Abandoned Vehicles

Abandoned vehicles

The Council has the power to remove any vehicle that we consider to be abandoned under the Refuse Disposal (Amenity) Act, 1978. However, legally the car can only be removed once the council has made sufficient provision to ensure that the vehicle is abandoned and has no registered owner.

How do I know if a vehicle is abandoned?

When considering whether a vehicle is abandoned or not, there are a series of guidelines you can follow:

• Has the vehicle remained in the same location for a minimum of 21 days?
• Is the vehicle in poor condition? (e.g. the state of the tyres, has it been vandalised?)
• Is the vehicle taxed?

You can check if a vehicle is taxed or not by entering its registration number (license plate) and make on: http://www.vehicleenquiry.service.gov.uk/

Reporting an abandoned vehicle

If you believe a vehicle is abandoned, please complete the Abandoned vehicle online report form.

How long will it take to be removed?

Due to the investigation required to identify and ensure a vehicle is abandoned, it generally takes 3-4 weeks to complete the processing of an abandoned vehicle. However, the amount of time needed to reach an outcome may vary depending on various situations encountered. For example, if the vehicle is claimed, it may only take a few days to fully process a report. 

Once the council deems a vehicle is abandoned, it may take further time to remove if the vehicle is situated on private property, as the council has to contact the land owner in regards to liability of any claims and/or charges after the removal of the vehicle.

Free vehicle removal

If you are a resident within Three Rivers District Council, we offer a free removal scheme for those who wish to dispose of a vehicle.

For this we require the location of the vehicle, your contact details and proof of ownership in the form of an ownership V5 document.

These documents should be sent to:

Environmental Protection
Three Rivers District Council
Three Rivers House
Northway
Rickmansworth
Hertfordshire, WD3 1RL

If you have any further queries regarding this scheme then you contact us via our Online contact form

What is a nuisance vehicle?

A nuisance vehicle comes under the Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act, 2005 and if the vehicle is deemed a nuisance, authorised officers then have the power to issue a fixed penalty notice of £100.

 A vehicle can be considered a nuisance if:

• It is parked within 500 meters of another vehicle, where both are being advertised as for sale
• If it is having restricted work being done to it on a road (this includes repairs, maintenance, servicing, improvement or dismantling).

If you believe a vehicle falls under these conditions, you can report it via our Online contact form

In your email, please include why you believe it is a nuisance vehicle, the registration number (license plate), the location, make, model and colour of the car and also your name and contact details (which will not be released).