I am trying to help a friend of mine, and am a little bit stuck. He’s suffering from severe depression and is unable to work, so is on benefits. He’s got a car that he hardly ever uses, so he was planning on selling it to help him with bills etc. He had parked it on a residential road with absolutely no parking restrictions, as he cannot afford a parking permit. It was not in anyone’s way whatsoever. Then a friend who lives near where he parked told him his car was gone. Due to his mental disability, he was unable to deal with this. I called Haringey Council car pound, and the car had been towed as they claimed it was dumped. Which it wasn’t. It was in good condition, no broken windows, flat tyres etc. The Council claim they have sent my friend a letter asking him to confirm that the car was not dumped. He never got the letter. They now want him to pay £200 + £40 per day. If he does not, the car will be destroyed at his cost.
He has not got the money to get the car out, so the cost just increases. So does his depression, this is more than he can even begin to consider dealing with. The added stress of money worries has made it worse. I have tried calling the Council on his behalf, but there is “nothing they can do” apparently.
The whole situation is absurd. Tjhey have kidnapped his legally parked car, they have not notified him like they should have, and are now effectively bullying a disabled man, refusing to let him have is car back, as he does not have the money to pay the ransom. And he certainly won’t have ythe money to pay them when they destroy his car. The car that was meant to pay for his food and rent for the next few months, he was trying to get to the stage where he could face dealing with selling it.
This is just so unfair, and it’s breaking my heart seeing what this does to him. Does anyone have any idea how to get this whole sorry mess sorted out?
Tags for Forum Posts: bastards, car, council, illegal, towed
THANK YOU!!! That's great. And no, he's not. He's got friends nearby, which is why the car was up there. And is how he knew it was gone quite soon after it went. No thanks to the council..
Does anyone have any idea how to contact the residents association for The Chime? Hours of Googeling has gotten me prcisely nowhere.
It doesn't really address the issue unfortunately - that the Council believed it was dumped.
If it is Council estate, then the Council would be within their rights to enforce restrictions.
I imagine that one of the residents complained to the Council, possibly saying it was dumped. Then the Council removed it on the basis that it did not belong to a resident.
I would have thought that the Council would be obliged to send your friend a notice by recorded delivery, otherwise they have no proof that he ever received the notice.
A final thought - people suffering from depression often don't open official-looking mail.
Good luck anyway.
How about giving the story to the Harringay and Hornsey Journal ?
www.hornseyjournal.co.uk/contact-us
If they want to use my pic, that's OK.
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