S.O.S for P.O.S.

[Semi-C]

Out of my peripheries, I did spy a Proton resting in a privately managed car park in Bury Noel Edmunds.

Being a perpetual perv I did proceed to head on over and cast a gaze (and some pearls) over aforementioned Proton.

Tis badermatic'd and sporting it's original wheeltrims and dealer supplied G REG number plates.

Couldn't resist scribbling a note enquiring as to whether it's owner would be interested in selling Z vehicle.

As I was about to slide my note under it's windscreen wiper I then noticed the Jan 14 tax disc in't window and the illegible, mulched remains of another note (I presume, from the car park management, chasing it's unpaid dues)

 

In a Fred Dinenage pestering fashion, How would y'all go about trying to rescue this poor Proton from it's inevitable vandalising/scrapping?

 

Contact D.V.L.A? Contact Car Park management? Contact The Peelers?

I'm unsure as to whether alerting any of the aforementioned agencies would only accelerate the demise of this saveable gem.

 

What to do?

What to do?

What to do?....

[mat_the_cat]

 

Presumably if the DVLA have been unable to trace the legal owner, the next stage would be selling or scrapping to recover costs. It would make sense in such a case, for them to accept an offer or around market value for it, as it saves them the hassle of arranging disposal. Do you reckon you'd be able to contact a DVLA employee with common sense?

[spike60]

 Do you reckon you'd be able to contact a DVLA employee with common sense?

 

NO

[brickwall]

 

Anyway, it seems this could be a lot of hassle. My friend in Carlisle got ownership of a car that was abandoned and he only had to deal with the council and then get the DVLA to send a new V5. Having to deal with the DVLA and a private firm could be troublesome.

 

You can at least ask as there still could be a chance of win.

[jbz2079]

That's a problem today, no one will give you the registered keepers information unless you have a valid legal reason to need it.

The only was really is to contact the  place where it's parked.

[Mr Lobster]

a DVLA employee with common sense?

 

[catsinthewelder]

Is the privately managed carpark a small local concern or a big corporation?  A small firm may welcome an approach that would save them having to call in the debt collectors and might pass you the details that they can get from the DVLA. 

 

A big firm will tell you to FRO as they'll have a department somewhere else that deals with dozens of abandoned cars a month and it's not worth the hassle to do something differently.

[Semi-C]

Is the privately managed carpark a small local concern or a big corporation?  A small firm may welcome an approach that would save them having to call in the debt collectors and might pass you the details that they can get from the DVLA. 

 

A big firm will tell you to FRO as they'll have a department somewhere else that deals with dozens of abandoned cars a month and it's not worth the hassle to do something differently.

I believe the firm managing this car park is "Citypark"??. Whether that is NCP in disguise I know knot.

The contact number on the boards displayed around the place is an automated line that doesn't accept calls from land lines.

I'm set to slide a revised laminated note under it's wiper tonight but I fear that by the time it would be discovered and read, it would already be too late.

[Semi-C]

 

Presumably if the DVLA have been unable to trace the legal owner, the next stage would be selling or scrapping to recover costs. It would make sense in such a case, for them to accept an offer or around market value for it, as it saves them the hassle of arranging disposal. Do you reckon you'd be able to contact a DVLA employee with common sense?

Dared to find a D.V.L.A employee who may help - Got fobbed off with "all 270 of our lines are busy" message.

To be fair though, the voice that fobbed me off did sound reasonably sensible.

[mat_the_cat]

If it's read by the firm who does the disposal, and if they figure they can sell it to you for more money than they'd otherwise get you may be in luck!

[derek9213]

Dared to find a D.V.L.A employee who may help - Got fobbed off with "all 270 of our lines are busy" message.

To be fair though, the voice that fobbed me off did sound reasonably sensible.

 

thats because it was an automated voice.....its only once you get past that and onto a human that it becomes apparent they are all as thick as shit in the neck of a bottle

[the judge]

As Mat said,recover dvla costs.Costs for a car sitting still? this country etc I blame the parents etc etc

[Asimo]

That's a problem today, no one will give you the registered keepers information unless you have a valid legal reason to need it.

The only was really is to contact the  place where it's parked.

 

Wanting to offer to purchase is a reasonable reason to trace the owner. I am sure there is a way of doing this through the DVLA. It does involve contacting them in writing, it cannot be done through the website.

 

From their website: www.gov.uk/request-information-from-dvla

Request information about a vehicle's registered keeper from DVLA

You can request details of a vehicle’s registered keeper and certain other information from DVLA if you have ‘reasonable cause’.

Why you might make a request

‘Reasonable cause’ can include:

• finding out who was responsible for an accident
• tracing the owner of an abandoned vehicle
• issuing parking tickets
• tracing people responsible for driving off without paying for goods and services
• tracing vehicle owners suspected of insurance fraud

What information you can request

You can ask for:

• details of a vehicle’s registered keeper
• information about previous keepers for a vehicle now registered in your name
• information the DVLA holds about you

Make a request

You’ll have to fill in a form and apply by post. The form you need to use depends on who is making the request, and why.

Details of how to pay and where to send your application are on each form.

[Semi-C]

Well, I placed the note of futility under the Proton's wipers last night and sneaked a pinhole camera pic of it:

 

 

 

Next port of call, D.V.L.A website to retrieve a form for contacting registered keeper.

 

Digits crossed

[eddyramrod]

That looks remarkably tidy!  Good luck!

[Semi-C]

I had designs that my next scribbling's on this subject would be a progress report sprinkled with hope...

Alas, twas not to be.

With V888 form despatched, I began the wait.

Then I got impatient and attempted to make telephone contact with the private car park overlords.

I soon realised that my time would be better spent germinating Lego bricks or fashioning a podium from talc.

Still waiting for a D.V.L.A response (or a phone call from any reader of my windscreen note) I patrolled it's hilltop holding today, only emptiness now resides where there once was Proton.

Fack!

Lest we forget G905 MPW.

[STUNO]

Surely if it is a private owned public car park there is some means of contacting the carpark owners, the people who would be my first contact . Does the sign in front of the car have a contact number / website etc. Assumedly if it is abandoned they become responsible for its disposal.

"The Proton in XYZ street carpark sir. I know that car, in fact it has just had a cert. of destruction issued 15 minutes ago. Was it your car sir?"

 

Of course the OWNER might just have returned from holiday and driven off in it!