impounding cars

After my accident back in Jan 2003 the police got my bike recovered. When I asked the cops where they had it recovered too they told me the name of the recovery service. They didn't even exist. When I went back to the police they said that they did not know where it got recovered too. Basically I had to sit at home and wait for the recovery service to contact me.......

They did afer 6 WEEKS. £150 recovery and £8 per day storage. When I finally managed to get a trailer to pick it up (they wanted another £150 to deliver it). I found it propped up against a wall at the back of the yard. If that wasn't bad enough, the address that they gave me where the bike was, wasn't. From there I was sent across the other side of London. When I got to that yard it wasn't there either. By this time I had lost it, and told the little oik at the desk, that if he didn't f**king phone someone immediatly and find out where my bike was I would kick his office windows in. Finally found my bike ( 10 miles from my house). To cap it all they charged me for using my visa card and not paying in cash.


And the name of this recovery service? Lantern recovery. Please, never use this rip off outfit.

[embee]

.......as I said, we're talking thieving lying scrounging corrupt devious untrustworthy b@$t@rd$ here.

The thieves that is, the thieves.

Originally Posted by Rob S (Yella)

After my accident a bystander offered to store my bike in her garden and she had a proper bike trailer to move it with and lived just yards from the crash.

But

The police said no and got a firm to take it away and store it.

They did this to cover themselves in the event of your bike being lost/stolen after leaving it with a previously unknown and potentially uninsured third party.

Suppose they left is with this person and it went missing. You'd sue the police, wouldn't you?

Normal procedure is for the car to be recovered back to a secure compound, we do not mess around trying to organise the RO collecting the vehicle also if the car has been stolen then the vehicle will have to be examined by SOC.....the costs incurred for reovery and storage is not set by the police and the RO is advised that they should claim off their insurance for the costs, esp if there was damage to the vehicle.

If you are informed that your vehicle has been found and it is still in situ then you can decline any form of forensics and if the vehicle is road legal then you can just get in it and drive it away (happened to me when a lady found her own car, she refused any further police action) but normally the car is found dumped at stupid o'clock or when it is hectic and you need to secure and preserve evidence....

Any further questions??????

[embee]

fraser, am I right in believing that if the vehicle is removed to a secure compound "for forensics", then there should be no charge. This is definitely what has been confirmed by the West Mids Police PR folks on local radio (although they seem to still try to charge for it unless the "victim" objects).

Is it a nationwide principle or is it determined by each force?

Originally Posted by embee

fraser, am I right in believing that if the vehicle is removed to a secure compound "for forensics", then there should be no charge. This is definitely what has been confirmed by the West Mids Police PR folks on local radio (although they seem to still try to charge for it unless the "victim" objects).

Is it a nationwide principle or is it determined by each force?

I cannot speak for West Mids Police as this may be something that they have running with the recovery companies....however the majority of companies for example here in Hampshire are independent of the police and still require payment etc, that is why everyone is told to claim through their insurance unless of course you have 100 odd quid kicking around, these are costs that the insurance companies normally pick up and expect to pick up when a vehicle has been stolen.

As you mention last in your post, i think this is determined by each force.

[Sid Squid]

Originally Posted by fraser01

Any further questions???????

Just one, but possibly not for you directly:

Why do I pay tax?

I mean why should you need to pay extra when you have become the victim of a crime for example, this smacks heavily of screwing the identifiable wallet rather than the responsible one.

Ker-ching.

[embee]

Originally Posted by Sid Squid

Why do I pay tax?
...........
Ker-ching.

you must have seen the new (old?) 3 line tax return

1 - how much do you earn?
2 - how much have you got left?
3 - send it.

Originally Posted by Sid Squid

Just one, but possibly not for you directly:

Why do I pay tax?

I mean why should you need to pay extra when you have become the victim of a crime for example, this smacks heavily of screwing the identifiable wallet rather than the responsible one.

Ker-ching.

um...."no comment"

Originally Posted by embee

fraser, am I right in believing that if the vehicle is removed to a secure compound "for forensics", then there should be no charge. This is definitely what has been confirmed by the West Mids Police PR folks on local radio (although they seem to still try to charge for it unless the "victim" objects).

Originally Posted by fraser01

....however the majority of companies for example here in Hampshire are independent of the police and still require payment etc, that is why everyone is told to claim through their insurance unless of course you have 100 odd quid kicking around, these are costs that the insurance companies normally pick up and expect to pick up when a vehicle has been stolen.

My car was nicked in Solihull two months ago (police did a brilliant job and recovered in 24 hours). It was taken to a garage for the WM police to examine and the garage did charge even though it was being held for the SOCO (not just me either - got talking to a couple of other blokes who's cages got taken that weekend and going through same process).

But as Fraser says, call your insurance company and they will pick up the vehicle, pay the bill without question (mine was £30 and deliver to you or garage if needing fixed. Insurance companies might be robbers but they are quite slick at this - any delay costs them extra recovery charges.

Liam