Car cloning victim from Warwickshire reveals 'stress' of receiving parking fines worth thousands
A man from Warwickshire says he feels harassed by a mystery criminal who has stolen the identity of his car, as experts warn that car cloning is on the rise.
Sandor Hodi, from Leamington Spa, has a huge file of paperwork from multiple authorities across the country including parking offences, penalties for driving in the clean air zone and failure to pay for petrol in cases stretching from London to Leeds.
The businessman says the time it's taking to contest the fines is taking its toll. He is Hungarian and has worked in the UK for 16 years but he is considering leaving.
Warwickshire Police said it will be contacting the victim to ensure they are aware of the action they have taken.
Mr Hodi said: "First of all you don't know how to deal with this and then you call all the authorities and police.
"Living in this country for 16 years, I've had one parking penalty charge. And having six or seven coming through a month, it causes as lot of stress, we do have a lot of other things going on in our lives."
Appealing every penalty with different authorities takes time, and Shanda says he’s given up hope it will ever stop.
The RAC is warning that car cloning is on the rise, as the cost of car ownership grows, and criminals look for new ways to get around cheaply while evading road tax or penalty notices.
Simon Williams from the company said: "From data the RAC has seen there has definitely been a rise in car cloning, the enemy of the modern motorist.
"It shouldn't really be possible, but clearly it is."
In response to Mr Hodi's case, Warwickshire Police said: "Forces across the country are aware of this particular vehicle and proactive attempts will be made to stop it should it come to the attention of officers.
"We will be contacting the victim to ensure they are aware of the action we have taken."
What is car cloning?
Car cloning – or vehicle identity theft – is when a car is given a copied or stolen number plate to make it look like another vehicle of the same make, model and colour.
It means that any crimes committed using the cloned car will lead back to the owner of the car with the legally registered licence plate and hide the identity of the real criminal.
Criminals might use the car to avoid speeding fines and parking tickets. They may use fake number plates to sell a stolen car to an unsuspecting buyer.
They could also use cloned cars to commit more serious crimes like bank robberies.
How do you know if your car has been cloned?
It is difficult to know if a car has been cloned until the police are alerted to criminal activity involving that vehicle.
Drivers might start getting penalty notices about traffic offences or congestion charges that are not related to them.
The police urge drivers to contact them if their number plates are stolen, and if they receive suspicious parking fines.
The DVLA advises victims of car cloning to to return any fines or letters to the issuing authority - with evidence to prove it was not them behind the wheel.
They should also write to the DVLA with a crime reference number after reporting it to the police.
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