Peter Wild with son Marshall, three, in his car A couple driving through Oxford said police officers treated them like criminals during a spot check on cars with tinted windows.

Peter Wild was pulled over by roadside inspectors in The Slade, Headington, on his way into the city centre with his girlfriend Nicola Watkinson and their three-year-old son Marshall.

He said officers told him they needed to check if the windows in his blue Subaru, which he bought with customised tints, met the legal requirements.

Regulations state windscreens must let in 75 per cent of light and side windows 70 per cent.

But Mr Wild criticised the police for being "heavy handed" and detaining them for 45 minutes to check documents and look inside the car.

Mr Wild, 33, of Pegasus Road, Blackbird Leys, Oxford, said: "It was all very heavy handed and we were made to feel like criminals."

He said he tried to tell officers about drug dealers near his house but it fell on deaf ears.

He added: "They were more interested in tinted windows on cars than crack dealers on the street. It is ridiculous."

The hold-up meant Miss Watkinson, 30, missed her evening class at Oxford and Cherwell Valley College, where she is studying anatomy and physiology.

Miss Wilkinson, of Awgarstone Road, Headington, said: "I have never been pulled over before and it was a horrible experience, really upsetting."

Luke Bosdet, spokesman for the AA Motoring Trust, said visibility was crucial for driving safely.

He said: "There is a problem with customised cars. Youngsters are putting tinted windows in which don't meet legal regulations.

"Either they are ignorant of the law or being misled by the people who are selling the windows."

Oxford police spokesman Vicky Evans said: "We take complaints about our service seriously and have a proper process for dealing with them."

She said anyone with complaints should email the quality of service unit at QoSUnit@thamesvalley.pnn.police.uk or write to it at Thames Valley Police HQ, Oxford Road, Kidlington, OX5 2NX.