Abandoned vehicles

Under the Refuse Disposal (Amenity) Act 1978 Chichester District Council has a legal duty to  identify if a car is truly abandoned. This can be a costly process. Due to this cost, every effort will be made to trace the owner and request that they remove the vehicle.

If a vehicle has not been used or moved for a period of time it does not mean that it has been abandoned. After assessing each case, the council will use their discretion to declare whether a vehicle is abandoned or not.

• Report an abandoned vehicle
  • Vehicles you cannot report as abandoned
  • Vehicles you can report as abandoned
• Report a stolen vehicle
• Report an untaxed vehicle
• Abandoned vehicles on private land
• Abandoned vehicles on housing association sites, privately managed sites or developments
• Caravans and trailers

Report an abandoned vehicle

You can report a vehicle if you have checked the status of the vehicle and it has:

• No tax; and,
• matches 3 of the criteria listed for classing a vehicle as abandoned.

Report an abandoned vehicle

Vehicles you cannot report as abandoned

We cannot treat any of the following as abandoned vehicles:

• The vehicle is taxed and has a valid MOT.
• The vehicle has been on site for less than one month.
• The owner of the vehicle is known.
• The vehicle is being used/driven.
• The vehicle is contravening parking regulations.

Vehicles you can report as abandoned

A vehicle can be reported as abandoned if it is untaxed and matches any three of the following criteria:

• The vehicle is burnt out.
• The vehicle is just a shell.
• There are signs of general poor condition such as weeds, moss, dust.
• There are signs of neglect such as rust, dirty, scratched or dented.
• The vehicle is full of rubbish.
• The vehicle number plate is missing. 
• The vehicle has parts missing, such as bumper and tyres.
• There are signs of vandalism.
• The vehicle has flat tyres.
• The vehicle has wheels missing.
• The vehicle windscreen is broken or missing.
• Seats in the vehicle are missing.
• Doors in the vehicle are missing.
• Any of the vehicle doors are open.
• Any of the vehicle windows are broken or missing.
• The vehicle's bonnet is open.

Report a stolen vehicle

If you are concerned that a vehicle may be stolen, please report to the police on 101 online.

You can use the DVLA website to check if a vehicle is taxed (opens new window).

Report an untaxed vehicle

Vehicles which are in good condition, on public highways, and including those registered as SORN (Statutory Off Road Notification) can be reported. Please report untaxed vehicles. (opens new window).

Abandoned vehicles on private land

Chichester District Council has no direct power to remove vehicles on private land. We can only investigate and potentially remove from private land if:

• The vehicle is reported by the landowner after the landowner has made every effort to trace the owner of the vehicle.
• The landowner has given us permission to remove the vehicle. Permission must be given before Chichester District Council can authorise a collection.

If Chichester District Council are involved in the removal of a vehicle from private land, the land owner will be charged for the removal and storage of the vehicle.

Abandoned vehicles on housing association sites, privately managed sites or developments

If a potential abandoned vehicle is on housing association, or privately managed sites/development land, it must to be reported directly to the company involved. The company involved will have their own process to follow for removing abandoned vehicles.

Caravans and trailers

These should only be reported if they are clearly in a poor condition and are in a location such as a lay-by.