Impounded vehicles can be claimed from municipal office

Doha: The Ministry of Municipality and Environment represented by the Joint Committee for Impounding Abandoned Vehicles has asked the motorists to visit the municipal office to claim their impounded vehicles during given period.

A hotline No. 44348832 has been put up to provide information about impounded vehicles during official time.  According to the Ministry, over one hundred abandoned vehicles were taken Tow Yard of Abandoned Vehicles in Al Mashaf and Al Wakra during a major campaign which began last week from Old  Airport.

To claim the vehicles, the Ministry said that as per the procedures the motorists are required to visit to the respective municipality office, then to the Mechanical Equipment Department and finally to the Tow Yard.

The campaign was recently launched to enforce the public hygiene law which stipulates that abandoned vehicles are those parked  at public places, roadsides, footpaths even in front of houses covered with dusts causing visual pollution or put traffic safety at risk.

The authorities concerned give three days grace period to the owners of abandoned vehicles after putting warning stickers to remove them in a bid to avoid impounding. However, the law does not give any grace period and the municipality is authorised to remove such vehicles immediately.

Speaking to The Peninsula, Assistant Director of Mechanical Equipment Department, Marzouq Mubarak Al Mesifari said that abandoned vehicles distort the beauty of the cities and hinder the cleaning operation. He said that motorists left their cars at one place for weeks long or about a month.

“Under the campaign, the municipal officers make inspection visit on daily basis on roads and residential areas across the country to curb on abandoned vehicles,” said Al Mesifari.

He said that about 700 impounded vehicles are being claimed every month. “Motorists are given six month grace period to claim their impounded vehicles after paying the fine QR1,000 per vehicle as per the provision of the public hygiene law,” said Al Mesifari .

He said that the owners of impounded vehicles are also being charged QR500 as towing fee for light vehicles, QR800 for heavy vehicles and QR2,000 for heavy machinery and equipment.

The Joint Committee for Impounding Abandoned Vehicles was reconstituted by a decision by the Minister of Municipality and Environment dated February 17, 2019. The Committee consists of six members.

Brigadier Ali Salman Al Hassan Al Mohannadi – Internal Security Force (Lakhwiya) Saleh Hasan Saleh Al Kuwari, Director of the Department of Natural Reserves at the Ministry of Municipalities and Environment are appointed as head and deputy head of the committee respectively.