A DRIVER who tracked down her stolen car allowed police to take it away to check for fingerprints - and was then charged £144 to get it back.

Ruth Bourton immediately launched her own search around local villages when her Ford Sierra was stolen from Didcot Hospital.

Mrs Bourton, 31, called police after discovering the car dumped in Mendip Heights, and allowed officers to take it away for fingerprint testing.

But when she was told to pick up her car on Tuesday, she was handed the £144 bill for recovery and storage.

Mrs Bourton, a-mum of-three of Moorland Road, Witney, said: "It seemed like daylight robbery. I found the car myself. I am in the AA and could have had the car recovered for nothing.

"My husband's a car mechanic and he could have borrowed a friend's recovery van. But I allowed the police to take it. There was no mention of any charges.

"When I finally contacted them they said I could collect my car from a garage in Benson, who handed me the bill."

Mrs Bourton, an asthmatic who drives on-call doctors to visit patients, added: "It was just so upsetting, coming on top of everything else."

Police say she will be able to claim back the money from her insurance without any loss of no-claims bonus. rs Bourton added: "Paying out for a totally unnecessary bill like this was just about the last thing I wanted." "I really could not have done much more. I saved the police having to look for it, I allowed officers to take it away, even though I badly needed to get the car fixed quickly because I'm severely asthmatic. And then I'm made to pay through the nose."

The bill lists recovery cost to Thames Valley Police at £97.50; administration costs of £7.50 and two days' storage at £18. VAT of £21.52 brought the bill to £144.52.

Inspector Ian Beckett, of Didcot police, said he sympathised with Mrs Bourton but the situation resulted from regulations recently introduced by Thames Valley Police after a Court of Appeal ruling which made police responsible for recovering stolen cars.

But owners are liable for recovery costs, which can be claimed back on insurance.

The AA said it had not heard about the Thames Valley regulations until being alerted by the Oxford Mail.

AA spokesman Rebecca Rees said: "We are extremely interested in this case. It is obvious that police did act within their powers. But this policy has not been taken up nationwide."

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