A PENSIONER has appeared on a documentary after going through “parking hell”.

Alan Toussaint received eight parking fines while shopping at the Co-op in Old Heath, Colchester, from the security firm paid to monitor its car park.

Initially store bosses agreed to rip up the fines and told Mr Toussaint he did not have to pay as he was such a good customer but in October bailiffs began chasing Mr Toussaint, 70, for payment of £160.

Mr Toussaint, of Rowhedge, said he would only give the money to Colchester Children’s Charity appeal instead of National Parking Enforcement Ltd.

He received five further letters threatening court action. He said the parking company has now cleared all the fines having battled for so long with him but Mr Toussaint is not giving up.

He appeared on a Channel 5 documentary called Britain’s Parking Hell to warn others of the parking situation.

He said: “They got wind of what was going on and they contacted me, saying they wanted to come down and make a documentary.

“They brought a whole production team down from Bristol and we filmed inside and outside the Co-op, which did not amuse them at all. In the end the parking company got tired and wavered the tickets but I’m going to make their lives hell.”

Tomorrow he will be staging a protest outside the Co-op.

He said: “We will all be sitting in wheelchairs with placards warning people. “I really feel quite passionately about this, they must stop persecuting people.”

The documentary is available to watch at www.my5.tv.

National Parking Enforcement Ltd confirmed Mr Toussaint’s outstanding fines are being cancelled.

The Co-op has declined the Gazette’s requests for comment on this matter.