Police are constantly having to remove luxury cars: Owners are too rich to care about the fines

There’s a cluster of people standing on the pavement at Grosvenor Square in London. Some are filming. Others are shaking their heads.

Moments later, a crane arm slides over the edge of the road and a luxury car is lifted up as if it were any other item being delivered.

In December, Westminster City Council ran a targeted campaign in neighborhoods such as Knightsbridge and Mayfair, where large cars often take up a lot of space on the streets.

The cars haven’t just taken up space. They’ve also been blocking pedestrians, as many of them have been parked on the sidewalk or very close to hotel entrances.

Local authorities point out that it is a real challenge that the fines are simply not being paid.

A spokesperson calls it “unacceptable” that some drivers behave as if the rules don’t apply to them.

At the same time, the municipality says it receives many complaints about “selfishly parked” supercars that make it difficult to get around on foot.

When a fine feels like nothing

The problem gets worse when the license plate comes from abroad. According to Driving.ca, the story has attracted extra attention because the authorities often have trouble collecting fines when the cars are registered in another country.

In London, a Rolls-Royce with foreign plates was removed after an inspection revealed a very large fine, and the council moved the car several blocks away with a tow truck.

It costs around £75 an hour to park at the hotel, but that price is clearly too high to pay, even if you’re driving a £2.1 million car.

These are the kind of owners that the council believes respond differently to sanctions.

– “People on foot should not be forced through an obstacle course of illegally and selfishly parked supercars as they walk around Westminster,” says Max Sullivan, the council’s streets manager,

He also emphasizes that the municipality will not tolerate dangerous parking, whether it’s a small rental bike or a Lamborghini.

Vienna, the balcony and the limit of patience

Elsewhere in Europe, a young man has found an alternative solution to his parking problem.

In Vienna, a 28-year-old entrepreneur ended up removing a Ferrari 296 GTB from the balcony of his high-rise apartment after having the car lifted by crane.

He called it an “art installation” and talked about a glass booth, but the local authorities pointed to fire regulations and building safety, and after about a week the car was taken down again.

However, it’s rare to see an owner of a Toyota Aygo who forgets to set the parking disk.

A fine just hits some harder than others.