Investigation launched after claims officers broke speed limit in impounded Lamborghini
An investigation has been launched after a £200,000 sports car was allegedly wrongly impounded and driven at twice the legal speed limit.
An investigation has been launched after a £200,000 sports car was allegedly wrongly impounded and driven at twice the legal speed limit.
Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) officers confiscated the Lamborghini, belonging to luxury car-hire firm City Supercars, after checks mistakenly showed it had no insurance.
But information from the cars on-board tracking system showed instead of taking it straight to the pound, the officers took a longer route around the North Circular road, although the MPS denies this is the case.
Officers were also recorded driving at speeds of 53, 47 and 63mph in a 30 limit zone, it is claimed.
Erwyn Mackee, the companys managing director, said: Each of our cars has a tracker fitted so we can follow what is happening to them and I could not believe it when I saw the car was being driven at over double the speed limit.
The police pound is just across the road from where the car was stopped but the officer obviously decided to take the long way round.
Mr Mackee claimed City Supercars insurance details had not appeared on the national database as the firm had recently changed its provider.
However, the MPS officers reportedly refused to believe a letter from the insurance broker, saying Mr Mackee could have photoshopped the document.
Mr Mackee said: The information on the tracker is seen by the insurance company and can affect my insurance. It is going to be difficult to explain to them that it was the police who were speeding.
It is quite annoying, the police charged us £50 to take the car out of the pound when we finally gave them the insurance documents.
But I have a sense of humour about it, I cannot really blame them, it is a lovely car and they obviously enjoyed it.
Mr Mackee said he will make a formal complaint to the Independent Police Complaints Commission regarding the incident.
An MPS spokesperson added: The car was taken to a pound near Heathrow police station. It was driven there by an officer via the Northern Perimeter Road, which we are satisfied is a direct route.
Locally, this matter will be looked into to establish the exact circumstances of what took place.