A car parking company placed under investigation by an industry watchdog following a complaint by Bradford Council has been cleared of any illegal behaviour.

West Yorkshire Parking Enforcement (WYPE), a private company based in Bradford, was reported to the British Parking Association by the Council in January for allegedly issuing parking tickets without appropriate warning signs.

Although cleared of using illegal signage, the company is now said to have agreed, in conjunction with the Council and the BPA, changes to where its signs are displayed across various city centre sites.

A BPA spokesman said the claim against WYPE, a member of the association’s ‘Approved Operator’ scheme, had been treated “extremely seriously”.

“I can confirm that following our investigations, no illegal activity was established,” said the spokesman.

“We sent our area managers to each of the locations to assess the situation and file a report. We then discussed the situation with WYPE and have come up with what we believe to be appropriate solutions.

“WYPE has agreed to reposition its signage, and we have also suggested that members of WYPE and the Council Highways Department walk around all WYPE sites in the city, to check if anything else needs to be done.”

As a result of the changes, a WYPE sign in Hallgate will be moved from the front to the left-hand side of a fence, so that it no longer faces the roadway, and in Salem Street, a sign high up on the wall facing the street will be moved around the corner into a private car park.

In Upper Piccadilly, a no parking sign will change to a sign indicating private property, to distinguish a private courtyard from the main road, and in Grammar School Street, no parking signs currently displayed on a private building will be changed to indicate no parking within the curtilage of the property.

The initial complaint in January had related to Summerville Road in Bradford, where motorists said they had been issued tickets without warning signs, but this area was not mentioned in the findings of the investigation.

A spokesman for Bradford Council, which had already reported WYPE for using illegal signage prior to January’s investigation, said: “We will continue to ask Council wardens to monitor the situation, and if they spot anything of concern, we will liaise with the BPA to try to resolve any issues.”

At the time of the complaint, a spokesman for WYPE said the firm would work closely with the BPA to resolve the matter. No-one at the company was available to comment on the findings of the investigation.