Abandoned vehicles
Vehicles that are parked badly or left in a troublesome place, for example obstructing your driveway, do not necessarily fall under the definition of abandoned.
Abandoned vehicles
Abandoned vehicles are often:
- left in the same location for long periods of time (at least a month) and unattended
- neglected, insecure, in poor condition or vandalised
- leaking fluids, such as oil and coolant etc.
Scrap your car
If you need to dispose of your car you must use an Authorised Treatment Facility (ATF), authorised by the Environment Agency.
Some ATF’s will collect the vehicle for you if you are unable to take it to them and they may even give you some money for it. They will issue you with a Certificate of Destruction. There is a public register of ATF’s where you can search for a local provider.
For more information go to GOV.UK – Find a vehicle scrapyard .
Checking if a vehicle is abandoned
Before contacting us you should speak to your neighbours to see if they know who the car belongs to and also check if the car has a valid MOT and tax.
You can check if a car has a valid MOT and Tax on the DVLA website. It is unlikely to be abandoned if it has a valid MOT. Untaxed cars should then be reported on GOV.UK – Report untaxed vehicle . Alternatively contact them direct on 08000 325 202.
Remember that everyone has the right to park their car on a highway, even if they do not live in the street.
Report an abandoned vehicle
To report it use our abandoned vehicles form.
We will investigate the vehicle within five working days of it being reported. If we determine that there is no local registered keeper, we may remove a vehicle and dispose of it via recycling.
MyNelincs portal
We have recently launched a new customer portal called MyNelincs, which now includes the abandoned vehicle report form.
To make an abandoned vehicle report you will need to create a MyNelincs account. Read more about MyNelincs on the My account page.
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Contact details
Municipal offices, Town Hall Square, Grimsby, North East Lincolnshire, DN31 1HU
Telephone: 01472 326300, option 3