Summary: Mrs X complained that the Council wrongly decided that a car on her private property was abandoned and removed it. The Council returned the car, and paid Mrs X’s costs. However, Mrs X says she felt she had to dispose of it as she was concerned the Council might take it away again. She says this caused her an injustice as the car had sentimental value and she found the Council’s actions distressing. The Council was at fault and an apology is not sufficient remedy. We have recommended the Council also pay Mrs X a sum to acknowledge her distress.

The complaint

1. Mrs X complained that the Council:

• Decided her vehicle was abandoned without making proper enquiries which would have revealed it was parked on her land and was her vehicle.
• Caused her distress by its actions, which was an injustice.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word fault to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. If there has been fault which has caused an injustice, we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended)
3. If we are satisfied with a council’s actions or proposed actions, we can complete our investigation and issue a decision statement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 30(1B) and 34H(i), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I spoke with Mrs X and reviewed the complaint file.
5. I researched the relevant law and the Council’s policy on abandoned vehicles.
6. Mrs X and the Council had an opportunity to comment on my draft decision. I considered any comments received before making a final decision.

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What I found

Government Guidance on Abandoned Vehicles and local authorities’ responsibilities

7. Councils must remove abandoned vehicles from land in the open air. This includes private land and private roads. (Refuse Disposal (Amenity) Act 1978s3(1)
8. Councils must give the landowner or occupier 15 days’ notice that they propose to remove the vehicle, unless the vehicle is abandoned on a road or highway. (Removal and Disposal of Vehicles Regulations 1986, SI 1986/183, reg 9(2).)
9. To help local authorities decide if a vehicle is abandoned, they can obtain information from the Driving and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) or check the vehicle tax online.
10. The vehicle will be abandoned if at least one of the following applies, (although the list is not exhaustive):

• It has no keeper registered on the DVLA’s database and is untaxed
• It has been stationary for a significant amount of time
• It is significantly damaged, run down or unroadworthy
• It is burned out, or
• A number plate is missing.

11. Officers can legally enter land to investigate and remove abandoned vehicles.
12. Government Guidance says that councils can dispose of an abandoned vehicle immediately if either of the following applies:

• Its only fit to be destroyed
• It has no number plates or tax disc (even an expired one)
• In all other cases, they must try to find the owner.

13. If the vehicle has no registration mark, the authority must apply to the police force for the area in which the vehicle was abandoned, providing the specific information, and asking whether they have any information as to the owner of the vehicle. (The Removal and Disposal of Vehicles Regulations 1986, SI 1986/183, reg 12)
14. It is good practice to liaise with the local police in any event to ensure that the vehicle was not involved in the commission of a crime.

The relevant parts of the Council’s Abandoned Vehicles Policy

15. The Council says that, upon receiving a report of an abandoned vehicle, it will seek information from the reporter about the location, age, condition, length of time in situ and tax expiry date. If it considers the vehicle may have been abandoned, it will conduct a pre-removal site visit. If the visiting officer decides it is likely the vehicle has been abandoned, the Council will contact the DVLA to find out the registered keeper’s details.
16. The officer will then use the information gathered so far and any information from the DVLA to decide if the vehicle has been abandoned or not.
17. If the vehicle is deemed to be abandoned and if the vehicle, in the opinion of the officer, presents a significant health and safety risk, the vehicle will be removed without notice to a secure compound.
18. If, however, it is not deemed to present a significant health and safety risk, a letter will be sent to the registered keeper, advising that their vehicle had been reported to the Council and had been classed as abandoned. The Council will say that if they fail to remove it or contact the Council within 10 days, the Council will remove the vehicle.
19. The policy states that, if the vehicle has been determined to be abandoned, but no registered keeper can be identified, the vehicle will be removed to a secure compound without further notice.
20. For those vehicles that are taken, a letter and fixed penalty will be sent to the registered keeper. They will be required to pay a £200 penalty and a minimum cost of £150 for removal and storage.

