The DVLA says tax cheats have "no escape"

Fife Constabulary is running Operation Takeaway along with with the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA).

Target vehicles are sought out by police and DVLA officers who then confirm they are untaxed.

Drivers face a charge of �200 for the vehicle's return, with unclaimed cars and vans being sold or scrapped.

The operation covers streets, council car parks, public grounds and anywhere maintained by the local authority.

I have seen Mercedes, Range Rovers, Mercedes, BMWs and Jaguars removed, as well as many run-of-the-mill vehicles Fife Constabulary

New licensing rules mean that owners who fail to re-license their vehicle now incur an automatic �80 penalty.

A DVLA spokesman said offenders faced "no exceptions, no excuses, no escape".

In Fife, early morning checks are carried out by the DVLA with its headquarters in Swansea for approval to remove the vehicle.

If approval is granted, they are either clamped or hoisted onto a waiting lorry and taken to the secure DVLA pound at Ratho, Edinburgh.

If no valid proof of ownership, insurance, MOT and tax is provided then the vehicle can then be sold at auction, but police say they are more often crushed.

A Fife Constabulary spokesman said: "Untaxed vehicles are generally in that state because they are not MOT'd, or the owner has no insurance.

"It is not always the case that these vehicles are worthless hunks of metal. I have seen Mercedes, Range Rovers, Mercedes, BMWs and Jaguars removed, as well as many run-of-the-mill vehicles.