steve Farmer, 31, from Sevenoaks, condemned the policy towards foreign vehicles as a 'total joke'. 'The . [Polish] car has been a right pain for the past month - it had parked on double . yellows outside shops which need the space for early morning deliveries,' he said. Complaint: The council admitted its policy following a complaint from local shopkeeper Nick Lawrence. He said a Polish-registered Volkswagen Golf had been illegally parked for nearly a month without a ticket (file picture) 'It’s . a total joke that if you have a foreign car you can park where you like . and not get a ticket, but if you’re in a British car you get clobbered . within a minute of parking.' Today, the Volkswagen Golf 'suddenly vanished' after Mr Lawrence confronted the owner of the illegally parked vehicle. Mr Lawrence said: 'I saw the guy and had a word . in his ear and he moved the car. 'He . won’t be back again, but he’s probably parked on double yellows . somewhere else in town safe in the knowledge he won’t be getting a . parking ticket.' The Sevenoaks District Council spokesman said they know who . the owner is and have written to him. 'We have written to the owner informing him that he is not . permitted to park in this location and advised him that he has a legal . duty to register the vehicle with the DVLA once it has been in this . country for six months,' he said. It is estimated that there are between 30,000 and 40,000 foreign-registered cars on Britain’s roads illegally.
telling its traffic wardens ‘not to bother’ putting parking tickets on foreign cars. Parking chiefs at Sevenoaks District Council in Kent said because it is 'impossible' for them to enforce 'impossible' for them to enforce penalty charges discrimination against British drivers and I DVLA spokesman confirmed that there would be ‘no point’ in British councils contacting the cars - as it doesn’t hold any details about . vehicles as a 'total joke'. 'The . [Polish] car