Furious residents call for action after surge of damaged cars around Littleborough

Littleborough residents have called for action after a surge in damaged cars has left them afraid to park outside their homes.

Frustration has mounted in the village after weeks of complaints to Greater Manchester Police, reporting various degrees of damage to parked cars, causing “hundreds of pounds” of damage.

Despite CCTV footage catching footage of the damage, residents say either that the police haven't helped, or that they've given up trying to contact them as it can't be proved.

 

 

Leanne Ferguson, of Newall Street, Littleborough, had her car damaged twice, once outside her home, and again on the Co-op car park.

She said: “I couldn’t believe it happened twice in a matter of weeks.

“Police are not interested unless you can physically point the driver out. Since when has this become acceptable behaviour?

“I think we need to look at more CCTV cameras being put up around the Littleborough area to stop these people.

She added: “It's not fair to drivers who are driving, and parking legally to keep having this happen to them, and for them to be out of pocket and their insurance premiums go up.”

Alison Foylan reported another car attack on her brother’s car on Birch Road. She said: “How disgusting it is for a person to do something like this to someone else’s property and not have the compassion to come forward and resolve the matter.

 

 

“My brother works hard for his things and is devastated by what’s happened, but the community has helped a lot.”

Alison reported the incident and received an incident number, but the offenders have not been caught. 

A Greater Manchester Police spokesperson said that the force is targeting persistent offenders and raising awareness with vehicle owners who may leave their vehicles insecure.

They also stated that:

• Vehicle crime involves a range of offences including the theft of vehicles, vehicle damage and the theft of property from vehicles.
• Most vehicle crime can be prevented, as it is mostly committed by opportunist thieves.
• The most common items targeted from vehicles include registration plates, sat navs, cash, laptops, handbags, and mobiles. Offenders gain the most out of these by reusing or selling them.
• GMP is using Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) systems to tackle vehicle-related crime and to stop vehicles being used in criminal activity.

Crimes can also be reported here: GMP Report a Crime