Abandoned Vehicles and End of Life Vehicles

It is an offence under Section 71 of the Waste Management Act 1996 as amended to abandon a vehicle on any land and both the person who placed the vehicle at the place where it was abandoned and the registered owner are liable to be prosecuted with fines of up to €5,000 and/or 12 months in prison.

 The local authority may enter on any land upon which a vehicle has been abandoned and remove the said vehicle.  Where a vehicle is removed from land by the local authority, the local authority will endeavour to contact the registered owner by way of written notice as soon as it is possible thereafter.

 Abandoned vehicles may be claimed by the registered owner under certain circumstances and conditions but shall be subject to payment of recovery and storage costs incurred by the local authority before the vehicle can be returned.  It is important to note that the local authority has powers to dispose of vehicles under certain circumstances without notification to the registered owner. 

 Unwanted Vehicles/Scrap Vehicles/End-of-Life Vehicles

Cavan County Council is aware of a number of bogus collectors who are offering to collect vehicles for disposal.  It is an offence under the Waste Management Act 1996 as amended and the European Union (End-of-Life Vehicles) Regulations 2014 as amended to give a vehicle you intend to scrap to an unauthorised vehicle collector i.e. collector with no valid Waste Collection Permit.

 If you do, you may be liable to prosecution where fines of up to €5,000 and/or 12 months in prison could be imposed.  You are required by law to ensure that your unwanted vehicle/scrap vehicle/end of life vehicle is disposed of at an Authorised Treatment Facility (car dismantler) where you should request a certificate of destruction

 If an unwanted vehicle/scrap vehicle/end of life vehicle is being collected from your home, please ensure that the company removing the vehicle has a valid Waste Collection Permit that allows them to collect these vehicles.  If you suspect that they do not have a valid Waste Collection Permit, please contact the Waste Management Section, Cavan County Council.  For details of permitted waste collection contractors for end of life vehicles please visit www.nwcpo.ie.

Report an Abandoned Vehicle

To report an abandoned vehicle, contact the Waste Management Section on 049 4378409 or by email at waste@cavancoco.ie providing the following details:

• Vehicle Registration
• Colour/Make / Model
• Exact Location
• Period of time that vehicle has not been moved - Vehicles must not have moved for a minimum of 4 weeks
• Name and Contact Number
• A photo of the vehicle tax disc if possible.  This will help expedite the process.

The Council will arrange to investigate the matter.

If the vehicle is suspected of being abandoned the Council will then follow a procedure of issuing notifications to the registered owner.  This may also include affixing a notice to the vehicle.

The following should also be noted:

1. Vehicles on public roads which are causing obstruction or road safety hazard should be reported to the Gardai.
2. While a vehicle with no tax or insurance may be an indicator that a vehicle is abandoned, the issue of no tax or insurance on a vehicle on a public road does not automatically deem a vehicle abandoned.  Having no Tax or Insurance on a public road is a matter for the Gardai and does not fall under the remit of Cavan County Council.
3. Burned out vehicles should also be reported to the Gardai.  Burning out a vehicle is criminal behaviour.
4. Vehicles in estates which are owned by persons resident in the estate will not be deemed abandoned.
5. Vehicles on private lands, private car parks or in estates not taken in charge by the County Council will not be deemed abandoned or investigated.
6. Broken down vehicles, poorly parked vehicles or vehicles involved in residential parking disputes are not considered abandoned.