Letters | How Hong Kong can swiftly crack down on abandoned vehicles on government land

In July 2021, I started my own investigation and reported five vehicles – some looked abandoned and some were without valid vehicle licences – to the Sai Kung police and Lands Department. The owners had left their vehicles parked on government land in free parking spaces for some time. The Lands Department and the police replied that a multi-departmental task force was responsible for abandoned vehicles, and final action rested with the Transport Department.

In September, the police concluded their investigation: all five vehicles were declared abandoned. I asked the police if they had checked whether a vehicle scrapping certificate had been submitted or the last registered owner contacted; I was informed it was not their role to do so, but that this certificate was the Transport Department’s domain.

If a vehicle scrapping certificate has not been submitted, the last registered owner is still legally responsible. Leaving a car parked on the road for more than 24 hours without a valid car licence and possibly no car insurance is an offence committed by the vehicle owner and clearly under the police’s purview. By declaring the vehicles abandoned, the police had no need to take further action against the owners, passing the problem to Home Affairs Department and Transport Department.

On December 2, 2021, the Transport Department conducted a routine car park inspection and identified nine suspected abandoned vehicles, including the five I had pointed to. On December 8, the Transport Department placed notices on the vehicles ordering the owners to move them by December 9, or they would be removed. By December 9, all nine vehicles were moved by their owners.