Removal of Abandoned Motor Vehicles

1. Under the above legislation local authorities have a statutory duty to remove and dispose of motor vehicles abandoned on "land which is open to the air". This duty applies to private open land, however, there is no authority to remove a vehicle from private land if the owner of the land objects. A local authority may also refuse to remove a vehicle from private land if the cost of bringing the vehicle to the public highway would be unreasonably high.
   
2. In East Lindsey the District Council organise the removal, storage and subsequent disposal of abandoned vehicles and then reclaim the disposal element of the direct costs from the Lincolnshire County Council, who are the Waste Disposal Authority. Currently the total direct cost paid to the Contractor is £35.00 per vehicle, of which the WDA pay £17.50. there are other indirect costs, i.e. Officer visits to site, administration etc., which are absorbed by the District Council.
   
3. Following receipt of notification of an abandoned vehicle, usually from the Police, a notice is attached to the vehicle giving the owner 24 hours (if the vehicle is of no value) or 7 days (if the vehicle has a value) in which to remove the vehicle. After the expiry of the statutory period the Council will remove the vehicle to temporary storage at the Contractors yard while enquiries regarding ownership are completed. Once the Council has completed the enquiries with DVLA and written to the last registered owner, the vehicle is destroyed. If there is a current road fund licence, then the vehicle has to be stored until 14 days after the expiry of the licence.
   
4. The problem of abandoned vehicles is increasing nationally at an alarming rate, which is due mainly to the fall in the value of scrap metal. It now costs a vehicle owner in the region of £30 to £40 to take a scrap vehicle to a metal dealer whereas some two or three years ago he would have received some value for the vehicle. Therefore, abandoning the vehicle becomes a viable option to some irresponsible people.
   
5. It is an offence to abandon a vehicle, but pursuing formal action is difficult because ownership records for the type of vehicles normally abandoned are usually out of date. Changes in ownership are seldom properly recorded for this lower end of the car market. The Government have recognised this problem and are proposing new systems to address the situation.
   
6. The situation in East Lindsey is as follows:-
   
   Total Number
   of Vehicles Abandoned
   
   

   1999/2000	2000/2001	2001/2002
   287	405	563

   
   
   It can be seen from these figures that there is a significant increase.
   
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