Abandoned Vehicles

What is an Abandoned Vehicle? (ABV)

An abandoned vehicle is one that appears not to be in regular use, usually 3 months or more (unless on private land with the landowner or occupier's permission) for which no owner can be found or traced.

The Council cannot remove a vehicle causing an obstruction.

To be classed as an abandoned vehicle it must meet at least two of the following criteria before an inspection is carried out:

• Bodywork damage

• Broken windscreen/windows

• Missing wheels

• Litter or weeds under the vehicle

• Rusty brakes

• Flat tyres

• Broken lights

• Leaking fluids

• Excessive waste in the vehicle

• Increased fire risk

Just because a vehicle is in poor condition and/or out of tax does not necessarily mean that it is abandoned and therefore on occasions additional enquiries may have to be made to establish whether or not the vehicle is abandoned before the Council can remove it. 

Vehicles that are obstructively or dangerously parked, irrespective of whether a vehicle is taxed or not, Must be reported to the police as they can arrange for the vehicle to be dealt with immediately.

Vehicle tax changes

The paper tax discs are no longer issued. Vehicle tax still needs to be paid but the DVLA now has a digital record of who has and has not paid.

You can check the tax status of any vehicle including those abandoned at:

• www.gov.uk/check-vehicle-tax

If the vehicle is untaxed you can report to the DVLA at: 

• https://forms.dft.gov.uk/report-an-untaxed-vehicle/

Or report it to Stroud District Council at: 

• Report an abandoned vehicle

To report an abandoned vehicle we require the following information:- 

• The location of the vehicle (outside house no....., opposite......)
• The make, model and colour of the vehicle
• Tax status
• The registration no. of the vehicle
• How long has it been in it's current position
• What is the general condition of the vehicle

Reporting abandoned vehicles

• Report an abandoned vehicle

The vehicle is abandoned on private land - what do I do?

Vehicles on private land the Council has no direct powers to remove vehicles on private land. The Council can only remove vehicles from private land if the request comes from the Land Owner.