Legal loophole means illegal parking on private property is hard to tackle

The law in Luxembourg does not currently protect landowners against illegally parked cars, and the police have no powers to intervene to remove a vehicle already on private land, goverment ministers have admitted.

Although obstruction of private access is against the law, responsibility for towing illegally parked cars depends on which side of the property boundary the car is located, Home Affairs Minister Léon Gloden and Justice Minister Elisabeth Margue said on Wednesday in response to a a written parliamentary question from DP deputy Barbara Agostino.

If a vehicle is still on the road or another public land, police have jurisdiction to intervene, identify the offence, issue a fine to the offending driver and, if necessary, order the vehicle to be towed.

In these situations, the costs associated with towing and storing the vehicle are passed on to the owner of the offending vehicle – not by the person inconvenienced by their parking.

On the other hand, under the current 1993 law when the vehicle is parked on private property, the legal situation is different.

“The Grand Ducal Police cannot intervene to remove a vehicle that is already on private land,” the ministers said.

While the blocking of private access is illegal on private and public land alike, this means private landowners can also request for cars to be towed, but the police do not have jurisdiction to do so on their behalf.

Crucially, there is also no recourse at the moment for landowners to pass the cost on to the vehicle owner, except through a time-consuming separate civil court case that may or may not be successful.

“It is recommended that property owners take preventive measures such as ensuring that private spaces are clearly marked or blocking access using mechanical devices like collapsible bollards or chains,” the ministers said.

There are no statistics on how many cars have been illegally parked on private property, or how many have been towed on landowners’ request, according to the response.

A review is currently underway to explore legal changes that will give landowners better protection against nuisance vehicles, Gloden and Margue said.