A TEENAGER gave a clamping company a taste of its own medicine when she locked herself inside their van on Monday.

Sophie Sweet, 18, and her mum, Emma, 34, had returned to the scene of what they believe was an unfair clamping – like so many others – at the Male’s Budgens’ car park in St Ives and took their revenge.

Emma of Oldman Avenue, Warboys, stopped in the Budgens staff car park on Oliver Road on Monday morning to allow her husband, Patrick, 29, to go to the toilet next to the bus station.

Patrick, who has a medical condition which means he has to go to the toilet unexpectedly. As he returned, the clampers put a ticket on their car, despite Emma leaving the engine on.

Emma and Sophie returned the same day to St Ives with the intention of taking photographs to dispute the ticket when her daughter took advantage of opportunity.

Emma said: “Before we were able to tell the other drivers they risked being clamped, the men were out of the van and just as quick Sophie had jumped in the van and locked herself in.”

Sophie added: “I would never have dreamed of doing something like this, my mum just told me to do it and I just did.”

Cambridgeshire police were called to the incident. A spokesman said: “No crimes were committed and those involved have been advised this is a civil dispute.”

Budgens owner Steve Male said despite the press coverage, people continued to park in the staff car park and the clampers would be there periodically until it was sorted or a barrier was reinstated by the site’s landlord.