Police (without telling me) seized my car from my allocated parking at my home wrongly

NBLondon

KimJongUn88 said:

We’ll have you got the letter which releases your vehicle from the pound? Have you tried getting the vehicle from the pound?

I think this has to be the first step...  once you have confirmation from the pound that they crushed it and notified DVLA then that can be taken further.   There must be a set period that the pound must wait before they are authorised to do that.  From the OP it seems that was done rather too quickly and thus it's probably the pound operator who is liable.

Does your car insurance include legal cover?  If so - then make use of that.  Firstly, you'll have to notify the insurance co that the car no longer exists.  I'm not sure if you could report it as stolen (if the police had legal right to seize it) - however the company that crushed the car has negligently destroyed your property and their insurers are the ones who should be paying you the value of the car.  If you can get your insurance company to provide a solicitor then they can do the chasing.

DB1904

NBLondon said:

KimJongUn88 said:

We’ll have you got the letter which releases your vehicle from the pound? Have you tried getting the vehicle from the pound?

I think this has to be the first step...  once you have confirmation from the pound that they crushed it and notified DVLA then that can be taken further.   There must be a set period that the pound must wait before they are authorised to do that.  From the OP it seems that was done rather too quickly and thus it's probably the pound operator who is liable.

Does your car insurance include legal cover?  If so - then make use of that.  Firstly, you'll have to notify the insurance co that the car no longer exists.  I'm not sure if you could report it as stolen (if the police had legal right to seize it) - however the company that crushed the car has negligently destroyed your property and their insurers are the ones who should be paying you the value of the car.  If you can get your insurance company to provide a solicitor then they can do the chasing.

Have they? What if there has been a hearing at the local Magistrates Court and they have authorised disposal under the Police Property Act? If the company are in possession of that paperwork then how were they negligent?

NBLondon

DB1904 said:

NBLondon said:

KimJongUn88 said:

We’ll have you got the letter which releases your vehicle from the pound? Have you tried getting the vehicle from the pound?

I think this has to be the first step...  once you have confirmation from the pound that they crushed it and notified DVLA then that can be taken further.   There must be a set period that the pound must wait before they are authorised to do that.  From the OP it seems that was done rather too quickly and thus it's probably the pound operator who is liable.

Does your car insurance include legal cover?  If so - then make use of that.  Firstly, you'll have to notify the insurance co that the car no longer exists.  I'm not sure if you could report it as stolen (if the police had legal right to seize it) - however the company that crushed the car has negligently destroyed your property and their insurers are the ones who should be paying you the value of the car.  If you can get your insurance company to provide a solicitor then they can do the chasing.

Have they? What if there has been a hearing at the local Magistrates Court and they have authorised disposal under the Police Property Act? If the company are in possession of that paperwork then how were they negligent?

OP says they have a letter from the police stating no connection and to collect the car with no charge.

If there was such a hearing - wouldn't the OP have been informed of that first?  And the letter from the police would say so?

Yes - it is possible that the pound/recovery company whoever did so with the correct paperwork so they are blameless - in which case the organisation (the court? the police force?)  that wrongly issued said paperwork has been negligent.

So it's a very good idea for the OP to get a solicitor (or their insurance company's solicitor) to be taking on this investigation.

Grumpy_chap

NBLondon said:

OP says they have a letter from the police stating no connection and to collect the car with no charge.

If there was such a hearing - wouldn't the OP have been informed of that first?  And the letter from the police would say so?

Yes - it is possible that the pound/recovery company whoever did so with the correct paperwork so they are blameless - in which case the organisation (the court? the police force?)  that wrongly issued said paperwork has been negligent.

So it's a very good idea for the OP to get a solicitor (or their insurance company's solicitor) to be taking on this investigation.

It's very odd:

• The OP's car was incorrectly towed.
• The OP then received a letter from the Police saying it was a mistake and to collect the car, sorry for the inconvenience
• About the same time, the OP received a letter from DVLA saying the car had been crushed.
• Clearly, those letters can't both be correct.
• The OP does not appear to have actually gone to collect the car, but relied on the DVLA letter as truth.

If the DVLA letter was incorrect, and the car is waiting to be collected, that collection needs to happen otherwise eventually the compound will send the car to be crushed as unclaimed...

Still, the OP does not look like they will return to provide any update.

TBagpuss

I think the issue of liability will depend on exactly what happened.

