On a chilly December morning in 2025, the usually serene Grosvenor Square in London’s Mayfair district became the stage for a dramatic display of municipal muscle. A Saudi-registered Rolls Royce, worth a staggering £250,000, was hoisted onto a tow truck and carted several streets away, marking a new chapter in Westminster City Council’s escalating battle against supercar pavement parking. The move, which unfolded on December 10, was not only a spectacle for onlookers but also a pointed message to the wealthy visitors and residents who’ve made a habit of flouting local parking rules.
The catalyst for this high-profile crackdown? An avalanche of complaints from Mayfair locals. According to The Independent, residents had grown increasingly frustrated by the sight of luxury vehicles—Rolls Royces, Lamborghinis, Bentleys, and even classic Ferraris—clogging the footways outside the Chancery Rosewood hotel. The hotel, perched on the historic site of the former US Embassy, has long been a magnet for affluent guests, some of whom seem to consider the city’s parking laws merely optional.
“Those on foot shouldn’t have to run a gauntlet of illegally and selfishly parked supercars when trying to walk around Westminster,” declared Max Sullivan, Westminster’s cabinet member for streets, in a statement echoed by BBC News, The Daily Mail, and other outlets. “We will not tolerate dangerous pavement parking, whether it’s a Lime bike or a Lamborghini.” It’s a sentiment that’s resonated with many city dwellers, especially those forced to weave around hulking vehicles just to reach their destinations.
But why, after years of issuing penalty charge notices (PCNs), did the council finally resort to towing? The answer, as council spokespeople candidly admitted to BBC News, is that fines simply weren’t working. “The usual approach of issuing PCNs has proven to be ineffective. The vehicles are foreign registered—the ones we photographed have Saudi number plates—so the chances of recovering the costs are virtually nil. And the owners of the vehicles, which include Rolls Royce and Lamborghinis, are so wealthy that fines barely register.”
Indeed, the scale of the problem was on full display in recent weeks. Footage posted to YouTube and described by The Daily Mail showed a parade of high-end vehicles, including a yellow Lamborghini and a classic Jaguar E-Type, all parked on the pavement with tickets fluttering under their windscreen wipers. A Mercedes G-Wagen, valued at over £180,000, was also spotted outside the Chancery Rosewood, adding to the sense of opulence—and impunity—on the city’s streets.
For local authorities, the challenge is twofold. On one hand, there’s the practical difficulty of enforcing fines on foreign-registered vehicles. Both Westminster City Council and Transport for London employ private agencies to chase down payments from European-registered cars, but when it comes to vehicles from further afield, like Saudi Arabia, the process becomes nearly impossible. On the other hand, there’s the issue of sheer wealth. As one council spokesperson put it to The Independent, “the owners are so wealthy that fines barely register.”
It’s not just the Rolls Royce that’s been targeted. Other luxury cars, including Bentleys and Ferraris, were moved voluntarily by their owners after council officials intervened. The operation was methodical: first, approach the owners and ask them to move; if that failed, bring in the relocation vehicle. According to The Guardian, the blue Rolls Royce was the only one that needed to be physically towed, while others vacated their illegal spots without further incident. The council’s approach, it seems, is as much about deterrence as it is about enforcement.
The Chancery Rosewood hotel, for its part, has yet to comment publicly on the situation, despite repeated requests from multiple news organizations. The hotel’s most expensive room reportedly costs £20,000 a night, a figure that underscores just how exclusive—and lucrative—the clientele can be. For many residents, though, the issue isn’t about luxury or envy; it’s about fairness and safety. Pavement parking, especially by oversized vehicles, can create real hazards for pedestrians, particularly those with mobility issues or pushing prams.
This latest crackdown is part of a broader push across central London to rein in disruptive supercar behavior. In neighboring Kensington and Chelsea, for example, noise-detecting cameras have been installed to catch drivers revving their engines late at night—a common complaint in affluent districts where high-powered cars are as much about status as transportation. Fines for such disturbances can range from £100 to £1,000, a sum that, while significant for most, might still be little more than pocket change for the ultra-wealthy.
The council’s actions have sparked a lively debate about the effectiveness—and fairness—of current enforcement measures. Some argue that the city should go further, perhaps impounding vehicles or introducing even steeper penalties for repeat offenders. Others worry about the potential impact on tourism and business, especially given London’s reputation as a playground for the global elite. Still, for many residents, the sight of a gleaming Rolls Royce being towed away is a long-overdue assertion of local authority.
“We’ve been inundated with complaints,” a council spokesperson told The Guardian. “Residents are fed up with having their pavements blocked by people who think the rules don’t apply to them.” The message from the council is clear: no matter how expensive the car or how influential the owner, the rules are the rules.
As the dust settles on Grosvenor Square, it’s still unclear whether this high-profile tow will mark a turning point or simply a brief pause in the ongoing cat-and-mouse game between city officials and supercar owners. What is clear, however, is that Westminster City Council is prepared to raise the stakes—and the tow trucks—if necessary. For now, at least, pedestrians in Mayfair can breathe a little easier, knowing that the pavements are, once again, theirs to walk.