What happened

21. The Council says that, in February 2021, a member of the public reported Mrs X’s vehicle as being abandoned.
22. The Council investigated. An officer visited the vehicle and completed a pre-check form. The officer noted that the vehicle did not have registration plates. Mrs X said that the registration plates had been stolen and were the subject of an ongoing investigation by the police.
23. The officer further noted that the vehicle was significantly damaged or run down and unroadworthy. The officer reported that he was told the vehicle had been there for over 12 months. Mrs X said she has knocked on all the doors near her house and no one reported having spoken to any officer about the vehicle.
24. The officer said there was no visible registration number. He noted that the car was covered in moss but that the inside of the car was clean front and back.
25. Mrs X says, and photographs show, that the vehicle displayed an old tax disc. The Council has since accepted that it could have used this tax disc to obtain the number plate details.
26. Mrs X complained to the Council. In its stage one response, it said that, usually, when it found a vehicle that was likely to have been abandoned, it:

• Contacted the police to see if they had an interest in the vehicle,
• Searched the DVLA records for the vehicles registered keeper, then
• wrote to the registered keeper to say they had 10 days to make good the vehicle or dispose of it.

27. The Council said that legally, it could remove the vehicle instantly without first contacting the police or the keeper if it found that it had been abandoned. It said that, in this instance, as it could not identify the vehicle, it was unable to conduct checks with the police or the DVLA.
28. Unsatisfied with the stage 1 response, Mrs X escalated her complaint to stage two of the Council’s complaints procedure. In its response, it said there were two areas of the investigation that could have been handled differently:

• Mrs X’s task disc could have been used to identify her vehicle registration, and
• As the vehicle was parked on private land, it could have given her prior written notice of its intention to remove the vehicle.

29. It apologised and said that in future it would:

• Update its process so that any paper tax discs on display would be reviewed, and
• Provide training to staff to ensure that private landowners are given advanced notice prior to a removal taking place.

30. Mrs X was not satisfied with the Council’s response and complained to the Ombudsman. She says that she has since had to dispose of her vehicle. She said the vehicle belonged to her mother, who is now in a care home and it had sentimental value. She felt the Council’s approach was without care and she found it very distressing.

Analysis

31. The Council has accepted it could have used Mrs X’s tax disc to ascertain that she was the owner of the vehicle. If it had done so, it would have given her notice. Equally, it accepts it could have given her notice by sending a letter to her address. It has said that it will update its processes.
32. It does not appear to accept that it acted with fault, but that it could have acted differently. I consider, it was at fault.
33. The Council’s policy says that where no registered keeper can be identified, it is removed to a secure compound without notice. But in Mrs X’s case it would have been possible to identify the registered keeper as Mrs X’s vehicle displayed a tax disc that the Council could have used to determine who the owner was.
34. The Council also could have contacted the police. While Mrs X was told that this was not possible because the Council could not determine the vehicle’s registration, the law says that it is in cases where the registration is not available, that the police must be contacted.
35. Mrs X says if the Council had contacted the police, it is likely it would have been told that her vehicle’s registration plates had been stolen. That information could have stopped the vehicle being taken away or at least afforded Mrs X the opportunity of a notice period. The Council’s failure to contact the police is fault and it, along with the other fault already identified, caused Mrs X the injustice of having her car taken away without notice.
36. It is also concerning that the Council’s policy says that when it provides written notice to vehicle keepers, it only provides 10 days. The law says it should provide 15 days.
37. The Council offered to pay Mrs X the costs she incurred in retrieving the vehicle. But she was distressed by the way the situation was handled. I consider the Council should also make a payment to Mrs X to acknowledge that distress.
38. I have further recommended that it consider reviewing and updating its policy again.

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Agreed action

39. Within one month of our final decision, the Council should pay Mrs X the sum of £200 to acknowledge the distress caused by the fault identified in this decision. It should also pay her the £95 it offered to pay to cover her costs.
40. Within two months of our final decision, the Council should review its policy on abandoned vehicles, considering whether it should update its policy to include contacting the police when prescribed by the relevant law and amending the number of days it provides for notice to registered keepers.
41. The Council should provide a copy of its updated policy to the Ombudsman.

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Final decision

42. I have found the Council at fault and it has agreed to my recommendations to remedy the injustice caused. I have now completed my investigation.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman