29 July 2010 Last updated at 17:24 ET

Luxury car worth £1.2m clamped outside Harrods

The Koenigsegg CCXR and Lamborghini Murcielago were both clamped outside Harrods

A luxury car valued at £1.2m was clamped outside Harrods in central London after being illegally parked.

The Koenigsegg CCXR and a £350,000 Lamborghini Murcielago LP670-4 SuperVeloce were both clamped on the afternoon of 22 July.

Kensington and Chelsea Council said the light-blue vehicles were in serious contravention of parking rules.

The Knightsbridge store was bought by members of the Qatari royal family in April for £1.5bn.

It was bought by the Qatar Holding group, led by the Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad Bin Jassim Bin Jabr Al-Thani, from Mohammed Al Fayed.

Both the cars are very rare with the Swedish-made Koenigsegg being one of only six ever made.

'Effective deterrent'

A Harrods spokesman said: "Any matters relating to parking tickets and enforcement are strictly the domain of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea."

The council said £120 penalty charge notices were issued, but the cars were released for £70 each as the fines were paid within 14 days.

A spokesman said: "There is a greater shortage of parking space for residents in Kensington and Chelsea than practically anywhere else in the country.

"At the same time we have a huge number of visiting motorists attracted here by our fine shops, restaurants and other attractions.

"Our priority is our residents. To keep space available for them, we must deter visitors from taking up residents' bays and our experience is that clamping is simply the most effective deterrent."