Met clamps down on vehicle crime and anti-social driving by seizing sixty supercars

Met clamps down on vehicle crime and anti-social driving by seizing sixty supercars

The Met removed more than sixty supercars from the roads in central London last week, alongside five arrests as officers cracked down on nuisance drivers.

Westminster local residents complained about cars driving poorly or at high-speed. As a result, the Met worked with Westminster City Council and the Motor Insurers' Bureau on an intelligence led operation to remove nuisance drivers who drive around the area more frequently in the summer months.

The operation launched on the evening of Friday, 2 August and ran across that weekend seizing £6 million worth of cars including McLaren, Bentley, Rolls Royce, Ferrari and Lamborghini, preventing further causing harm on the roads.

Officers also made five arrests, including for insurance fraud, using a mobile phone at the wheel, not using a seatbelt and driving without due care.

Metropolitan Police Special Inspector Geoff Tatman said: “The Met is working to put communities first - listening to and tackling their concerns.

“This hugely successful operation has proved we are dealing with those crimes, such as anti-social driving, that is causing most distress to residents and tourists.

“This brilliant partnership work between the Met’s Vehicle Enforcement Team, Motor Insurers' Bureau and Westminster City Council demonstrates to Londoners we are doubling down on crime on the roads.

“It’s also testament to the hard work and dedication of the Met Special Constables – volunteer police officers - that play a vital role in our mission to make London safer and kindly give up their free time help serve the community.”

Councillor Paul Dimoldenberg, Cabinet Member for City Management at Westminster City Council said: “People who think it is ok to use our roads as their own private racetrack late at night are not welcome in Westminster.

“The noise and dangerous driving from these boy racers is often worse during the summer, so I welcome these results from the enforcement work. This underlines the council’s zero tolerance approach to anti-social driving. 

“We will continue to work alongside the police and other local authorities to make sure the racing stays on the racetrack and not on our streets.”

The Vehicle Recovery and Examination Services is a crucial part of the Met’s drive to tackle vehicle crime on the streets of London. It operates around the clock and removes and recovers thousands of vehicles as well as offering support to everything on the roads, from two- wheel bikes to HGVs.

The unique department works in partnership with a number of external agencies and Met contractors to remove, recover, restore and dispose of vehicles that are involved in collisions; those involved in serious and organised crime that require forensic examinations or those that are seized under Police powers for no insurance or being unlicensed.