Devon’s police have predicted £300,000 of income from its vehicle recovery scheme in a year.
The estimate has been published in a response to a Freedom of Information request on the Devon & Cornwall Police website.
The £300,000 figure for the financial year that has just ended on 5 April, would be a roughly 15 per cent rise on the nearly £261,000 of income it secured in the 2024/25 financial year.
Annual costs of running the recovery scheme are expected to be around £215,000 this year, meaning an estimated surplus of more than £84,000.
That would be a jump from the less than £32,000 surplus it earned in the previous financial year.
The force’s vehicle recovery scheme covers the likes of those seized for having no insurance, abandoned vehicles, breakdowns, burnt out vehicles and those damaged in accidents or linked to serious crime or stolen and abandoned, among others.
The income is secured through charges levied upon the owners and through sales of vehicles at auctions, allowed through the Removal, Storage and Disposal of Motor Vehicle (Amendment) Regulations 2023.
Fees can range from £192 for smaller vehicles that are recovered and are not substantially damaged, through to £7,684 for a laden large vehicle that is off-road but either not upright, is substantially damaged, or both.
The remaining cash that exists after various costs, including auction fees, helps run the recovery scheme, which includes staffing costs and any other overheads.
The force said it had 13 premises in total where seized or recovered vehicles were stored.
The response to the FOI was given by the force on 17 March. Given how close that is to the end of the financial year, it would suggest the prediction will be relatively close to reality.
Bid for £2m lottery funding to amplify East Devon town’s ‘natural crown jewels’
Date set for Newton Abbot planning inquiry
Efforts to tackle East Devon town’s coastal issues like ‘spinning plates’
Exeter flats plan could be risk to Roman ruins
Budleigh Salterton as you’ve never seen it before!
Exeter Sea Cadets help keep the city tidy with successful litter pick
Sidmouth Volunteers & Road Wardens Fix Over 400 Potholes, Saving Significant Costs
Red Arrows and RAF Dakota to head up Regatta Airshow 2026!
