What happens when your car is impounded, and how to get it back

The police seize somewhere around 130,000 vehicles a year in the UK, and by far the most common reason is that the driver had no insurance. If your car is impounded, the clock started the moment the car went on the truck: storage is charged daily, the pound will only release it to someone with specific documents, and after 14 days it can be sold or crushed. Here is the process from seizure to release.

Why cars get seized

Under section 165A of the Road Traffic Act 1988, a police officer can seize a car on the spot if the driver cannot show they are insured, or does not hold a licence that covers the vehicle. That covers a lot of situations beyond deliberate uninsured driving: a policy that lapsed at renewal without you noticing, a named driver arrangement that turned out not to include you, a provisional licence holder driving without a supervisor, or a car bought that morning with the insurance not yet showing on the database. Our guide to driving without insurance covers the penalties that come alongside the seizure.

Cars are also seized for being driven in a way that causes alarm or distress (section 59 of the Police Reform Act), for being abandoned, for unpaid tax, and after being recovered from theft. Councils remove cars for parking offences. The fees below apply to police seizures under the Road Traffic Act; council removals have their own tariffs.

What it costs

The removal and storage charges for police seizures are set by regulation and were last raised in April 2023. For a car of up to 3.5 tonnes:

• Removal fee: £192, charged once. It can be higher if the car was on its side, in a ditch, or otherwise difficult to recover.
• Storage: £26 per day or part of a day, counted from noon on the day after seizure, weekends included.
• Disposal fee: £96 if you never collect it and the police dispose of it. You are still liable for the removal and storage costs up to that date, and forces use debt collection agencies to recover them.

A car collected on day seven costs £374 before you have bought any insurance. On day fourteen, £556. The arithmetic argues for moving fast.

On top of that you need insurance that the pound will accept, which for a seized car is a specialist policy of at least 30 days. Prices range from around £150 to £500, depending on the driver and the car. Insurers charge more than they do for ordinary short-term cover because an incident has already led to the car’s seizure.

The deadline

The police must give you the chance to reclaim the car before disposing of it. The police serve a seizure notice on the registered keeper, who then has 14 days from the date of the notice to collect the vehicle. Some forces will extend it if you ring and explain, and some will not. Miss it and the car is sold at auction or crushed, with the proceeds set against the fees.

There is also a minimum wait. Where the car was seized for no insurance, most forces will not release it until the driver has had the chance to produce documents at a police station, and in practice that means a few days. Ring the force’s vehicle recovery unit on day one and ask exactly what they need.

What you need to collect it

The pound is not the police station and it will not release a car on a promise. Bring all of the following, in original form:

1. Photo ID for the person collecting: passport or photocard licence.
2. Proof you are the registered keeper: the V5C. If it is missing, a DVLA V5C replacement takes days, so apply the same day. Our V5C guide covers the process.
3. Proof of address dated within the last three months.
4. A valid driving licence for whoever will drive the car out. Check what DVLA holds against you with the licence check before you go; a licence with a problem is a wasted trip.
5. Insurance that covers an impounded vehicle. This is the document most people get wrong. Standard annual policies and ordinary short-term policies almost always exclude impounded cars, and the pound checks. You need a policy that specifically states it covers release from a pound, usually for 30 days, in the name of the registered keeper.
6. Payment for the release and storage fees, by card.

If the car is untaxed the pound may also require you to tax it before release, or take a surety. Taxing it online takes five minutes once it is insured; our guide to taxing a car without insurance explains the order.

If you cannot collect it yourself

The keeper is expected to attend in person. If you cannot, because you are abroad, ill, or disqualified, most forces will release the car to a nominated person carrying a signed letter of authority from you, a copy of your ID, their own ID, and an impound policy that names them as a driver. Where the keeper is disqualified, insurers offer policies where the keeper is the policyholder but excluded from driving and a named driver collects; our guide to insuring a car without a driving licence covers that arrangement.

After you get it back

Two things people forget. First, the impound policy runs for 30 days and then stops; cancel it and the car is uninsured again, and Continuous Insurance Enforcement will spot that before the month is out. Arrange a proper annual policy before the 30 days expire, or SORN the car. Check it has gone on the database using the free insurance check.

Second, if the seizure was for no insurance you will also have a fixed penalty or court date to deal with, and the six points and conviction will need to be declared to every insurer for the next five years. That, more than the £374 at the pound, is the lasting cost.

If the car was seized after being stolen rather than because of anything you did, the process is similar but the fees are sometimes waived, and your own insurer may pay them; our guide to what happens if your car is stolen sets it out.

Frequently asked questions

How long do you have to get a car out of impound?

14 days from the seizure notice. Storage is charged for every day.

Can I get my car out of impound with temporary insurance?

Only if the policy specifically covers impounded vehicles. Ordinary one-day or one-week policies do not, and the pound will refuse them.

Can someone else collect my impounded car?

Usually, with a signed letter of authority, both sets of ID, and an impound policy naming them as a driver. Check with the force first.

What if I don’t want the car back?

You can abandon it, but you remain liable for the removal fee and any storage up to disposal, and forces pursue the debt.

Will my car insurance go up after a seizure?

If the seizure was for no insurance, the resulting conviction (an IN10) is one of the most heavily rated offences insurers see, and premiums commonly double or more.

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