Breast feeding mum fined for stopping in no-parking zone

A mum was told to pay a $120 fine after pulling over in a no-stopping zone to breastfeed her six-month-old son.

Renee Buckley, from Altona North, was on her way to Avalon Airport to pick up her mum when her son, Alistair, started to cry.

After struggling to drive while her hungry baby was screaming in the back seat, she pulled over in Beach Road to feed him.

"I noticed someone in my rear view mirror taking a photograph and I thought to myself 'is this guy fining me?'," she told 3AW.

"He's there snapping away and I had my hazard lights on to signal to him that I had to pull over.

"I wanted to actually get out and go speak to him to explain my situation....and he just drove off."

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Renee said she was shocked, when weeks later, she received a penalty notice from Geelong City council informing her she would have to pay a $120 fine for parking in a no-stopping zone.

"I just felt like I was treated unfairly," she said.

"I didn't know that it was a no-stopping area. I thought it was a safe place to pull over.

"I normally pull up inside the airport but because he was fussy, I pulled over and I didn't see the sign."

Renee said she was unsure whether the parking officer knew she was breastfeeding, but said he should have approached the car.

"I think it's highway robbery," she said. "They saw this opportunity and they are using it to make money off of people. For us that's an expensive fine. I think it's wrong."

Geelong City Council confirmed it has received a complaint from Ms Buckley and will assess the matter after it receives the relevant paperwork.