Who is responsible when car is towed by DVLA?

[Deleted User]

My partner's garage (he is an employee there) MOT'd and serviced a car. The owner was told the car was ready for pick up. He didn't pick it up for two days. The car was parked on the road because there wasn't room for storage in the garage. TWO days later DVLA did a check in the area and the car was clamped, picked up and towed because it wasn't taxed. The garage hadn't noticed it wasn't taxed. Neither the owner nor the garage have any idea where the car is.

The owner is now saying the garage are responsible for the car being towed even though as I see it, its the owners responsibility to make sure its taxed. Plus the owner should have picked up the car a bit quicker than they did (the car was clamped and towed two days after the owner was phoned to say the car service/MOT was complete).

Does a garage have a duty of care in this situation.., does the duty of care end when the owner does not pick up the car after the garage has said the car is ready for pick up. How long is that amount of time?

I would be really grateful if anyone could give some insight into the legal ramifications of this.

mildred1978

I have left a car at a garage overnight or for a couple of days before collecting it. Saying that, I've never used one that didn't keep all the cars in a locked compound overnight.

When did the owner say they would collect?

[Deleted User]

That day. They just didn't turn up when agreed, nor the next day etc etc.

mildred1978

Then I'd say owner's fault twice over - for not taxing and for not collecting when he said he would. Did they tell him the car would be on the road?

Think the garage are leaving themselves open to the risk of not getting paid. What If the owner had come with spare key and taken the car?

paddedjohn

I would defiantly say it was the garages fault for parking it on the road without tax, the car come in for an mot so this would have been needed first before the owner could tax it. Two days is not long to wait before they abandoned the car.

colino

Dodgy driver with no MOT or tax leaves car, assuming free parking and doesn't turn up (and pay) for days for simple in and out work. Not only is he 100% liable and to blame, but if I had noticed it wasn't taxed and he was a no show, I'd have put the car on the street and let our local blue meanie know that it was there.

Gloomendoom

You can't get tax without having a valid MoT. The owner doesn't appear to have done anything wrong... apart from turn up late. That isn't normally regarded as a crime.

missile

How does your partner know it was clamped and towed by the DVLA?

Clamped and towed within two days, seems far too efficient for DVLA?

Why did they not contact owner as soon as they were aware it was being clamped?

I have never heard of a random check by DVLA. If it was my car, I might suspect it was the garage owner reported the car.

Paperbird

You don't know why the owner didn't collect the car, could have been a family illness or anything. The owner not collecting it for 2 days has nothing to do with it, it could have been clamped within 10 minutes of the garage parking it there.
While the garage has the car they are responsible for it.

vax2002

The Vehicle was left in the duty of care of the garage.
Hope they dont sue.

Paperbird

Yes they do, they spend a couple of days in an area driving round clamping the cars, they contact the driver of the truck towing them away to tell them where the clamped cars are. Most are taken away the same day they are clamped.

missile wrote: »

How does your partner know it was clamped and towed by the DVLA?

Clamped and towed within two days, seems far too efficient for DVLA?

Why did they not contact owner as soon as they were aware it was being clamped?

I have never heard of a random check by DVLA. If it was my car, I might suspect it was the garage owner reported the car.