Running total of cars seized

Chief Supt Phil Hollowood with the confiscated car outside force headquarters, as a warning to motorists.

SEIZED vehicles will be parked outside polices station in Greater Manchester in a bid to keep drivers on the straight and narrow.

The first car was unveiled at force headquarters in Trafford as a stark warning to people who drive without insurance, road tax, an MOT or a driving licence.

It will feature a running total of how many vehicles have been confiscated over the last year in the county.

The vehicles will be regularly changed to get across the message that officers seize all kinds of vehicles every day in a bid to keep the road safe.

Greater Manchester Police has seized 43,817 uninsured vehicles since it was given the power to do so in 2006. Many of them have been crushed.

Chief Supt Phil Hollowood, head of GMP’s Specialist Operations Branch, said: “We want to highlight that people who are driving vehicles that are not taxed, insured and MOTed are breaking the law and putting people’s lives at risk.

“Their vehicles tend to be unroadworthy, badly maintained and in some cases downright dangerous. Uninsured drivers can cause all kinds of complications in the event of a collision and can leave law-abiding drivers with no avenue for recompense.

“Our research shows that people who drive without appropriate documentation tend also to be involved in other criminality. By seizing and destroying cars from these rogue motorists we disrupt and deter a whole range of other crimes.”