Abandoned and stolen vehicles

If you want to report or move an abandoned or stolen vehicle, you must follow the steps below.

Report a stolen vehicle

To report a stolen vehicle, call the police on 131 444. If a crime is happening now, you should call 000.

You can get the contact information for individual police stations on the NT Police website.

Report or move an abandoned vehicle

The process for reporting or removing a vehicle depends on where it is located.

If found in a public place, you must contact the relevant competent authority.

Competent authority

A competent authority is a person or organisation that is legally authorised to remove a vehicle.

For example, if a vehicle has been abandoned on:

• council property - you must contact your local council
• Aboriginal land - you must contact the land council in that area.

The Motor Vehicle Registry (MVR) is not responsible for removing abandoned vehicles and can't give legal advice.

What you need to do

To find out what you need to do, answer the questions below.