A trader is fed up with parking restrictions he says have led to unfair penalty charges which make his working life almost impossible.

Robert Filby, who owns a building and decorating firm in Brighton, has received three parking tickets in a fortnight.

He says the tickets were issued while he was attending emergency jobs and he is asking Brighton and Hove City Council to disregard the fines.

Mr Filby, of Burnham Close, Woodingdean, said: "I have worked around Palmeira Square and Adelaide Crescent in Hove for the past 30 years and have found it increasingly difficult to carry out repairs and maintenance to the 150 flats I look after in the square due to parking restrictions.

"We used to have a flexible arrangement with Hove police. They used to let us park in the residents' parking bays as long as the residents did not need them.

"If they needed them then we would have to move but we never had to as there are usually about 30 per cent of the spaces free throughout the day.

"Since the council took over we really struggle to park.

"When you are doing maintenance work on a property you are never sure what tools you will need throughout the whole day. If you are not able to park directly outside but have to park far away you spend so much wasted time going backwards and forwards to your van. It is impossible to run a business like this and keep up a good standard of work.

"We are challenging some of the penalty notices we have received. On one occasion we were attending a faulty fire alarm in Adelaide Crescent which would not silence.

"On the second one, we were attending a burst lead pipe in a ground-floor flat in Palmeira Square. This was causing extensive damage."

A spokesman for Brighton and Hove City Council said: "Our priority with residents' parking bays is to make sure they are kept clear for residents. But we recognise there is an issue with parking for traders.

"There is a review of the controlled parking scheme going on and we have received a number of representations from traders asking for an improved and simpler system for which they are willing to pay.

"We have recently agreed to introduce traders' permits as a pilot scheme initially at £75 per quarter. This will enable trading permit holders to park in residents' bays for a two-hour period up to 4pm.

"Holders of the professional carers badge will be able to park in residents' bays for a maximum of one hour while attending clients.

"People who feel unjustly dealt with should contact us within 14 days. Payment of fines is suspended during the appeals process. Once a fine is paid we consider it the end of the matter.

"If people go through our appeals procedure and still feel unjustly dealt with, we can put them in touch with the National Adjudication Service."