A NEW Forest couple have slammed police after their teenage son was fined for giving a friend a lift on his bicycle.

Robert and Diane Jones were furious when their son Chris, 15, was pulled over by traffic officers and handed a £30 fixed penalty order.

Chris was riding with Andy Holton on his handlebars so that his friend would not have to walk home alone in the dark.

But police said he was breaking the law because there was "more than one person on a solo cycle".

The Totton schoolboy was even more shocked as the new fines are not supposed to be given to anyone under the age of 18.

Robert Jones said: "I couldn't believe it when my son told me he had been fined. Kids have been giving each other 'doubles' since push-bikes were invented.

"Surely the police have got bigger things to worry about on a Saturday night. Talk about using a sledgehammer to crack a nut."

Chris was cycling along Salisbury Road, Totton, with Andy, also 15, on the front of his BMX bike.

He said: "I was shocked when the policeman pulled over. I thought he was going to tell us to get off and walk, but he produced a pen and started writing the fine."

Chris's mother said she was "disgusted" that her son had not been left off with a verbal warning.

She added: "This is incredibly petty and I'm amazed that the police are picking on kids."

Home Office spokesman Gemmaine Walsh confirmed that fixed penalty orders cannot be given to anyone under the age of 18.

A Hampshire police spokesman said: "If the policy hasn't been followed in this instance we will enquire into the circumstances and take appropriate action."