33When police officers may seize motor vehicles or trailers

33 When police officers may seize motor vehicles or trailers

33 When police officers may seize motor vehicles or trailers

(1) A police officer may seize and take charge of, and remove or tow away or cause to be removed or towed away, a motor vehicle or trailer—

(a) that is a danger or unreasonable obstruction to traffic, or

(b) that has been abandoned on a road, or

(c) that has been caused or permitted to be used contrary to law on a part of a road in which is conspicuously displayed a sign exhibiting or including—

(i) the words “tow away area”, or

(ii) the words “vehicles impounded”, or

(iii) words indicating the vehicle is subject to seizure.

(2) Before seizing a motor vehicle or trailer, the police officer must—

(a) if a person is in charge of the vehicle—

(i) request the person to remove the vehicle, or cause it to be removed immediately, and

(ii) give the person a reasonable opportunity to comply with the request, or

(b) if no person is in charge of the vehicle—

(i) make reasonable inquiry for the purpose of locating the responsible person for, or driver of, the vehicle, and

(ii) if the responsible person or driver is located—carry out the matters referred to in paragraph (a)(i) and (ii).

(3) For the purposes of subsection (2)(b)(i), reasonable inquiry—

(a) must be made in the area where the vehicle is found, and

(b) does not authorise or require a police officer to enter a building for the purpose of the inquiry.