Crime and property
Abandoned vehicle guide
This guide is designed to help you combat the problem of abandoned vehicles in your neighbourhood, by informing you of the law surrounding abandoned vehicles and what you can do to improve the problem.
Title: Abandoned vehicle crime
Author: Encams
Number of pages: 12
The latest Waste Management Survey carried out by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) estimates that around 299,000 vehicles were abandoned in England in 2002/2003.
How to determine or spot an abandoned vehicle ?
The following bullet points should help you make a judgement:
Is the vehicle untaxed i.e. no tax disc present at all or past the expiry date? (This should not be the sole consideration, but should be taken into account with the other points below.)
Are any of the tyres flat or have any of the wheels been removed?
Is there litter or any other signs under the vehicle, indicating that it has not moved for some time?
Is the windscreen or any of the windows broken?
Is there any mould on either the inside or outside of the vehicle?
Does the vehicle contain items of waste e.g. tyres, old newspapers, general rubbish?
Does the vehicle have number plates?
Has the vehicle been 'hot-wired ' i.e. driven without keys by connecting ignition wires together? (If it has, there will be wires hanging from the dashboard.)
Has the vehicle been vandalised? Exterior vandalism might include dents in bodywork, graffiti, bumpers/spoilers being removed; interior vandalism might include radio being stolen, seat covers being slashed.
Has a vehicle that you and your neighbours have never seen before suddenly appeared in your road and no-one is claiming ownership?
What to do if you identify an abandoned vehicle ?
Never, enter or even touch an abandoned vehicle - It may have been used in a crime and need to be investigated by the police. They also pose a health and safety risk, may contain hazardous waste and can often pose a fire risk.
Never approach a burning vehicle or burnt out vehicle - Burnt paint, rubber and other materials maybe toxic or corrosive and harmful. If a vehicle is on fire call the fire service immediately. If already burnt out contact your local authority.
Abandoned vehicles and the law
Local authorities are under a duty under Section 3 of the Refuse Disposal (Amenity) Act 1978, to remove a vehicle, which is abandoned in their area, on public land. It does not cover vehicles abandoned on private land.
Under this Act, abandoning a vehicle is a criminal offence, carrying a maximum penalty fine of £2,500 or 3 months' imprisonment, or both.
Notice periods in England
Abandoned vehicles that have some value can be removed immediately and the registered owner given 7 days to respond before the car can be destroyed.
For vehicles that the local authority considers to have no value – the statutory notice period is 24 hours.
If a vehicle is abandoned on private land the local authority can serve the owner with a 15 day notice, for which they have 15 days to object to the vehicle being taken away.
Local authorities also have the power to recover costs of removal, storage and disposal from the person responsible for abandoning the vehicle.
The police have powers under the Removal and Disposal of Vehicle Regulations 1986 to remove any vehicle that is in breach of local traffic regulations, causing an obstruction, likely to cause a danger, broken down or abandoned without lawful authority. Any car that is considered to be a dangerous wreck and where a notice has been issued, can be removed immediately.
Notice periods in Wales
Vehicles with some value can be removed immediately and a written notice period of 21 days issued before the vehicle can be destroyed.
A vehicle with no value will carry a 7 day notice.
On private land, the notice period is 15 days for the owner or occupier of the land to object.
The notice periods stand to change in-line with those in England, as soon as the necessary powers to vary Police Notice periods are devolved to the National Assembly of Wales.
What can you do to improve the problem ?
To report a vehicle you should collect the following information:
Vehicle, make, model and colour
Vehicle registration number (also visible on the tax disc)
Condition of the vehicle (detailing any vandalism)
Expiry date on the tax disc, if there is one
Location of the vehicle and whether its causing any kind of obstruction
How long the vehicle has been abandoned
Any other information, e.g. who was the last person you saw in the vehicle?
You should report the vehicle to your local authority (the phone number can be found in the phone book). You can also visit your local authorities website.
Who should you report an untaxed vehicle to ?
A vehicle that is untaxed but does not appear to be abandoned can be reported by contacting your nearest Driving Vehicle License Authority (DVLA) local office in writing (you can find the address in the phone book). This can be done anonymously.
Details you will need to collect include:
Make, model and colour of the vehicle
Registration number
Location of the vehicle
Name and address of owner (if known).
New car tax rules
1. Registered keepers will be legally responsible at all times for making sure they have a valid tax disc. They will be liable for penalties and fines if the vehicle is untaxed, dumped or caught up in any criminal activity (automatic penalty of £80 if vehicle not taxed in time – without any need to see the vehicle – and £1,000 if taken to court)
2. Responsibility for that vehicle will remain with the registered keeper until the DVLA is notified that the vehicle has been scrapped, sold, stolen or exported, unless a Statutory Off Road Notification (SORN) has been declared. Once the DVLA has been notified, they will issue a letter of acknowledgement, which should be kept as proof that the vehicle record has changed.
How to dispose of any unwanted vehicles ?
Contact your local authority to see if they will remove your vehicle for you. Some will do it for free but others may charge.
A vehicle dismantler (the Yellow Pages will contain contacts in your area).
Notify the DVLA after the vehicle has been disposed of.
If the car is being disposed of due to a road traffic accident, your insurance will take care of the removal for you.
Download: Abandoned
Vehicles Guide 
PDF (745 kB)
Last update: 03 September 2004