Two C-charge fines end up in £1,000 bill

A surgeon who locked herself in her car in a bid to stop bailiffs taking it ended up owing more than £1,000 over two unpaid £5 congestion charges.

Ireny Salama, 30, barricaded herself in her Peugeot 206. But she was left in tears after the £695 she owed in fines and bailiffs' charges shot up to £1,167. She let her car be taken after police warned she would be arrested for breach of the peace.

Critics of the congestion charge say her case is a shocking example of how unpaid fines can spiral out of control.

But Transport for London said Ms Salama, who lives in Chelsea and works at Newham hospital, would have received eight warning letters.

Bailiffs from DKB Collections, working for TfL, knocked on her door just after 8am and demanded ?695. This included two £150 fines - the most TfL can levy over each unpaid congestion charge - £10 for court orders and £385 in bailiffs' charges.

When she said she could not pay, the bailiffs searched her home but could not find valuable items and clamped her car, valued at £3,000. She locked herself in and the bailiffs said their bill rose £100 for the first hour of the delay, and at a rate of £125 an hour after that. When Ms Salama ended her sit-in at 11.30am, it had hit £1,167.

The bailiff said: "I've tried to help but she's doing nobody any favours."

Speaking from the car, Ms Salama said when she had initially tried to pay one penalty ticket the call centre could not decipher her credit card number. A single unpaid £5 levy leads to a £50 fine, which rises to £100 in a fortnight, and £150 in a month.

Tory London Assembly member Angie Bray said: "My office has been flooded with people in similar situations. It has to change."