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The basic charges you’ll face
A first-time offence doesn’t reduce the standard tariffs. Police and council pounds use fixed national fee bands, and for a normal privately owned car the release fee is usually £192. This figure applies to an upright, undamaged vehicle under 3.5 tonnes.
On top of that, daily storage is added from the day after your car arrives. The usual rate for a standard car is £26 per day. These charges are applied whether the offence was minor or serious, and whether you’ve had previous incidents or not.
Why the total can rise quickly
The release fee stays steady, but storage builds fast. Missing even a single day while sorting insurance, ID or MOT issues increases your final bill. A two-day delay adds £52, and a week adds £182 on top of the fixed release charge.
For many people, the rising cost is the biggest shock, especially when the car seemed straightforward to collect. The pound’s fees continue regardless of the reason for the seizure, so acting promptly matters.
Situations that often increase the bill further
Although £192 plus £26 per day applies to most private cars, a few common factors can push the total higher:
- Larger or commercial vehicles. Vans or heavier models fall into a higher tariff band, and removal and storage charges are noticeably more expensive.
- Specialist roadside recovery. If the car was in a ditch, blocked-in or disabled, the removal may have required extra equipment. This moves it into a higher fee category.
- Out-of-hours collection. Some pounds add additional charges for evenings, weekends or bank holidays.
- Delays arranging compliant insurance. Storage continues while you sort it, so the longer you take, the higher the bill climbs.
First-time drivers often assume the pound will show leniency. In practice, tariff rules apply universally and are rarely adjusted.
Why getting release insurance in place quickly helps
A car can normally only be driven away if the insurance clearly supports impound release. Standard temporary cover rarely does, and checking this can take time.
Because storage charges run daily and specialist vehicle recovery companies are often expensive and slow to attend, arranging the correct insurance promptly is usually the quickest and cheapest route. Recovery should generally be treated as a last resort, not a first step.
Practical example of the costs
Imagine your standard car has been seized. If you collect it the next day, you might pay:
- Release fee: £192
- Storage: £26
Total: £218.
If you wait five days, the storage alone adds £130, bringing the total to £322. Add any surcharges, or a higher tariff for a van, and the bill climbs quickly.
How to keep the cost as low as possible
The fastest way to avoid extra charges is to deal with the essentials early. Bring strong ID, the seizure notice, proof of ownership, and insurance that supports release. If the MOT has expired, check whether the pound allows a direct drive to a booked test or insists on a specialist recovery company.
By acting within the usual seven-day claim window and the roughly fourteen-day collection period, you keep the situation manageable, avoid disposal, and prevent storage charges from spiralling.
Impound processes, time limits and costs vary widely across the UK, and authorities can amend their rules at any time. Information on this site is intended as a general overview and should not be relied on as definitive for any specific impound location.