A CONTROVESRIAL car parking company has been criticised after hundreds of motorists were unfairly issued with tickets.

Drivers have been slapped with £75 fines for simply turning round, stopping or even parking legitimately in a Ferndown pub car park.

One van driver is thought to have received 28 tickets and a hairdresser was landed with 42 tickets.

The row erupted at the White Heather on Ringwood Road after landlady Christine Shade brought in NuPark Car Parks Ltd because people were parking there even though they weren't visiting the pub.

Tickets are being posted to the owner of any vehicle caught on camera crossing into the car park, unless the owner has signed in their registration number at the bar.

NuPark uses automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) technology to record number plates and pays the DVLA a fee for driver details.

The firm was previously the subject of an early day motion in the House of Commons, by MP Gordon Prentice, who complained about it using "threatening terms against unsuspecting motorists".

Since the system was brought in, Mrs Shade has cancelled 332 tickets where customers had forgotten to mention their car was in the car park or had not understood the new rules.

"Come and speak to us if you think you have got a problem and you don't think you deserve the ticket," she said.

Mrs Shade said the pub was now offering a bottle of whisky for the person issued the most tickets, and handing out free coffee and cake to customers waiting there to query parking tickets.

Landlord William Shade said they were getting £20 from NuPark for each ticket, which was being donated to charity, including the Wessex Autistic Society and Julia's House.

Matthew Brough, who runs NuPark Car Parks Ltd, told the Echo: "At the White Heather we could not make it more obvious with the signs.

"The cameras are painted bright yellow. There are numerous warning signs."

He said members of staff have been at the pub to meet complainants face to face and cancel tickets.

Lesley Sheppard, 50, of Gaunts Common, got a ticket for pulling into the car park momentarily while looking for the Red Cross.

She said: "I can understand their problem with nuisance parking in Ferndown but I didn't stop the engine, I didn't get out of my car."

One man, whose wife was fined for crossing the car park en route to the petrol station urged people not to pay. He said: "A judge is going to say How are you going to justify £75 for turning around in a car park?' "I wouldn't want anyone parking in my car park, taking up valuable space, but the way this is being used is completely wrong."