Police towed my car away, what are the laws on thi

ricflairandy

Police towed my car away, what are the laws on this?

I was at the football, parked on a street where i usually park(no road markings or signs or anything, about 200 cars usually park along this street. no houses or anything either). My car is fully taxed and totally legal. Got out of the match, my car was missing.

I eventually found out that the police had it taken away and put a fixed penalty on it for "obstuction"??? i wasnt obstructing anything, iw as parked on the side of a road.I park there very home game.

Then the police said i could go and get it from the garage if i pay 150 pounds, which is 15 mins walk. Half an hour later i was still nowhere near the garage so i called the police to ask if they had given me the right directions, to which the replied "you cant get it untill 9am tomorrw anywya, its closed all day" So at that point i was stranded in liverpool , 35 miles away from hom with no money or anything and there attitdude was "so what do you want us to do"

Ive put a complaint in against the officer who put the fixed penalty on my car, ive been to collect my car this morning, had to pay £150 pound and also have the £30 fixed penalty to pay, which says its for "unnescasary obstruction". To top it all off, they still havent contacted me to let me know they had taken my car.

I cannot afford this at this time of year, and more importantly do not think this is right, i wasnt causing any obstuction atall.

Im sure that the police are not allowed to remove a vehicle without leting you know. Not sure though

Can nayone help please?

trafalgar_2

The police are allowed to remove any vehicle from a public highway if they deem it to be an obstruction to other road users and /or pedestrians.

They have to contact the last known keeper of the vehicle to inform them but time limits vary as far as I can tell even between counties however usually within a week ..................but as you contacted them ,they don't have to proceed with this .

Sorry,but it doesn't appear as though you don't have a case unless you could prove it wasn't obstructing anything and the only way you could of done that would of been to have evidence photographs before it was towed :-/ for instance were there any cctv cameras in the area that were covering your car at that time .

ricflairandy

Well the thing is, there is nothing that my car could obstruct. In the area. Im going to seek legal advice about this. The police cannot be allowed to getaway with this.

robnye

the other thing that certainly happens in my town when the local team play at home,

is temporary parking restrictions...........

it is possible you parked before the temporary signs where put up and taken away.

normally, there are yellow signs on the lamposts indicating that this happens on matchdays

i heard of some one getting caught in the same way, one year when they went to wembley (before its demise)

trafalgar_2

Well the thing is, there is nothing that my car could obstruct. In the area. Im going to seek legal advice about this. The police cannot be allowed to getaway with this.

Always a good idea if you think you have been wronged ,please let us know how you get on and good luck

superfly_2

dont pay the fine, let it go to court, and let them decide but get some representation and get a picture of where you were parked :-/

N9eav

I agree with Trafalgar. The Police can have any vehicle moved if they deem it commits an offence of obstruction.
I would say the officer had to believe it was obstructing something. They don't just do it for a laugh! Most officers will make a reasonable attempt to contact the registered keeper. But if the car is not registered in your name, you are ex-directory, or not available then action may have to be taken to remove the obstruction before you are gotten hold of.
Could a fire engine have passed your car without getting stuck? Were you parked over a hydrant?
If it was a parking offence such as yellow lines, then only a ticket would have been issued, and the car would still be there. The other cars comitting an offence in the road would also have suffered from the dreaded yellow envelope.
1. You don't have to pay the fine. The back of the ticket should state you have right to appeal or have the right to let the court decide. ( if you lose it will cost more than £30)
2. I would suggest that perhaps you write to the ticket office where you are supposed to pay the fine and ask for an explanation. I understand that most forces will reply with the reason why the car was ticketted. (There is a space on the back of the officers part of the ticket for the officer to write his statement saying why he took that action).
3. Don't do nothing. If you ignore it, It won't go away it will get bigger.

Savvy_Sue

the other thing that certainly happens in my town when the local team play at home,

is temporary parking restrictions...........

it is possible you parked before the temporary signs where put up and taken away.

yes, that could have happened. Happened to me once, years ago, but I was lucky, police did not have to move my car, my dad saw them putting the cones out and they said it would depend on size of the crowd and things like that.

So the 'obstruction' could have been a combination of your car and loads of supporters. Police may have decided it needed to be moved because of the size of the crowd.

A complaint about the misinformation about where the car was and when it could be retrieved is certainly in order even if you get nowhere with the rest of it!

jockettuk

in peterborough the football ground is right in the city centre so on match days they put cones out .. my friend who lives near the ground was away for the weekend leaving her car outside her house.. they put cones round her car and and later towed it away and fined her.. she had to pay to get her car out but she complained in writing and eventually got back her money.. and was told it can happen again..

RedFred_2

Probably just the police getting extra revenue in.
When Man Utd play on a Sunday afternoon often seen cars ticketed in side roads. On a Sunday Afternoon in an industrial estate!!, no one working and not causing an obstuction, must admit its normally the away supporters whose cars are getting booked. Not nice and probably not legal but if your up from down south who would fight it?
Best of luck and hope you win.