Abandoned and nuisance vehicles

Abandoned vehicles

• If the vehicle is taxed or has a known owner it is not classified as abandoned. We cannot take any further action.
• If a vehicle is being driven, it cannot be abandoned. To report a vehicle that is being driven untaxed, please call the DVLA on 0300 7906802 or report online at www.dft.gov.uk/dvla/untaxedvehicle.

There is no statutory definition of an abandoned vehicle, and factors to be taken into account include, but are not limited to, current tax, MOT status, length of time at location, damage to vehicle and whether or not it is claimed.

Each year, Three Rivers District Council receives a large number of reports of vehicles being abandoned, all of which are investigated, with only a small amount that are actually abandoned. Every case is different, but as a rule of thumb, Three Rivers District Council will not consider taxed vehicles to be abandoned  You can check a vehicle’s tax status by visiting Check if a vehicle is taxed - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) and entering the vehicle's registration number.

If you believe that a vehicle may have been stolen or it is causing an obstruction, you should report this to the police by calling 101 or visiting www.herts.police.uk/ro/report/

Please note that vehicles subject to arson are crime scenes and should be reported to the police by calling 101.

We can remove any vehicle we think is abandoned under the Refuse Disposal (Amenity) Act 1978.

Report an abandoned vehicle

If you believe a vehicle is abandoned, please report it to us.

You will need to tell us:

• the vehicle registration number
• the make, model and colour of the vehicle
• the location of the vehicle