On the face of it, the police are at fault as they are the ones who actually seized the vehicle. I agree with everyone saying that step one is to contact the impound and find out whether the car was, in fact crushed. (It may be that the DVLA letter was sent out automatically because the car was seized)

If that's the case, then you will need to collect the car and then speak to the DVLA about getting a new log book, which may need the police to provide confirmation confirming that it was seized in error and wasn't crushed.

If t was crushed, then I think it is unlikely that the company who crushed it were at fault, if they had the appropriate paperwork from the police. But even if they didn't, unless the police instructed them to hold it, and they crushed it instead, I suspect that the police as the ones who actually took it are liable, and they can argue it out with the pound.
Once you know whether or not car exists, speak to your insurers, They may be able to help you pursue a claim, either for compensation for the time you were without a car (although if the car isn't crushed, you are likely only to be entitled to compensation for the period between it being taken, and the police sending you the letter enabling you to get it back)  

If it was destroyed, you may be able to claim the cost from your insurer and leave them to recover their losses.

Robbo66

When a car is towed you have 14 days to contact the pound, if you don't then yes the vehicle is crushed

https://www.impoundedcar.co.uk/how-to-get-a-car-out-of-a-police-pound.html

DB1904

NBLondon said:

DB1904 said:

NBLondon said:

KimJongUn88 said:

We’ll have you got the letter which releases your vehicle from the pound? Have you tried getting the vehicle from the pound?

I think this has to be the first step...  once you have confirmation from the pound that they crushed it and notified DVLA then that can be taken further.   There must be a set period that the pound must wait before they are authorised to do that.  From the OP it seems that was done rather too quickly and thus it's probably the pound operator who is liable.

Does your car insurance include legal cover?  If so - then make use of that.  Firstly, you'll have to notify the insurance co that the car no longer exists.  I'm not sure if you could report it as stolen (if the police had legal right to seize it) - however the company that crushed the car has negligently destroyed your property and their insurers are the ones who should be paying you the value of the car.  If you can get your insurance company to provide a solicitor then they can do the chasing.

Have they? What if there has been a hearing at the local Magistrates Court and they have authorised disposal under the Police Property Act? If the company are in possession of that paperwork then how were they negligent?

OP says they have a letter from the police stating no connection and to collect the car with no charge.

If there was such a hearing - wouldn't the OP have been informed of that first?  And the letter from the police would say so?

Yes - it is possible that the pound/recovery company whoever did so with the correct paperwork so they are blameless - in which case the organisation (the court? the police force?)  that wrongly issued said paperwork has been negligent.

So it's a very good idea for the OP to get a solicitor (or their insurance company's solicitor) to be taking on this investigation.

It is and it highlights the problem had the OP taken your initial post on face value. 

DB1904

Robbo66 said:

When a car is towed you have 14 days to contact the pound, if you don't then yes the vehicle is crushed

https://www.impoundedcar.co.uk/how-to-get-a-car-out-of-a-police-pound.html

So the link you direct the OP to advises you produce a document that clearly states it's not proof of ownership as proof of ownership?

I suspect it'll contain more misleading advice if it were further read. 

Grumpy_chap

Robbo66 said:

When a car is towed you have 14 days to contact the pound, if you don't then yes the vehicle is crushed

https://www.impoundedcar.co.uk/how-to-get-a-car-out-of-a-police-pound.html

Perhaps that is what the DVLA letter said "your car has been towed and if you do not pay VED / insure / etc it will be crushed"

The OP won't say whether they actually visited the compound to collect the car and whether it actually has been crushed.

NBLondon

DB1904 said:

NBLondon said:

OP says they have a letter from the police stating no connection and to collect the car with no charge.

If there was such a hearing - wouldn't the OP have been informed of that first?  And the letter from the police would say so?

Yes - it is possible that the pound/recovery company whoever did so with the correct paperwork so they are blameless - in which case the organisation (the court? the police force?)  that wrongly issued said paperwork has been negligent.

So it's a very good idea for the OP to get a solicitor (or their insurance company's solicitor) to be taking on this investigation.

It is and it highlights the problem had the OP taken your initial post on face value. 

If the OP were to take my suggestions as written - they would be contacting the pound first and finding that out...  then getting hold of a solicitor to work out the next step.  They might even have read the bit where I suggested there must be a delay between the car being seized and the car being authorised to be crushed.  

But y'know - I'm here to try and help the OP within the limits of my knowledge and wisdom.... and the information they have passed on to us.  Do you have any better advice for the OP then?