How do the Local Authority arrange the removal of abandoned vehicles?

If you would like to report an abandoned vehicle please call 01473 825889 with as much information as possible about the make of vehicle, registration number, exact location and your name and address. Or use One Suffolk's Report a Problem facility.

Reports of abandoned vehicles are logged onto a database computer system and the registrations are checked instantly with the Driving Vehicle and Licensing Agency (DVLA) to ascertain registered keeper details. The council has a linked computer system to do this. All vehicle details are also passed to Suffolk Police HQ in case they have been used in crime.

Attempts are made to contact the keeper, by letter or a visit, to determine if the vehicle is genuinely abandoned (a number of reports are in fact parking disputes rather than abandoned vehicles).

The vehicle is inspected, a checklist completed and photographs taken to determine if the vehicle has been abandoned. If, in the opinion of the council, the vehicle is abandoned, a notice is served. This gives the owner an opportunity to claim/remove the vehicle.

Once the notice period has passed the vehicle is removed and destroyed on behalf of Suffolk County Council. The prescribed costs are passed to the registered keeper – these are £150 for the removal for a vehicle and an additional £75 for its destruction. 

The Environmental ProtectionTeam works closely with a number of other organisations. Successful speedy removal of abandoned vehicles depends on access to accurate information. These processes are subject to prescribed periods and the availability of information from other agencies.