The drawing frustrated motorist Steve Crowley used to overturn a parking ticket. Picture: Snapper Media

But a British has man managed to have his $174.50 parking fine overturned thanks to a hilarious stick man drawing.

Teacher Steve Crowley received a letter of demand in the post asking him to prove he had shopped at his local Lidl, a UK discount supermarket chain, after parking his car there.

Unable to find his receipt at the time, the 40-year-old dad decided to draw an image of his family’s shopping trip instead, and submitted it in an email.

The childlike sketch features himself as a stick man saying: “Hey kids! It’s approximately 12.30pm on 01.04.16! Time to go shopping!”

It even depicts a Lidl employee leaning against a wall “having a sneaky cigarette” when he should be “accurately inputting customer vehicle details into their computers”.

Amazingly, Athena ANPR Ltd, acting on behalf of Lidl, accepted it as good enough proof that he had shopped at the store and cancelled his fine.

They wrote: “Thank you for your email in regards to the above parking charge.

“We can confirm that the above parking charge has been cancelled.”

The Lidl car park in Yate Bristol. Picture: SWNS/Snapper MediaSource:Snapper Media

Mr Crowley had fallen foul of a new parking system introduced at his local supermarket in Yate, near Bristol, which had recently installed CCTV cameras in its car park.

Customers are offered 90 minutes of free parking, but anyone who does not visit the store is liable to a fine.

Shoppers must register their car numberplate details at the check-out, which Steve failed to do when he visited the store on April 1.

He received a letter the following week demanding that he pay $87.25 (£45) within 14 days or it would rise to $174.50 (£90).

Mr Crowley was convinced the fine was not legally enforceable, so he decided to submit the illustration as a tongue-in-cheek joke.

He submitted it claiming it “clearly proves (he) was shopping at Lidl at the time and date of the alleged offence”.

“It’s hilarious that they accepted it,” he said. “Their car parking policy isn’t about protecting Lidl customers — it’s about making money.”

The missing receipt. Picture: SWNS/Snapper MediaSource:Snapper Media

Those pesky parking rules. Picture: SWNS/Snapper MediaSource:Snapper Media

After he submitted the stick-drawing, Mr Crowley later found his receipt from his shopping trip.

Private firms in the UK cannot legally penalise drivers for misusing private land, but can impose a charge for potential losses or damages.

Failure to pay is not a criminal act but, though it is unlikely as it is so expensive, you can be taken to civil court and ordered to pay.

Australian consumer and legal experts say private carparks here also have no legal authority to fine customers, but will often use legal jargon such as “binding contracts” and “liquidated damages” and even chase consumers through the courts.

A Lidl spokeswoman said systems were in place in some stores to keep car parking spaces available for customers.

She said: “We encourage any genuine Lidl customers who have incorrectly received a parking charge notice to get in touch with us directly via our Customer Services hotline.

“Customers who have overstayed in one of our car parks should then just provide us with proof of purchase and we will appeal the charge on their behalf.

“Customers who have special requirements and may have difficulty with the parking restrictions in place, should also get in touch with our Customer Services team who will help find a solution to their car parking needs.”