Private company had no right to tow your car

Legal basis

Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 s.54 (in England and Wales it is a criminal offence to move/tow or immobilise a vehicle without lawful authority; s.54(2) — the driver's consent to park is NOT lawful authority; s.54(3) — the only carve-out is a fixed barrier already in place when the vehicle was parked); PoFA 2012 Schedule 4 (confers on a private operator only a right to recover the parking charge from the driver or keeper, never a right to remove the vehicle); Black v Carmichael 1992 SLT 897 (Scotland — detaining a vehicle and demanding a release fee is theft, and the demand is extortion); Torts (Interference with Goods) Act 1977 (conversion / wrongful interference — the release and storage fees are recoverable); common law trespass to goods; Vine v Waltham Forest LBC [2000] 1 WLR 2383 (removal or immobilisation on private land must rest on lawful authority)

How to identify this in your case

Vehicle was towed from private land (car park, retail park, private road, residential block) by a private operator or their contractor and you were charged a release/storage fee. No court order, no police involvement, no statutory abandoned-vehicle notice procedure followed.

Sample appeal wording

Dear [OPERATOR], Re: Vehicle [REG] removed from [LOCATION] on [DATE] — Demand for return / refund of release and storage fees totalling £[AMOUNT] On [DATE] my vehicle was removed from the above location by [you / your contractor]. I dispute the legality of the removal and demand a full refund of £[AMOUNT]. 1. There is no statutory power for a private parking operator to remove a vehicle from private land. Schedule 4 of the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 confers only a right to recover unpaid parking charges from the keeper; it does NOT confer any right of removal, towing, or storage. 2. Removal of my vehicle without lawful authority is conversion under the Torts (Interference with Goods) Act 1977 and trespass to goods. 3. Signage purporting to authorise 'removal at owner's expense' cannot create a right of self-help removal: see by analogy Vine v Waltham Forest LBC [2000] 1 WLR 2383 — adequate notice and lawful authority are required, and consent obtained by reading prohibitive signage is not consent to tortious interference with goods. 4. Any release or storage fee charged is unenforceable as (a) it secures release of goods unlawfully detained, (b) it is a penalty within the Beavis test (ParkingEye v Beavis [2015] UKSC 67) where it is extravagant or unconscionable and not commensurate with a legitimate interest, and (c) it is an unfair term under sections 62-64 of the Consumer Rights Act 2015. I require: (a) Full refund of £[AMOUNT] within 14 days; (b) Disclosure under UK GDPR Article 15 of: contract with the landowner authorising removal; the recovery operator's licence and certificate; photographs taken at the time of removal; signage location plan and audit; storage records; (c) Confirmation you will not pursue any further charge. If not refunded within 14 days, I will issue a claim in the County Court for conversion, demand interest under s.69 County Courts Act 1984, and complain to [BPA / IPC / Trading Standards / ICO]. Yours faithfully, [NAME]

Replace [PARKING DATE], [NtK DATE] etc. with your own dates before sending.

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Sources

• PoFA 2012 Schedule 4
• Vine v Waltham Forest LBC [2000] 1 WLR 2383
• Torts (Interference with Goods) Act 1977
• Refuse Disposal (Amenity) Act 1978

Related appeal grounds

• Clamping your car on private land is illegal

Next steps

• Full guide: how to appeal a parking fine
• Scan your ticket — Beat It will find every applicable ground
• How Beat It compares to other appeal services