Numberplate theft at Bell Green

Local talk
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Our number plates were stolen from our car while it was parked at Sainsbury’s Bell Green on Sunday.

We reported it to the police, got a crime reference number, and spoke to security at Sainsbury’s. They have CCTV of the whole thing - apparently clear as day. We’ve also managed to get replacement plates sorted easily enough, so that side of things is fine.

But two things…

1. What is the point of all the CCTV?
We’ve already had an email from the police saying they’re taking no further action. They won’t even be looking at the CCTV.

I completely appreciate that the theft of a couple of number plates in itself is pretty small fry in the grand scheme of things. But presumably people don’t steal number plates because they need some new wall decorations - they’re generally stolen to be put on another vehicle and used for something more nefarious.

It just seems crazy to me that we have CCTV absolutely everywhere, supposedly to help tackle crime, yet even where there is clear CCTV evidence of someone committing a crime, the police aren’t interested in looking at it. And presumably the next time those plates appear could be in connection with something considerably more serious.

2. Has anyone else had their plates stolen, and what happened afterwards?
My husband is now convinced we’re going to have months of speeding/parking/ULEZ/congestion charge fines etc dropping through the letterbox, which we’ll then have to spend ages challenging and proving weren’t us. He’s also worried about somehow ending up blacklisted or having problems associated with the registration.

He’s so concerned about the potential hassle that he’s actually talking about selling the car!

So, for anyone this has happened to - did you subsequently get fines/charges through? Were they straightforward to challenge given that you’d already reported the plates stolen? Did it cause any longer-term problems?

Basically, is he worrying unnecessarily, or should we be bracing ourselves for a massive headache? :grimacing:

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Sorry to hear this happened to you.

Sadly the CCTV in most car parks these days is more for revenue than security. Over stayers will be charged, criminals will be largely ignored.

It is very frustrating when a case is simply closed but rest assured closed is merely a status. Any information gathered is used further to put together a bigger picture.

Dedicating someone to investigate such a small thing individually is simply not possible, given how much petty crime is occurring. However having a small team piecing it all together is far more possible.

I hope no damage was caused when they did this.

Re long term, you have a CRN now regarding the theft, so it should be far easier to challenge should anythjng come up. Especially if your vehicle is identifiable, stickers in windows or anything else different to manufacturers standard spec.

Sadly some 3rd party companies who manage traffic and parking enforcement can be a PITA to deal with initially.

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Have you considered making a formal complaint? Your concerns seem fully justified.

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Now you have a crime number it sounds like it would be a good idea to report to your insurers and also to the DVLA in order to minimise some of the potential hassle that you are concerned about - eg if the plates are used to avoid parking/toll charges etc. this article explains why quite well I think.

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(I accidentally deleted my reply and am unable to edit) This is really helpful - thank you so much!

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