A burglary victim was left outraged at having to pay £192 to get his stolen car back – despite the vehicle being recovered within minutes.
Liam Handley woke to the sound of his Ford Fiesta being broken into outside of his Blurton home at 3.15am.
The 41-year-old dad followed the thieves’ movements using a CarLock tracker linked to his phone.
He informed Staffordshire Police straight away and was relaying their location to the 999 operator.
Thanks to Liam’s quick-thinking, the Fiesta was found within 13 minutes.
He says two male teenagers and a 20-year-old woman, all wearing balaclavas, were arrested after they were seen getting into a Volkswagen Polo on Bell Lane, two miles away.
Liam Handley woke to the sound of his Ford Fiesta being broken into outside of his Blurton home at 3.15am
Liam can no longer drive his Fiesta which is the only car in the household
CCTV installed at Liam’s home caught three people breaking into his car before driving off.
He said: ‘On my CCTV, there’s a white car that goes past mine at 3.03am. It’s about six minutes later that three people come running down the road.
‘They go straight up to the side of my car, go mental at the door lock, completely obliterating it.
‘The boot unlocked, they climbed through the boot. There’s footprints all over the seat. They’re in there for a few minutes, then they started the car and were gone.’
Both the Polo and Fiesta were seized to be examined by forensics.
Liam, who works in construction, is not happy after paying the release fee at a Longton impound on Monday (January 8).
He said: ‘I went to fetch it. It cost me £192 to get my car back. I picked my car up, it’s obliterated.
‘Then they charge me to pick it up. I feel like I’m being punished because someone wanted to take my car for a joyride.
‘I’m a victim and I had to pay to get my car back. The police wanted to get it towed. I’ve had to pay because they wanted to tow my car.’
Liam can no longer drive his Fiesta which is the only car in the household.
Staffordshire Police said the release fee does not go towards the force
He said: ‘My car is a write off. It’s knackered. Nobody told me what condition it was in. They drove it for nine minutes but it’s ruined.
‘I’ve got a disabled relative who I use the car for, I use it for work, it’s a lifeline. I’ve worked for the last four years to pay for that car. It was my pride and joy.
‘My car was in pristine condition before. Now, I don’t want to look at it. The front bumper is hanging off, the front passenger wheel is pushed into the wheel arch, the side skirt is damaged, all the plastics under the car have gone. It’s not roadworthy.’
Staffordshire Police said the release fee does not go towards the force.
A spokesman said: ‘The use of recovery agents is a nationally agreed process, followed by all police forces in the country and the fees are statutory, decided by the Home Office.
‘The fee does not go to Staffordshire Police; it covers the agent’s costs for recovering and storing the vehicle safely.
Witnesses to the Blurton theft should call the force on 101 and quote incident number 63 of January 5, or call Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 55111.