Families were left stunned by a traffic warden's lack of festive spirit after he issued a parking ticket to Gary the Rabbit and his Christmas bus.
The Stagecoach Santa coach was being used as a grotto when it fell foul of parking restrictions near a library in Exeter on Saturday (November 16).
The driver of the bus, who was dressed as a giant rabbit, pleaded with the warden who remained unmoved.
One mum said he was even forced to remove his bunny head in front of the children as the Penalty Charge Notice was slapped on the festive bus.
"He tried to explain that it's a planned event but the parking officer kept saying that he's just doing his job," Gosia Bartram said.
"I was there with my little boy.
"The bus outside library was turned into a grotto. The driver is the one dressed as a bunny.
"They also made the driver dressed as a bunny take the head off in front of the children."
Devon County Council said no efforts had been made to contact them in advance of the event, and 'suitable parking arrangements could have been made' had they done so.
A spokesperson said: “One of our parking enforcement officers issued a penalty charge notice (PCN) to a bus parked in an area of Rougemont Place, outside the library, where parking is not permitted.
"Unfortunately, we hadn’t received notification of this event in advance, otherwise suitable parking arrangements could have been made for the vehicle.”
The Stagecoach Santa bus is heading to Barnstaple Carnival on Thursday (November 28) and Children's Hospice South West on Thursday (December 12).
Stagecoach have been contacted for comment.
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