I removed my wheel once after my car was clamped, after jacking it up, deflating the tyre, and using windscreen washer fluid to lubricate the tyre past the clamp, I was away, with the clamp in my boot.
When I was caught up with a few days later, I said to them if you attatch your property to my vehicle, then it's obxious that when I move my vehicle, your property will follow.
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To prevent her car from being driven away/stolen whilst parked in backstreets in central Manchester, my daughter-in-law bought a clamp from Halfords and attached it to the front wheel. All went well for a couple of weeks until one day she was in a hurry and forgot to remove the clamp before driving off. There was a banging noise, and the clamp detached without any visible damage to anything. I don't recommend that anyone else do that.
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Homer Simpson did that in his pink sedan, and it ripped the wing off, she was lucky!
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Carver, as you parked elsewhere than on a public road or obviously public car park, I assume you would also park on someone else's driveway?
Not any different is it???
Or do I need a wheel clamping sign on my driveway?
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LongDriver - Carver might be guilty of dumping his vehicle where it annoys someone, but that's not what we are focusing on in this thread. What we are discussing is whether removal of a clamp that was attached to his vehicle by some local self elected busy body will have any repercussions in the future. And the answer is no. The clamp is gone, the clamper had no legal right to perform any parking attendant duties in the first place. It doesn't matter if it was private land or not. If they had problem with vehicle they could have called for legitimate traffic wardens or council parking attendants, instead of playing vigilante. If they attempt to sue or recover money for damaged or missing clamp you can always sue back for damaged alloy or time wasted recovering the vehicle.
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Was being devil's advocate, however the council or a traffic warden or similar wouldn't be able to do anything about a vehicle parked on private land!
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The 'clamp' has been removed using only a junior hacksaw (it did take 40 odd minutes) i have phoned them and they say that that i owe them 50 quid. What can they do/ Is it possible for them to get my address and details from my registration?
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Tell them they owe you £100 for damage to your alloy wheel.
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I'd have a guess that they could probably sue you for the damage to the clamp and perhaps even get the police interested in criminal damage.
I'd be a little careful. Even if they were not within their rights clamping your car, you are not neccessarily within yours damaging it while removing.
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Perhaps, if all you did was cut through a link in the chain, you could get a friend with some welding gear to "repair" the clamp, and then offer to return it to its owner in exchange for some nominal fee for the inconvenience.
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The point about a real clamp is that it has a plate covering the wheel nuts so that you can't simply use the wheel brace to remove the wheel. I don't see how a bit of chain, however big, could do that.
With the wheel safely removed you could have given thought to removing the chain at your leisure without damaging it. Deflating the tyre sounds a good idea, but obviously not if it went through the spokes. A locksmith could presumably get the padlock open undamaged.
It doesn't sound as if Halfords wheel clamps are that effective.
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So they've gone from a demand for £200, enforced by a micky mouse wheelclamp, to a request for £50 now that you've got out of it?
I'd be tempted to pop down to the hardware shop, buy a length of similar chain (or replacement lock if that's what you hacked away) and drop it off with a note calling it quits. I really can't see the police being too interested given the circumstances and the interesting caselaw on dodgy clampers. I also don't see them pursuing the matter, either.
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d be tempted to pop down to the hardware shop, buy a length of similar chain (or replacement lock if that's what you hacked away) and drop it off with a note calling it quits.
Considering that it probably was private property, and that it really should have been evident that it wasn't a proper place to park (just as the owners should have known better than to clamp without warning), that does sound like a fair compromise, from which all concerned could maybe perhaps learn something
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Compromise my hairy backside!
Good grief; some low-brow navvy, half a chromosone from being the missing link, shoves a chain through your wheel and demands £200. That's as close to demanding money with menaces as it gets.
Quoting from the appeal case mentioned by DVD further up this thread " It was not, however, a case for award of exemplary damages: the conduct of the council and their contractor could not be described as insolent, malicious or cruel, nor was it calculated to make a profit exceeding any likely compensation payable."
In this case the action of the builder is clearly malicious and calculated to make a profit etc, etc, particularly in the absence of any notices warning of clamping.
Regardless of the rights and wrongs of parking on this piece of land, tell them to shove the chain as far as it will go. If they take action against you for damage to the chain, counter-claim for demanding money with menaces and trespass against your vehicle and see who coughs first.
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As I said earlier- no car, no 'clamp', no picture of the car=no chance of getting any money out of you.
Personally I think you've already begun to incriminate yourself by contacting them. If it were me it couldn't have been my car as I wasn't there. If they want to prove it was you they need picture evidence.
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Buy a similar chain and lock, leave it through the wheels of the MD of the building company and attach a note saying that you're sending them the keys in the second class post. No demands, no menaces, and they get a replacement lock and chain.
V
PS. I'd pop round next time you're in the area and get a photo so you'll be able to show there were no warning signs (in case they decide to pursue and put up a sign).
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Vin, that is absolutely inspired. I´ll remember it.........
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Good grief; some low-brow navvy, half a chromosone from being the missing link,
How unkind to my colleagues - I thought they were showing a remarkable level of entrepeneurial initiative!
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I am with ND on this one. Demanding money with menaces.
The only point I don't understand is why you wanted to contact them. I would have left the chain and padlock on the ground and driven away. I believe that DVLA does provide (sell?) registration details to those who they believe have a 'legitimate' need for them but I can't see the building company coughing up for this and even if they contacted me I would have followed the 'you prove I was there line'. Let sleeping dogs lie.
As for the police who knows what they would do. Their behaviour is so bizarre these days they could prosecute you/the builder/no one/me/ET.
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I do hope you haven't provided this low-life with any contact details.If not,forget it,do not contact them again,you are leaving yourself open to a charge of criminal damage
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Compromise my hairy backside! Good grief; some low-brow navvy, half a chromosone from being the missing link, shoves a chain through your wheel and demands £200. That's as close to demanding money with menaces as it gets.
I have no desire to compromise your hairy backside, but, yes, I guess you're right. £200 is menacing, though I suspect the controlling mind is not your stereotyped toiler, but his gaffer
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Who says I wasn't referring to the gaffer? In my experience they're the ones to watch out for and tend to be the ones with the dragging knuckles. The guy on the sharp end of the wheelbarrow tends to be a more honest and straightforward type altogether.
::mental note to self; don't use term "Navvy" in future to avoid confusion::
:completely mental note to self; backside is safe in company of NoWheels::
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I thought it was illegal to tamper with a motor vehicle without the owner's consent. Could it not be contested that attaching a wheel clamp is illegal tampering?
Cheers, SS
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It is if there aren't signs to advise you that your car will be clamped if you park there blah blah blah yakkity schmackity.
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