A woman who was issued with a parking ticket for pulling in to use the toilet has said Ireland shows 'very little respect' for pregnant women.
Tracey was 36-weeks pregnant when she felt pressure while driving her car in Co Mayo.
She left her car parked in a taxi rank for 10 or 15 minutes, as she went to use the bathroom in a Dunnes Stores.
She told Lunchtime Live she panicked while driving.
"At the time of the incident I was 36 weeks pregnant going along in the car," she said.
"I felt pressure, like an urgency to use the bathroom.
"So in a panic I pulled into the next available spot I could see, which happened to be outside Dunnes Stores in Castlebar".
'My appeal was rejected'
Tracey said she ran in to use the bathroom and came out to find a traffic warden writing her a ticket.
"I tried to explain my situation; that I was 36-weeks pregnant, and that it was kind of an emergency for me," she said.
"She said it was too late, that she'd issued the ticket and I'd have to make an appeal".
Tracey said she went ahead with an appeal as soon as she got home, but went into labour a few days later and forgot about it.
She said it came back to her mind recently, and she decided to follow up.
"They explained to me [that] my appeal was rejected on the basis that I had pulled in, but the spot was actually a taxi rank," she said.
"I get the point that I pulled in at a taxi rank spot, but at the time there was no other cars around.
"It's not as if I was blocking a whole load of taxis".
'Very little respect'
Tracey said this was her first pregnancy, and her experience was mixed.
"I just found very little respect for pregnant women in this country," she said.
"We were in Spain at one stage and it was a totally different story.
"We went out to dinner, there was queues for restaurants, and we would be put forward in the queue - I wouldn't be left standing waiting.
"Same situation in the airport when we got to passport security".
"It's not even about the fine, I paid the fine," she added. "I always pay for my tickets, it's just where I got caught in that situation... I just felt it was very harsh".
Listen back to the full interview below:
