Decision status: Recommendations Approved
Is Key decision?: Yes
The report sets out the revised approach to dealing with abandoned vehicles, specifically enabling the Council to issue fixed penalty notices for the offence of abandonment. The report also sets out the Council’s approach for recovering its costs for the removal, storage and destruction of a vehicle it has deemed abandoned from its registered keeper.
That approval be given to the amendments to the Abandoned Vehicle Enforcement Policy so as to allow:-
(a) the issuing of a Fixed Penalty for the offence of abandonment, as set out in the Refuse Disposal (Amenity) Act 1978, as amended by the Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005, and as outlined in table 2 of section 4.1.7 of the report; and
(b) the Council to recover its costs for the removal, storage and destruction of abandoned vehicle from the registered keeper, as set out in the Refuse Disposal (Amenity) Act 1978 and The Removal, Storage and Disposal of Vehicles (Prescribed Sums and Charge) Regulations 2008, and as outlined in table 3 of section 4.1.8 of the report.
The Council is legally required to remove vehicles that it has determined to be abandoned. Historically the Council has absorbed the costs for their removal and storage. However, due to the increasing number of vehicles being removed as abandoned, combined with the financial pressure the Council is facing, this approach is no longer sustainable.
The Council could carry on with its current policy of removing vehicles for free. However, the number of reports of abandoned vehicles are increasing and, therefore, if nothing is done, the number will likely increase, placing further pressure on the Waste Management budget.
Publication date: 23/08/2016
Date of decision: 23/08/2016
Effective from: 31/08/2016
Accompanying Documents: