Above – The vans parked on Westbourne Terrace in November 2022

SEBRA member Tom Peet has been corresponding with Westminster City COuncil since 2022 regarding the Hungarian-registered vans which apear yearly on Wetbourne Terrace. Our magazine editor asked Mr Peet to summarise his correspondence to date. Given the time and effort that Mr Peet put in on that summary, but also given that there was simply not room for it in the Apring 2026 issue of SEBRA NEWS W2, we present it below.

It makes for very interesting, entertaining in fact. Furthermore the ‘sting in the tail’ at the end, following Tom’s summary, is perhaps shocking yet not at all surprising.

Tom Peet writes:

WCC inability to deal with persistent non-UK parking offenders

I first reported the persistent illegal parking of Hungarian registered vehicles on Westbourne Terrace in December 2019 via the WCC portal. Here we are over six years later and the same foreign registered vehicles continue to use Westbourne Terrace as their own private car park, collecting multiple PCNs, and WCC is unable/unwilling to resolve this issue. These same vehicles have parked illegally on Westbourne Terrace from the end of October to early January ever since 2019, their dates coinciding with Winter Wonderland each year! I have persistently reported them to WCC on numerous occasions over the last 6 years.

A response I had from WCC in December 2022 confirmed “Unfortunately, Westminster City Council no longer clamps and removes vehicles for being in contravention of the parking regulations. This method of enforcement action was discontinued a number of years ago, following the introduction of new parking legislation in 2008, which strongly discouraged the practice, and there are no plans to reintroduce it.”

Whilst it is true to say the practice of clamping/removal is “strongly discouraged” current legislation does allow for immobilisation/removal of persistent offenders. Statutory guidance from The Department of Transport (updated 22 October 2022) states: “The Secretary of State is of the view that it should only be used in limited circumstances such as where the same vehicle repeatedly breaks parking restrictions, and it has not been possible to collect payment for penalties, primarily because the keeper is not registered, or is not properly registered, with the DVLA.”

I would argue that these vans fall precisely into the persistent offender category many times over, and as all other strategies have failed, need to be towed away. All neighbouring London Boroughs have towing away facilities, and I have even suggested to WCC that they consider utilising these facilities.

So, WCC has no removal facilities! Yet on 13 Dec 2025 there was a report on the BBC local news showing WCC removing illegally parked “supercars” from Grosvenor Square – completely contradicting the WCC stance of “we don’t have removal facilities”.

Jonathan Rowing, Head of Parking at WCC sent me the following on 12 Dec 2025 (the day before the news item showing cars being removed in Westminster”

“Dear Mr Peet

Unfortunately, we are not in a position to remove vehicles to a neighbouring Borough’s pound. While some of our neighbours do have such a facility, they undertake secondary enforcement of their own within their own borough. To utilise their facilities, should they even agree to this, would require contractual agreements and indemnities, so is not a short-term option or quick fix. (After 6 years of the same problem, I agree it is not a quick fix we are looking for – it is a strategic issue that needs resolving – and WCC has failed to investigate this option.)

We have been speaking at length to the Met Police to see how they can assist us but they point out that as there is no criminal activity linked to the vehicles or any evidence to suggest those using the vehicles are associated with crime they can’t use any of their powers here. It should be borne in mind that parking contraventions are civil law.

We have endeavoured to engage with the owners by placing stickers on the vehicles threatening removal. We note that they have moved two of the vehicles to the opposite side of the street but there has been no action by the owners to remove them from the location. Indeed- they have placed a note in the windscreens stating they are not abandoned. See pictures attached. We are therefore not in a position to remove these cars as “abandoned vehicles on the highway”.

In an effort to get the vans moved we have also spoken to the Winter Wonderland organisers. They confirm that these vehicles are not associated with them and that they have spoken to all Hungarian contractors and found all vehicles are accounted for elsewhere.

One option available to us is to relocate vehicles that cause an obstruction. The challenge we have here, and the reason why this has not be done so far, is that we would need to have clarity that there is nobody in the vehicles and nothing that could be dangerous to move in transit- such as a portable gas stove in use. We are asking the police to confirm what support they can give us with this regard.

I am sorry that this matter is dragging on yet again. I can assure you we are continuing to look at options available and what further action can be taken.

Regards
Jonathan Rowing
Head of Parking
Strategic Transport & Connectivity”

At this point I have to see the funny side – of course Winter Wonderland denies all knowledge – “Turkeys don’t vote for Christmas”.

The picture of the sticker (photo 1 attached) referred to in the email threatens to remove the “abandoned” vehicle within 72 hours. What is the point in issuing a threat that will never be implemented? The response from the van owners (photo 2 attached) is even better – it demonstrates they are fully aware of the laws regarding abandoned vehicles and that WCC has no intention to remove the vans – their handwritten answer simply states “the vans are not abandoned, used daily”

I replied 17 Dec after seeing the “supercar” removal on BBC London News

“Dear Mr Rowing,
Thank you for your comprehensive reply and the photos of WCC’s message stuck to the windscreen of these vehicles containing the veiled threat to remove the vehicles.

Their message, written to you to state the vehicles are not abandoned, and then moved to park (illegally) on the other side of the street, indicates they know exactly what they are doing and that they know you have no intention to remove them.

