Former Home Affairs Minister Ian Le Marquand first said that he would like to see wheel-clamping outlawed in 2009. In the same year, politicians voted in favour of banning it, approving a proposition by former Deputy Paul Le Claire by 35 votes to seven.
Almost ten years later, after a number of delays, Home Affairs Minister Len Norman has now lodged draft legislation which, if approved, would allow regulations to be introduced to tackle the issue of unauthorised parking and dumping of vehicles.
Planned regulations would make wheel-clamping and other forms of vehicle inmobilisation illegal, but also introduce ‘remedies’ – such as the ability to charge compensation for damage caused – so that Islanders could deal with unauthorised vehicles being left on their land,
A framework for the removal of unauthorised vehicles is also proposed, which would outline a number of criteria that need to be satisfied before action could be taken. This would include signage being in place and vehicles being a ‘persistent nuisance’.
A register of approved ‘motor vehicle removal operators’ would also be introduced.
Removal powers similar to those being proposed were granted temporarily to Ports of Jersey and Andium Homes in 2016, and are due to expire next year. If approved, the proposed new legislation would ‘encompass’ and apply to the two States-owned bodies, as well as to private landowners.
The minister’s report accompanying the draft law says that unauthorised parking or abandonment of vehicles can be ‘a source of great frustration’ for private landowners.
It adds that there are currently ‘few remedies’ for the issue, and the legality of wheel-clamping is ‘uncertain’.
‘If a homeowner, for example, wants to stop someone from parking a car in front of their driveway, that person must pursue a civil action through the Royal Court,’ it says.
‘This is not a simple remedy. It has the potential to create significant costs for private landowners and does not offer immediate relief from the problem. In some cases, private landowners have turned to wheel clamping to solve the problem. However, the legality of this practice is uncertain, and there are concerns about how it is enforced by wheel clamp operatives.
‘The Home Affairs Minister is, therefore, proposing to ban wheel-clamping. Private landowners do, nonetheless, require an effective and proportionate way of seeking relief from vehicles that are causing a persistent nuisance, a danger, or an obstruction on their land.’
The draft law is due to be debated on 20 November.
