An emergency service which races to people's homes to fix gas and water leaks is paying thousands of pounds in parking tickets.

Brighton firm GlowZone Ltd has been taken to court after bailiffs made an application to have the company wound up for non-payment of fines.

The case has prompted calls for a change in the law to allow flexibility for workers whose jobs involve them having to find parking quickly in restricted areas.

GlowZone has been in dispute with Brighton and Hove City Council over parking tickets for more than three years.

Owner Mike Gurney said his eight call-out vans have received hundreds of tickets in the last few years.

He said parking restrictions made it impossible for his staff to do their jobs properly.

A dispute over 17 parking tickets ended in the High Court when bailiffs started insolvency proceedings against the company, of Beaconsfield Road, Brighton The company had its bank account frozen and the proceedings were only halted when Mr Gurney, 47, agreed to hand over thousands of pounds.

He said: "I can't believe the council actually took it that far over parking tickets. Talk about using a sledgehammer to crack a nut.

"In the end I paid the £5,000, which included court costs, because 13 people's jobs were at risk, two of them pregnant women."

He said he had been at loggerheads with parking wardens since NCP took over parking enforcement in 2001.

He said: "We provide an emergency service and mainly deal with gas leaks and water leaks. That means we need to get there straight away and it's essential to park nearby because we need to use tools from the van.

"If we go in and find a water pipe has burst we need to get tools straight away, not walk half a mile to the van."

He said the council had suggested downsizing the company and using fewer vehicles.

Mr Gurney said: "That would mean making people redundant and losing money which would send the company under.

"I have eight vans going on jobs at short notice.

"Before NCP we had an understanding where we would leave a notice in the van window with the address of where we were and the warden could knock on the door and ask them to move if need be.

"It worked well but now the situation is impossible."

He said many wardens were reasonable and left his employees to do their job but a few enforced the law to the letter.

He said: "I'm all for parking restrictions. I want the roads clear so we can get on with our job. But they need to be imposed with a bit of common sense."

MP David Lepper said: "The safety of gas appliances is important work.

"I would like the council to think about whether more flexibility could be allowed."

A council spokeswoman said: "Obviously it was never our intention for this company to go out of business but everyone in the city has to abide by the same parking restrictions.

"GlowZone was entitled to two or three traders' permits but they never applied."

The case was due back in court today when bailiffs will withdraw the insolvency action.