The car has been sitting in the same spot for over a month, collecting parking tickets while Evri packages remain inside
Plymouth residents say they are at a loss as to why a seemingly-abandoned car full of packages destined for Christmas deliveries has been gathering parking tickets.
The car, which has been sitting in a Stonehouse street since the beginning of December, appears to have suffered damage to its passenger side. Its rear seats hold a number of Evri delivery packages which one resident in the street told PlymouthLive were clearly marked for addresses all around the city.
However, because it is in a residents' parking zone it has been targeted by Plymouth City Council's parking enforcement officers who have attached several penalty notices to its windscreen.
The resident told PlymouthLive that while at first the car was an inconvenience they had become increasingly concerned after weeks went by and they feared the owner of the car - or at least the delivery driver using the car - had fallen ill or worse.
They said: "They [Plymouth City Council] are now issuing it parking tickets daily but not attaching them to the car, the warden told me" adding that when they called 101 they were met with disinterest.
The resident added: "The poor person could be dead for all we know. Crazy it is. All the council can do is keep issuing tickets. Obviously many people were expecting these parcels for Christmas."
The resident explained they had contacted the local Evri depot but they "did not accept customer enquiries anyway". PlymouthLive contacted Devon and Cornwall Police, Evri and Plymouth City Council in an attempt to solve the mystery.
A Plymouth City Council spokesperson said: "The first penalty charge notice (PCN) we issued on this vehicle was on 4 December. We issued a further seven before taking the decision not to issue any more.
"Although councils may issue a PCN every day, there is a point at which we have to consider whether this is appropriate and proportionate. The PCNs that have been issued are being processed in the normal way and our civil enforcement team are recording that the vehicle remains in contravention of the controlled parking zone restrictions.
"If a PCN has not been paid (or successfully challenged) within 28 days of the alleged contravention, the Council will contact the DVLA for details of the registered keeper and send a Notice to Owner, requesting that the penalty is paid. This is now the case for the first PCN. We would not contact the police unless there were clear signs of criminal activity."
A spokesperson for the delivery firm Evri said: "Couriers are at the heart of our business and their wellbeing is our top priority. We have made numerous attempts to check on this person’s welfare and we have been in contact with the relevant authorities.
"We would ask that anyone who is concerned about their deliveries to get in touch via the contact page: www.evri.com/contact-us."
It is understood police have been alerted to the location owner of the car who is considered 'safe and well'.
A spokesperson for Devon and Cornwall Police said: "There are no welfare concerns in relation to the registered owner of the car and there are no ongoing police enquiries. Plymouth City Council are aware and any parking issues are a matter for the local authority."
However, a resident on the street who alerted PlymouthLive with their concerns has said they understand police had made inquiries, but that nobody appeared to want to take responsibility for the packages.
They said: "What would make sense would be the council took the car away, the police forced their way in and Evri took the packages to be distributed to the people who've been waiting since before Christmas. There might be really important presents in there.
"Currently everyone's just leaving it to someone else and if no-one takes action then in all likelihood someone will either break into the car and steal everything inside or set it on fire, putting people's lives at risk. Any car with that many parking notices on it is just bound to attract trouble before too long."
but then this is evri so I suppose it’s to be expected 