The Act Commentary on Sections Abandoned vehicles Section 12 Disposal of abandoned vehicles
56.Section 12 relates to the steps a local authority must take before they can dispose of an abandoned vehicle.
57.Under section 4 of the Refuse Disposal (Amenity) Act 1978, prior to section 12 of this Act coming into force, a vehicle could only be destroyed immediately after removal where it had been removed under section 3(5) (being that it was in such a condition that it ought to be destroyed) and did not display a current licence. Where a current licence was displayed, this had to expire before destruction could take place. In other cases the local authority had to take steps to ascertain who the owner was and, if found, to serve a notice telling him of the vehicle’s removal. If no owner could be found, or the owner failed to respond to the notice within 7 days, the vehicle could then be disposed of unless it displayed a current licence. Again, if a licence was displayed, the authority had to wait for its expiry before destruction.
58.Waiting for the expiration of the licence led to further storage costs being incurred by local authorities where the vehicle was only fit for destruction or the owner either could not be traced or had chosen not to collect it.
59.Section 12 amends section 4 of the Refuse Disposal (Amenity) Act 1978 by removing the requirement to wait for the expiration of a valid licence. This has the effect of allowing any vehicle that is only fit for destruction to be destroyed immediately. In other cases, if the owner either cannot be traced or fails to respond to a notice the vehicle can then be disposed of.
60.This section also amends section 4 by allowing immediate disposal where neither a registration mark (plate) is shown or current licence displayed. Without that information, it is considered unreasonable to expect the authority to trace the owner (either of these would provide a way to check the DVLA register or make enquiries in other countries). This section allows these vehicles to be disposed of immediately.