Toronto woman wrongly given parking tickets for putting ‘for sale’ sign in car

Barbara Bell says municipal staff did not tell her that as a parking permit holder, she was not subject to a bylaw against advertising cars parked on city streets for sale.

Thestar.com
May 11, 2017
By Peter Goffin

Barbara Bell didn’t break any bylaws when she put a “for sale” sign in her car, but Toronto parking enforcement has issued her two tickets. And calls to city staff have done nothing to help, Bell says.

Bell lives in a building downtown and does not have a driveway. For nearly 30 years, she’s had a city permit to park on the street.

So she was shocked recently when she found a yellow ticket on the windshield of her Volkswagen.

The Toronto Municipal Code says no one may “park any vehicle … for the purpose of displaying the vehicle for sale” on a public highway, street, avenue or any other thoroughfare intended for use by the general public.

Bell had allegedly violated the bylaw, punishable by a fine of $15, by putting “for sale” signs in her car.

But the municipal code states that, “despite any other bylaw, where a valid permit is properly displayed on a vehicle on a road, the vehicle shall be permitted to display a ‘for sale’ sign.”

City spokesperson Steve Johnston confirmed to the Star that people with overnight parking permits - like the one Bell has - are not subject to the bylaw against displaying “for sale” signs.

After receiving the first ticket, Bell had a feeling her parking permit would allow her to keep the signs. After all, she’d done the same with one of her previous cars 11 years ago, without any trouble.

“I’m not parking there solely for the purpose of selling it,” she said. “It’s where I park my car. I have a street permit to do so.”

But when she called the city to ask about exemptions for permit holders, staff told her that parking enforcement was right to give her a ticket, she said.

“I phoned the number that was on my parking ticket and … they gave me another phone number (at which staff) basically said, ‘Yup, that’s the law.’”

When she got a second ticket, she pulled the “for sale” signs out of her car and replaced them with sheets containing the price of the car, her number, and other relevant details.

“I understand them being concerned about people selling a used car where they park a car nowhere near where they live,” Bell said. “But, I’m parking my car in front of the building that I live in.”

Johnston was unable to provide more information Thursday on what steps Bell could take in order to have the tickets expunged.