An Aberystwyth woman wrongly threatened with a £100 fine after parking at Llangrannog Beach’s controversial car park was the victim of a computer error, it has been claimed.

Terina Kidby and her husband, John, had left the car park with half an hour remaining on their ticket.

But the couple were shocked to subsequently receive a £100 fine letter in the post.

It stated they had either paid an insufficient fee or their ticket had not been displayed.

Fortunately Mr and Mrs Kidby were able to prove their innocence by finding the ticket was still in their vehicle – three weeks after the event.

They subsequently advised fellow motorists to keep hold of their tickets if using the car park, which has sparked a string of complaints.

A spokesperson for national firm One Parking Solution, which manages the car park, said: “This particular PCN was issued in error. However, at the time it was unforeseen as there was a delay in the data coming into our servers from the pay-and-display machine.

“The driver did appeal and this was approved and confirmed in writing sent to the driver via email.

“I apologise for any inconvenience caused, however, as stated above it was unforeseen and the reality is sometimes all the wonderful technology we have in the world does on rare occasions have delays.”

See this week’s south papers for the full story, available in shops and as a digital edition tomorrow