The Metropolitan Police, London’s largest police service, has been confirmed as the latest UK police force to sign up to HPI Crushwatch following three months’ of successful work with the scheme.

Crushwatch, which aims to stifle illegal motoring habits, works with the Finance & Leasing Association’s Vehicle Recovery Scheme and the ACPO Vehicle Crime Intelligence Service to identify and return those untaxed and uninsured vehicles which rightly belong to finance companies.

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From August to November, the Met Police, the 44th of the 52 UK police force to be part of the scheme, enabled HPI to alert lenders to over £10.5m worth of "at risk" vehicles and has increased the number of vehicles returned to finance companies by more than 50%.

Capital outlay

In September, HPI extended its Crushwatch service to also inform finance providers of untaxed vehicles impounded by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA).

Daniel Burgess, managing director of HPI, said: "The Metropolitan Police Services covers an area of 620 square miles and a population of 7.2 million. In London alone, an estimated 10% of drivers are uninsured, making this a very real issue for the Met Police and a threat to road users and the finance providers who own the offending cars.

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"The sheer size of the Metropolitan Police makes this a significant partnership," added Burgess. "HPI Crushwatch is playing a key role in the Met’s ongoing clampdown on uninsured and untaxed vehicles, helping to improve the safety of Britain’s roads and putting finance houses back in control of their assets."

Data and analysis from the FLA Vehicle Recovery Scheme in conjunction with AVCIS and HPI Crushwatch is published in each issue of Motor Finance magazine.

richard.brown@timetric.com