Battered car causes anger by blocking Old Town pavement for weeks

The chase took place in December and ended when the car involved crashed into a lamppost. It was then seized by police as part of their investigations.

But, a few weeks later the car appeared in Seacole Crescent, Okus, in Old Town, much to the dismay of locals who were unhappy that the banged up, abandoned car was blocking a footpath. 

One local, Matt Parmenter, said he was concerned about children playing near the car's broken sharp metal edges and has tried to get someone to move it 

"It was taken away and then a while later a tow truck offloaded it onto the street and it hasn't move since," he said. 

The aftermath of the chase that led to the car crashing (Image: Matt Parmenter)

Frustrated that it had been dumped there, Matt called the police who told him it wasn't their issue anymore.

Matt also reported it to the council for bad parking, which was also dismissed.

He eventually resorted to posting on Facebook, asking: "How come a car that was involved in a police chase, that has no MOT, no car tax, and no insurance be allowed to park on the public path and road?

"I have tried anyone and no one is interested. It is dangerous just sitting there on a corner of a street."

Matt tried again by reporting it as an abandoned vehicle, which proved more fruitful. 

Councillor Kevin Parry, Swindon Borough Council’s cabinet member for waste collection and disposal & highways maintenance, said: “We always try to remove abandoned cars as quickly as possible, but there is a legal process we have to follow first. We have been out to inspect the vehicle in question and have placed a 15-day removal notice on it.

“If the owner does not remove the vehicle after this period, we can then make arrangements to remove it.”

That period runs out in a number of days. 

But as for how the car ended up in its inconvenient resting place, a Wiltshire Police spokesperson said: "It was seized as part of our investigation due to having no insurance.

"The owner arranged to have the vehicle collected. It is now the owner’s responsibility to move the vehicle to a safe place.

"There is no further police involvement regarding this matter."

Update: The Adver has learned that after the council's removal notice was issued the car in question has since been moved