Vehicles being operated without car insurance cover, road tax or a valid MOT have been removed from roads in the Lancashire area, the Lancashire Telegraph has reported.

Police set up checkpoints at various points around the county and used automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) technology to catch motorists believed to be illegally operating cars during a weeklong crackdown.

The operation which was supported by the Driver Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) saw thousands of cars being scanned and police were able to remove ten cars operating without tax or insurance.

"The ANPR system allows us to identify vehicles that we suspect are being used by criminals and we can keep track of them on the borough's roads," police constable Marc Rigby, of the Rossendale Police Force, told local reporters.

"A vehicle will only be stopped where our intelligence suggests it is appropriate. Law abiding citizens have nothing to fear from the ANPR."

Police said that the operation would be the first of regular campaigns to be carried out in and around Rossendale. A similar crackdown in Sussex recently saw 50 vehicles being taken off the roads, with owners forced to show valid car insurance and tax to reclaim them.

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