Last Thursday on the local BBC news was a piece about WCC removing “supercars” from Mayfair that had been consistently ignoring parking regulations and PCNs. So, WCC is prepared to remove such vehicles in Mayfair so why not apply the same rules to these vans in Paddington?

Are there different rules for Mayfair residents?

Did you by any chance check the boots of these supercars for gas canisters, or similar hazardous material, before removal, as that seems to be your only excuse for not removing these vans? Winter Wonderland will end shortly and WCC will have escaped doing anything about this problem yet again for another year. Does WCC have a plan to deal with them when they return next November?”

The response came from Gordon Deas on 14 Jan 2026

“Dear Mr Peet,
Thank you for your correspondence to Jonathan Rowing, which has been passed to me for response; I apologise for not replying sooner.

It goes without saying that the behaviour of these drivers is not acceptable and the Council continues to share the residents’ frustration in relation to the matter.

As you will already be aware, the Council no longer has the necessary infrastructure in place to clamp and remove vehicles and has not done so since 2008, due to the introduction of Government legislation, which strongly discouraged the practice. A reintroduction of such a service would incur significant costs, which cannot be justified given the current financial pressures placed upon Local Authorities and due to the limited scale of this problem across the borough. There is also no current agreement in place with other London Local Authorities that would allow for the shared use of their own clamp and removal services and/or storage facilities.

The City Council can instead normally deal with any persistent evaders through the statutory Penalty Charge Notice (or PCN) recovery process and via our debt management contractors. Dealing with persistent foreign vehicles, can be more challenging as the registered keeper details, normally provided by the DVLA, are not readily shared by other countries, outside of their own borders. Every effort, however, continues to be made to recover any outstanding parking fines through the international debt agencies working on our behalf, or via diplomatic channels.

As these larger vans cannot easily be towed, the Council would need to hire specialised equipment with no guarantee of success, especially as these vehicles are not classed as abandoned and could easily be retrieved and then moved back to the location by the driver. The Council is also prohibited from moving a vehicle if it is being used as a place of residence or contains hazardous materials (like a gas cylinder). This can only be discounted with the assistance of the Police who would be required to help force entry to the vans, to determine what materials were contained inside.

Although steps have been taken to bring this matter to the attention of the Police, they currently have no intelligence to suggest that the vehicles have any immigration/crime links, or other concerns, which would give them reason to break entry and have the vans seized. The Council’s investigations have also ruled out any direct connection between the vehicle drivers and the Winter Wonderland event.

Whilst it is understandable that comparisons have been drawn towards the Council’s recent relocation activity at Rosewood Hotel, the difference is that those vehicles belonged to guests staying at the hotel, they did not contain any dangerous items and could easily be relocated by the Council’s current removal contractor without the use, or hire, of any specialised equipment. The relocations at the hotel were also completed due to a combination of factors observed by the Council’s parking Marshals and the landowners with very limited comment from locearlyal residents (in this case only one complaint was recorded). These factors included additional evidence of related high speeding, the constant revving of engines and numerous footway obstructions, which presented a danger to all pedestrians, especially those with Disabilities, or the elderly.

Although it is recognised that this matter has persisted for a number of years now, the City Council continues to look at other ways to permanently resolve the situation. For instance, the Council may still consider relocating the vehicles if it can be determined that they are not being used as accommodation by the drivers; they do not contain any dangerous materials (i.e. gas cylinders), following the receipt of updated intelligence from the Metropolitan Police Services, or there is a guarantee that moving the vans would be successful and does not simply result in the vehicles returning or shifting the nuisance to another location.

At this time, the Council’s investigations into the matter remain active and any new information will be shared with the local residents as and when this becomes available.

Yours Sincerely
Gordon Deas
Service Officer
Strategic Transport & Connectivity – Parking Services”

My final email to Gordon Deas, Jonathan Rowing and Councillor Max Sullivann was sent on 15 Jan 2026 – as yet no replies:

“Dear Mr Dias,

Thank you for your email.

This is a problem that you acknowledge has persisted for some years now and I feel it is being kicked around at WCC from pillar to post without any real determination to resolve it.
The same 3 Hungarian registered vehicles (PJS 156; PKJ 618 and IDR 723) illegally park on double yellow lines, in a cycle lane, between early November and early January (coinciding with Winter Wonderland) every year, and yet WCC seems to spend more time coming up with reasons why it can’t sort out the problem rather than taking positive action to deter this illegal and dangerous parking. And of course, the can has been kicked down the road again as they have now left – only to return, I suspect, in November later this year.

From where I stand I see the responsibility for this falls between (please do correct me if I’m mistaken)

  • Councillor Max Sullivan, Cabinet Member of Streets and Cycling Champion (who himself had to cycle into the main stream of traffic to avoid them) and
  • Jonathan Rowing, Head of Parking Services, Strategic Transport & Connectivity

My question is simple – What action will WCC take to deter this type of illegal parking and prevent it from being repeated year on year?

You have several months now to devise a workable strategy, and I very much look forward to hearing what that will be. Please let me know what action WCC will be taking.”

The ‘Sting in the Tail’ – Freedom of Information Request

Tom Peet wrote to Westminster City Council requesting information about parking fines issued on Westbourne Terrace from November to January in each yar since 2022. The response, which Tom believes covers the entire period of November 2022 to January 2026 can be found via this link.

The shocking statistic that leaps out though is that despite 291 fixed penalty notices being issued to foreign registered vehicles in the timeframe, not a single fine has been paid.