Abandoned and nuisance vehicles

We are unlikely to consider vehicles to be abandoned if:

• They are taxed and MOT'd, or have Statutory Off Road Notice (SORN), and are in a reasonable condition. Visit the GOV.UK website to Check to see if a vehicle is taxed or has SORN.
• They appear in reasonable condition and have been in situ for less than a month.
  

You can report an abandoned vehicle online:

Report an abandoned vehicle

Removal of abandoned vehicles

The vehicle is inspected, a checklist completed and photographs taken to determine if the vehicle has been abandoned.

If, in the opinion of the council, the vehicle is abandoned, attempts are made to contact the keeper to determine if the vehicle is genuinely abandoned (a number of reports are in fact parking disputes rather than abandoned vehicles). This gives the owner an opportunity to claim/remove the vehicle. If there is no response then a notice is served.

Once the notice period has passed the vehicle will be removed and disposed of if it has not been claimed. The prescribed costs are passed to the registered keeper – there are separate charges for removal of a vehicle, storage of a vehicle and its destruction.

Find out information about the Council's duty to remove abandoned vehicles

Nuisance vehicles

The Clean Neighbourhoods & Environment Act 2005 sets out two specific ‘nuisance vehicles’ offences. These are:

• Leaving two or more motor vehicles parked within 500m of each other on a road/roads where they are advertised for sale as part of a business.
• Repairing a motor vehicle on the road as part of a business/for gain, or repairing a motor vehicle on the road which is causing annoyance to people in the vicinity. The exception to this offence is if the vehicle is being repaired within 72 hours of an accident and breakdown and repairs on the road are necessary.

We will investigate reports of nuisance vehicles meeting the above criteria to establish whether an offence is being committed. We are unable to act on reports of untaxed vehicles or vehicles parked inconsiderate.

Contact us about a nuisance vehicle

Report an untaxed vehicle

You can report an untaxed vehicle that you’ve seen on a public road anonymously to the DVLA:

Report an untaxed vehicle via the GOV.UK website

You will need to include the:

• vehicle registration number
• make, model and colour of the vehicle
• street name, town and postcode where the vehicle is parked

You won't be able to report the vehicle without these details.