Young millionaire boasts he sees double yellow lines as 'VIP parking spots'
A young millionaire has caused outrage on TikTok by revealing that he choses to park on double yellow lines, which he thinks of as 'VIP parking'.
Luke Desmaris, 27, claims to have a monthly salary of more than £100k through stock trading, and therefore doesn't mind the fines after he adopted a time is money policy when it comes to parking.
In a now-viral video that he posted to TikTok, Luke showed himself brazenly walking to his £90K BMW M4 from London's notoriously expensive Harrods store.
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Using the app's text to voiceover function, he explained why he had no qualms about the parking ticket that awaited him, explaining: "broke people see a fine, but I see VIP parking".
The young man, who allegedly owns a home worth £1.5 million, said he will stick to the practice 'as long as he's not causing anyone harm'.
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"I see it as saving my time and my time is valuable. It's the convenience of it," Luke said, admitting that he's had a staggering £7K worth of fines in the past year alone.
"If I can save my time by doing that then I will. It means I'm able to go home quicker to get back to trading. That's my logic behind it.
"I'll do it when I go shopping, especially in London. I'll just park it outside because it can be a nightmare to park otherwise."
However, he admitted he wasn't always so keen on getting on parking tickets, but since his income has increased, he simply sees it as the price for being a VIP.
"I started by getting a few here and there and ever since I started doing well, it doesn't matter," he said.
"I'm not blocking anything or doing anything wrong apart from the rules state there's a yellow line there so you can't park there."
But Luke's actions have caused a lot of controversy online, with some arguing that double yellow lines are put in place for a reason.
"Should get 3 points for parking fines," slammed one TikToker, while a second added: "This is why fines should be proportionate to what you earn or per car."
"I've never been confronted by it," Luke said of what it's like in reality. "People have a lot to say online and run their mouths but in person it's different. At the end of the day, I don't care.
"If people have controversial videos which people are going to have opposing opinions on, you're going to get negative feedback so it doesn't bother me in the slightest.
"On that day, pretty much everyone had a ticket on that street. When I went to Harrods afterwards there were loads of people with tickets there. People just think 'why not?'."
However, while the millionaire was subject to a barrage of criticism, some people agreed with his logic when it came to parking in central London.
One wrote: "when I price jobs in london I allow £60 a day per van for a fine. cheaper than driving around to find a place that's not much cheaper [sic]."
"Couldn't agree more," added a second. "I'm older than you and I've seen things exactly the same way as you for years."
The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea typically charges £130 per parking fine, however, this amount halves to £65 if it is paid within 14 days.
A Kensington and Chelsea spokesperson told LADbible: “Using double yellow lines to park is selfish and dangerous. Thankfully most people are not this irresponsible and do the right thing when finding somewhere to park which helps keep our streets safe.
"Yellow lines are there to keep traffic moving and ensure police, ambulances and fire engines are not blocked when they need to pass through.
"We'd much rather people parked legally and safely but where they don't we will continue to fine drivers and in particularly dangerous instances, we will remove the vehicle from the road."
Emma Guinness