MOTORISTS whose vehicles have been clamped while they used a sorting office in Egham have claimed there were no clear warning signs in the road.

In Hawthorn Road, off The Causeway, drivers who have parked to go and collect post from the Royal Mail sorting office have been clamped and fined up to £135.

None of the victims realised Hawthorn Road was an urban clearway, with no parking, and said signs indicating this and stating they were liable to be clamped were too few and hard to see.

Sophie Mills, 39, of Runnemede Road, Egham, went into the sorting office for five minutes and returned to see a clamp being put in place.

She said to the clamper: "How on earth are you clamping me, there aren’t any clear signs?"

And Ms Mills went on: "There’s three signs down the whole road and they are more than 200 words long.

“If something is a private road you would expect a clear sign at the entrance to say so.”

Susan Bloomfield, 53, of Hythe End Road, Wraysbury, was clamped just two days later. She was barely inside the sorting office before a stranger ran in and warned her she was about to get clamped.

Despite running outside and pleading with the clamper, from Slough-based Parking Control Management (UK) Ltd, she had to pay the £135 fine.

She said: “There was no double yellow lines and no signs where I parked. I said to him ‘Please don’t clamp me’ and he said ‘No, it’s too late’.

“I offered to move my car, he just pointed at a sign, but it was about 50 or 60 metres away and I could not see it.”

Dawn Fielder also witnessed panic at the sorting office as people realised their vehicles were being clamped.

“There was mass discussion at the doors with people running back and forth because a pensioner had just got clamped and couldn’t afford the £135 fine,” she said.

“I just feel sorry for everyone going down there because no-one realises it’s private and there’s nowhere else to park.”

Parking Control Management has been unavailable for comment.