Now you see them, now you don't. These parking wardens were quick to scurry off after being snapped parked on double yellow lines in Surbiton on Monday morning.

But it seems they are a law unto themselves when it comes to no-go areas, and were perfectly entitled to park on the lines in Langley Road.

David Griffiths, of Penners Gardens, Surbiton, spotted them at 9.10am, parked dangerously close to a road junction.

A spokesman for Apcoa, which holds a contract with Kingston Council, said the mobile patrol was issuing a parking fine and therefore was allowed to park there.

He said: "They were just doing their job.

"If there was a safer place to park off double yellow lines then they would naturally have parked there.

"The only place they can't park is on zigzag lines."

Last week we reported how Apcoa sacked 28-year-old trainee parking warden Anthony Green Mr Green let a woman and her disabled husband off a parking ticket after they parked on double yellow lines in Victoria Road, Surbiton.

Mr Griffiths said: "I read about the parking warden who was sacked for a good deed in last week's Surrey Comet and was particularly interested in Apcoa's comment that if a police car had parked there they would have got a ticket too.

"It would seem that this same enthusiasm does not extend to their own vehicles. The Apcoa car was parked dangerously close to the road junction.

"There were two uniformed parking wardens inside the car and they hurried off after I took a picture of them on my mobile phone.

"It would appear in Kingston that there is one law for the general public and another law for the parking wardens."

The spokesman for APCOA added: "We get lots of calls from people telling us about wardens parking on double yellow lines it's their job and they are just doing what they do."

rclifford@london.newsquest.co.uk