“Our message is straightforward, tax it or lose it” – North Wales Police now able to seize untaxed vehicles from the roadside

North Wales Police has taken ‘devolved powers’ from the DVLA allowing them to seize any untaxed vehicle from the roadside.

The law states that if a vehicle is untaxed it should be registered with a Statutory Off Road Notification (SORN), and kept on private property.

If a vehicle is reported or discovered through Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) as having no vehicle tax, North Wales Police can now remove it.

To reclaim a vehicle the owner must attend the garage with a V5, proof of identifications and proof of address.

Where an untaxed vehicle is seized the motorist will have to pay a release fee of £100 within 24 hours of the offence. Release 24 hours or more after the offence will rise to £200 and there will be a storage charge of £21 per day.

Sergeant Meurig Jones of the North Wales Police Roads Policing Unit said: “In reality, these devolved powers are an extension to the armoury that we already have available to us to remove unlawful vehicles from our roads.

“We have always been able to remove vehicles with no insurance or being driven by persons otherwise than in accordance with their licence. Now we can add untaxed vehicles to the list.

“This may seem low level compared to other types of crime that officers deal with, however, we are told time and time again that it’s a frustration for the communities where these cars are parked.

“By picking up on these sorts of crimes our officers and staff are able to better prevent and detect further criminality. If you don’t adhere to the laws of the road with a roadworthy vehicle, have insurance or tax then you simply should not be driving in a public place.

“Our message is straightforward – tax it or lose it.”

DVLA Head of Enforcement Tim Burton said: “We operate a range of measures to make vehicle tax easy to pay and hard to avoid, including online vehicle taxing and Direct Debit. We also continue to send reminder letters to vehicle keepers, which is why it is so important they notify the DVLA of a change of address or keeper.

“It is right that action is taken against those who don’t tax their vehicles and then drive them otherwise it wouldn’t be fair to those who do the right thing. We are delighted that North Wales Police are taking on these powers to make sure these untaxed vehicles are not driven on the road.”

If you believe that a vehicle does not have tax, you can use this link to check on the DVLA website, you can also use the link to report vehicles without tax direct to the DVLA

If you believe a vehicle is being used on the road illegally contact a member of your local policing team – giving as much details as you can such as vehicle make, registration and name of driver(s).