Ealing Council has removed three vehicles after the owner left them to rot in a residential road in Southall.

A VW Beetle, VW Camper Van and a Ford Escort were among the vehicles dumped on a grass verge opposite 38-40 Avenue Road, Southall.

The verge, which is owned by the council, runs along the full length of the road and includes a public footpath.

Ealing Council officers contacted the vehicles’ owner, William Hepworth of Avenue Road, Southall, in the summer to ask that he remove them after officers spotted the cars.

When he failed to do so, officers issued a notice requiring him to clear the cars from the land within 14 days.

Mr Hepworth failed to remove the blight. Council officers were left with no choice but to go to court to secure an order to allow the council to tow them away. This was contested by Mr Hepworth but the court found in favour of the council.

The vehicles will now be stripped down and any useable parts will be sold to set against the cost of removal. To improve the appearance of the area the council’s tree service has planted two trees and removed rubbish from the site.

Councillor Bassam Mahfouz, cabinet member for environment and transport, said: "This man was using a grass verge as a dumping ground which created an eyesore on public land. Not only does this look unpleasant it can attract anti-social behaviour and make the area feel unsafe."

"He was given plenty of time and several chances to remove these cars but chose to ignore our requests and as a result has lost all three cars. I hope that it will serve as a warning to others who think they can treat our borough in this way. We will continue to take action and make the borough a better place to live."