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Abandoned vehicles

Our Street Scene Enforcement Officers inspect vehicles that are reported by the public as having been abandoned, or those that they come across on their daily patrols of the Borough.

There is no legal definition of 'abandoned' but below are criteria that our Officers will take into consideration during their inspections:

  • Untaxed, with
  • No current keeper on the DVLA record
  • Stationary for a significant amount of time
  • Significantly damaged, run down or unroadworthy
  • Flat tyre(s) or wheels removed
  • Burnt out
  • Lacking one or more of its plates
  • Containing waste
  • Doors open or unlocked and/or windows open
  • Location of the vehicle and status of land where it is situated

This is not an exhaustive list and a vehicle would not have to have all these characteristics to be considered abandoned. Simply because a vehicle is displaying an expired tax disc or is poorly parked does not mean it has been abandoned.

Please report untaxed vehicles to the DVLA.

If, during an inspection of a vehicle, the Street Scene Enforcement Officer believes the vehicle has been abandoned they will affix a notice to the vehicle warning the owner that they must contact the Council to claim the vehicle or move it, or it will be removed by the Council. The owner will be given either 7 days or 24 hours to do this, depending on the condition of the vehicle.

Reporting an abandoned vehicle

When reporting an abandoned vehicle to us, please include details such as the vehicle registration, make, model, and colour, whether the vehicle is taxed, the exact location of the vehicle, how long the vehicle has been left unmoved at its present location

What we will do for you

  • We will inspect vehicles within 1 working day of being notified of the details
  • If the vehicle is deemed abandoned by our Street Scene Enforcement Officer, we will affix the appropriate notice on its windscreen
  • We will re-inspect a vehicle that we have affixed a notice to again once the appropriate time period on the notice has passed, providing it has not been claimed by the owner
  • Our nominated contractor will remove any vehicle which is unclaimed and still present after the time of the notice has passed. The vehicle may be destroyed or kept in secure storage depending on its status
  • Our nominated contractor will remove a vehicle that is burnt out or in a very dangerous condition within 24 hours of our inspection of the vehicle
  • We will let you know if we have removed your vehicle if you telephone us on 020 8891 7011 during officer hours (Monday-Friday between 9am and 5pm). Out of these hours, you may leave a message and your call will be returned the following working day
  • We will ensure that we will respond to your contact within the Council’s customer service standards

Please do not abandon your vehicle, the Council runs a free vehicle disposal service where vehicles can be surrendered.

How we did last month

Download our service performance statistics for last month here.