Confused drivers have been hit with fines - because a parking sign was missing a full stop.
Motorists have been left scratching their heads after the signs appeared in Ludlow, Shropshire, reading: "No Parking Enforcement In Operation."
Residents living in the quaint market town have taken the notice to mean they are allowed to pull up at the car park in Castle Square.
But the poorly punctuated sign was intended to inform motorists there's actually no parking and enforcement was in effect under Covid-19 measures.
As a result, fines have been dished out to people who have wrongly interpreted the warning - despite it being a grammatical error.
Lib Dem Councillor Andy Boddington, who represents Ludlow North, said: "The sign should have read 'No parking. Enforcement in operation'.
"For want of a full stop, a message was lost and parking fines were issued. It was obviously confusing.
"I would encourage anybody who's got parking tickets to challenge it. I think it was just put up in a hurry.
"We are dealing with Covid-19, we're a very small town with very narrow streets and we're trying to clear up enough space for traders to work.
"We have market stalls and other things and we're trying to free up space throughout the town centre.
"The whole operation was literally done in days and you make mistakes when you do things in days."
Local resident Angela Rennie, 39, a mum-of-three, said she had read the sign to mean parking restrictions had been relaxed during the coronavirus pandemic.
She said: "I've actually parked there, but luckily I wasn't fined. If I had been though, I would have fought it all the way.
"As it stands, that sign means you can park there surely.
"It's their error and it just shows how a simple full stop can completely change the meaning of a message.
"You've got to laugh really, but I bet those who have been fined aren't joking about it. Hopefully they won't have to pay."
Student Paul Graney, 20, from Ludlow, added: "It's extremely misleading and shows how important punctuation is. It's quite farcical to be honest, they need to sort it out."
Other residents took to social media to mock the sign, after it emerged at least four people had been fined for parking there.
Andrew Cadwallader said: "The same council responsible for the dire roads at the start of the year, removing recycling points across the county to save money and disastrously taking leisure back 'in house'.
"They can't even punctuate a sentence."
Sharron Jones put: "This will be done by the same guy who paid £1000 a day for someone to tell him the county has potholes."
Max Stevens wrote: "I remember the days when a basic understanding of the English language was a requirement when applying for a job where you would be needed to use it."
Shropshire Council said a full stop had now been included on the existing notice and corrected signs will also be erected.
