uwnted, untaxed vehicle parked on my drive without permission

[tadb]

How do i remove a vehicle from my property legally.
the vehicle belongs to a neighbour who seems to think because i have a larger drive than he does, he is entitled to park his scrap van on it. I have asked him to remove it several times but he becomes abusive at the suggestion. Can i remove it using a vehicle removal company, would i be able to claim the cost of this from my neighbour be through the courts etc.

[IggyB]

you could indeed remove it in the way you suggest - but i doubt you would ever manage to get compensation for the costs... i don't know where you live but in some areas the local council will remove dumped cars for you, and for all intents and purposes that is what this is... contact the council for advise

[Ethel]

You have choices:

Push it on the road and report it to the police and DVLA as an untaxed vehicle abandoned on the highway.

Put a big notice on the windscreen stating that if it is not moved within 7 days it will be scrapped. Put it in writing to him too, send by registered post and make it clear you will take action to recover the costs.

What council do you live in? Different councils have different policies.

[redcrx]

push it onto the road and report it to the police

[tadb]

I live in Derwentside co. Durham - I have rang the coucil & the police and basically they did not want to know as its on private land

[Ethel]

The dvla will want to know though. :)

Is this your council? If so, they should do exactly what they say on the website:

http://www.durhamcity.gov.uk/SubCategory/20000 1

[tadb]

many thanks - i will try Durham City Council

[jedimistress]

Reminds me of the time in Wales I parked on the road outside someones house. They did not like it as it was "their" parking spot despite being a public road. I was a little naughty and left it there even longer out of principle and not to be bullied off the road. The next thing I know someone has broken into the car, stole the tax disc out of it's holder and reported it abandoned to the council.
Sorry not an answer to your question, it was just a reminder of how rude people can be.

[Loosehead]

just drag it onto the road call the old bill as red says above. Then send him a bill for storage and claim that through small claims and send in the bailiffs, what a toe rag!

[Stu Dent]

I would advise exercising caution here as this seems to be one of those regrettable situations where the person causing the trouble has more rights than his victim.

Our questioner has quite rightly identified two potential problems with a DIY removal - hence the suggestion of using a private company to remove it.

1. How is access to be effected? If he/she breaks into the car then a crime will have been comitted however much justification there appears to be - probably vandalism.
2. If the questioner steers or even simply pushes the car onto the public highway in order to then inform DVLA, then there is a possibility that our questioner will be charged with theft, and then driving/being in control of a vehicle on a public highway without insurance, road tax, or MOT.

I think that this issue needs to be solved using the Council in the first instance. If they won't remove it for whatever reason, then I think this would need to be removed after getting a Court order - so you'll probably need to employ the services of a solicitor for that.

[Stu Dent]

One reason why they might not be able to remove it is because it appears NOT to be abandoned. It has an owner, there is no problem identifying the owner, and no dispute over ownership. It's a civil matter where a neighbour is causing nuisance to another neighbour.