Motorists surprised by complimentary parking tickets

Last week one woman phoned a radio show to tell of her experience. Thinking the yellow enveloped meant she was being fined, she tore it open to find a message informing her that she "had parked beautifully and returned within her allotted time", and advising her that she "should now smile."

The tickets are being left by 25-year-old landscape architect Will Sandy, operating as the Fine Parking Company.

"I got a few tickets myself and was furious, so I thought I'd do something that would cause some chuckles for others," he said. "I discovered that Westminster invented the parking ticket so I thought I'd start there."

He said he has received a lot of positive feedback about what he is doing, and that one woman wrote it had made her heart sing when she read the notice.

"I always wear a high-visibility jacket, which means people ignore you, especially in the centre of town, he said. Even traffic wardens have seen my tickets and left them in situ. This confirms to me that it's all about revenue rather than traffic violation."

Sandy added that he gets pretty upset by the bullish methods of bureaucracy that assail us on a daily basis everywhere, including the traffic wardens, and he hopes his notices will help restore faith in human nature.