A McDonald's customer has been left fuming after being hit with £100 in fines for taking too long to eat his food in the car park.
Shapour Meftah had decided to meet his brother at the fast food restaurant but was left shocked when the trip became "the most expensive McDonald's" he's ever had.
He'd parked his car outside the McDonald's on Newmarket Road, in Cambridge after ordering "quite a bit of food" and thought nothing of it until he received two penalty notices through his letter box from a private parking company a few days later.
UK Parking Control claims that Shapour surpassed the 90-minute allocation for McDonald's customers at the car park.
They issued him with two fixed penalty notices for two visits on the evening of January 4 and January 6, 2023, respectively.
The charges came to a total of £100 and if Shapour doesn't pay them within a week then they'll go up to £100 each.
"It was parking from hell - the most expensive McDonald's I've ever had", Shapour told Cambridgeshire Live.
He added: "There's no sign inside McDonald's that says you have 90 minutes to sit down, eat and go. You don't want to rush your meal and we ordered quite a bit of food".
After receiving the fines, Shapour went back to the McDonald's to see if they could help, but they were unable to do anything.
He said: "There's no way you can get help from them. I tried talking to them and they said it was nothing to do with them.
"There's no way on earth they'll help you".
A representative from UK Parking Control explained the regulations at their car parks, they said: "We have parking restrictions in place at a number of our restaurants, with a time limit to ensure there is adequate parking for all of our customers."
They also disputed Shapour's claims, insisting that there was "ample signage".
They added: "Ample signage regarding these restrictions is clearly displayed both as you drive into the car park and on various lampposts within it.
"If a customer believes they have been issued a ticket incorrectly, they should appeal it as per the parking control company guidelines".
Sharpour has appealed for UK Parking Control to revoke the penalty notices.
The company said that the outcome of individual cases is left to the discretion of the parking control company.
