THURROCK Council says it is going to crack down on persistent bad parkers in the borough – and is set to start lifting and impounding their vehicles.

Owners of vehicles with three or more unpaid fines could find themselves having to pay a hefty sum to reclaim their vehicle or see it sold by the council.

The council has acted because it is missing out on a substantial amount of revenue. A report to the council's cabinet at present, there are more than 1,600 persistent evaders on record who between them who owe the council around £278,000.

Cabinet member for highways, Cllr Ben Maney, said: "Our officers issue fines to motorists that break parking rules but in some cases we need to take stronger action.

"Some vehicles are either not properly registered or have foreign number plates which means that fines do not ever reach their owners, often these motorists take advantage of that fact to park wherever they like irrespective of how it affects other road users and pedestrians.

"Persistent evaders are people who, more often than not, who engage in low level crime. Nearly always their vehicles are untaxed, they are not MOTed and uninsured and they are often linked to other low level crimes.

"So indirectly, by seeking to seize vehicles this has an impact on making Thurrock a safer place.

"We will seize the vehicles of persistent parking offenders and fine evaders and hold their vehicles until their fines have been paid in full, if they fail to pay we could possibly sell the vehicle to recover the debt. There will be no place for them to hide anymore when we implement this policy borough wide.

"This policy will also enable us to quickly and effectively remove any vehicle parked inconsiderately which causes danger, disruption or great inconvenience to others.

"Selfish parking can cause problems for neighbours and other road users. By introducing this policy we can take this issue in hand and punish those who think they can get away with it or create unnecessary danger on our roads."

In August the council also said it would be using its powers to seize cars as part of its war on fly-tippers.