A GRANDAD’s mobility vehicle was clamped – after parking wardens ticketed his blue badge car while he was in hospital.

Parking tickets were issued to 52-year-old Gary Calvert while he was in hospital recovering from a heart attack because his car was parked outside his home in Accrington Road in Blackburn.

This was despite his neigh-bour telling Blackburn with Darwen Council about his hospitalisation and that the car could not be moved. Under strict insurance rules for his mobility vehicle, nobody but Gary can drive the car, not even a police officer.

Now, after baliff firm Equita and the council were contacted by the Lancashire Telegraph, the clamp has been removed.

Gary, who suffers from Chronic Obstructive Pulmo-nary Disease, a lung disorder known as COPD, emphysema and has had two heart attacks, was given the tickets after numerous health emergencies led to a stay in hospital.

He tried but failed to challenge the tickets and the fines, now worth £2,625, have been passed to Equita, who clamped his car.

Under the parking scheme in Accrington Road, residents are only allowed to park at certain times. Usually Gary must move his car daily to the other side of the street. The retired bus dri-ver received his first parking tickets between April and June last year when taken into hospital suddenly six times for severe emphysema attacks.

He said: “It was impossible to contact parking services. I would call them up and it was all recorded messages until my credit was gone.”

Last month Gary had two heart attacks, spending a total of two weeks in hospital. Although a neighbour called the council to tell them of the problem, Gary was given even more tickets.

A spokesman for bailiff firm Equita said they would be happy to assist in any way possible. Blackburn with Darwen Council’s executive member for regeneration and environment Coun Alan Cottam said that they were considering cancelling the tickets, after seeing some proof of hospital visits.