£75 fine for woman who painted disabled bay outside house

A couple living in Nottingham have taken to their own devices after facing a parking struggle on their street.

Elaine Bacon, 55, and her husband, Daniel, 44, were slapped with a £75 fine by the council for painting a makeshuft disabled bay on the road outside their house, Metro reports.

Elaine, who carries a blue badge allowing her to park in disabled bays, says she can only walk around 20 yards due to the spinal nerve damage she suffers from.

Elaine claims she often has to park far along the street leaving her to 'crawl back' to her house 'crying in pain'.

The couple say they had previously put up polite notices asking people to avoid parking directly outside their house but they had been ignored.

She told Metro: "It prevents me from doing everything, I am mostly wheelchair bound. If I go out I can't walk.

"I go with my husband and the wheelchair has always got to be with us."

Nottingham City Council responded to the issue, saying: "They have attempted to reserve themselves a space outside their home on Laurie Avenue by placing unauthorised markings on the road, resulting in a £75 fine.

"Only the highway authority is allowed to carry out such road markings, but in fact no longer provides advisory bays like this and the road may in any case be too narrow to safely accommodate one."

Elaine told the Nottingham Post that she was 'disgusted' by the decision but would not be fighting it and will just pay the fine.

She said: "What's the point? They will just get away with it anyway. I think I'll just pay it and that's it."