NOT Happy

[banni]

Get this- my bike was stolen couple of weeks back and found by the police not too far from my home.They took it in to impound for finger print analysis (whatever- if they even do that) and said they would ring when we could pick it up. Phoned last thur but was unable to get it straight away. Got a letter through the post demanding stating we had to pay 420 pounds to get it back. They have charged storage fee since the day they picked it up...I could have picked it up from day 1 in my van and not had to pay a bloody penny. :angry: :angry: :angry:

How do i get my money back?!! Any suggestions welcome (non violent) ...maybe

[Cov_AL]

Similar thing happened to me - the only (legal) thing that can be done is to catch the thieving toe-rag and get the money back through the courts...

[Goff]

Write a strong letter to the chief constable of your local cop shop TODAY, and also your local MP - they are usually pretty good at sorting stuff out - but keep your cool - getting shirty dont get you anywhere as i have learned!

Hand deliver the letter to the HQ where the Chief Constable is based and get a receipt

I would then get onto the local papers if you get no joy.

Were you informed that there would be any charges at any time? If not this will be your argument all the way.

Good luck and let us know how you get on.

I am an expert at writing snottograms so if you need any help - im yer gal

[Airhead]

The way i see it is

If you park a vehicle where you shouldnt, then you have commited an offence in the eyes of te law, if you then find your vehicle has been taken away and impounded, then thats just tough and you can expect to have to pay to get it back, we all know that this is common practice!

But in you case you are the victim of a crime and your vehicle has been impounded to take prints, now why should you have to pay for this, seems to me you are being treated no better than someone who commits parking offences, rather than a victim!

I should do what Goff says and kick up a fuss in the right places if i were you.

[Gas up - Let's Go!]

but keep your cool - getting shirty dont get you anywhere as i have learned!

Sound advice whenever dealing with Mr Plod - it's always the first test they apply, if you pass that one then you stand a chance, if not then you have no chance whatsoever.

Hand deliver the letter to the HQ where the Chief Constable is based and get a receipt

Personally, I'd use Royal Mail, send it Special Delivery, put it in a Brown Envelope (C5) and make sure it is adressed to the Chief Constable by name and in print, not handwriting - it sould also say "Opened by Adressee Only". Otherwise you run the risk of it being 'filtered' out.

Do you have any evidence to back up the fact that you enquired at the time ?? date & time of the call, itemised phone bill showing the number dialed, name of the person etc Nearly all calls are recorded now, so if you have the date & time then you have a starting point.

It may well be that the charges are not infact levied by the Police, but by a contractor/recovery firm - in that case you will be lucky to recover anything. You may find you get the "the insurance company is responsible" - not much good if you were 3PFT, but that's the way it goes.

The Police do have the power to authorise recovery firms (on your behalf) if they believe the vehicle is unsecured/causing a hazard (not sure of the correct term), the unfortunate fact remains that you are liable - it's a tough lesson, and it's fundementally wrong.

It may well be worth a trip to a Solicitor, you normally get the first 1/2 hour free - see what they say,

It's always worth a snot-O-gram, but the first thing to do is go and get the bike back to stop any further charges, then start your fight.

I would prepair yourself though, you will most certainly have to pay the recovery charges, and some storage - but you might be able to get back some of the excess storage if you can argue your case for uplifting it at the time you were advised of it's recovery.