Car owner practically loses his limited edition car

Towed 80,000-pound (US$160,000, 118,000 EUR) car from the streets of London was ignored by the owner, who didn't pay his many parking tickets and congestion charge fines.

Photo: Car owner practically loses his limited edition car

The Maserati Cambiocorsa of Bertrand Des Pallieres, a wealthy Parisian, remained unclaimed for three months until the Evening Standard newspaper tracked the owner down and told him the car was about to be auctioned.

Des Pallieres, 39, was quoted by the paper on Tuesday as saying he left Deutsche Bank with two colleagues in April to set up their own hedge fund, and was so busy traveling the world to raise money that he didn't have time to worry about the car when it was towed in May. He said he also didn't have a secretary at the time to look after his life's "domestic things."

He said he had no idea his limited-edition car was about to be auctioned.

"Normally when the owners of towed cars ignore letters warning about the fines they owe, the vehicles are destroyed or auctioned in about two weeks," Tim Cowen, spokesman for NCP Services, the towing company, said in a telephone interview on Tuesday.

"But in this case the car was so valuable government officials asked specialist car dealers to value it and consider selling it. But the owner contacted us today - probably after seeing the Evening Standard article. Assuming he pays the fines, he should get the car back soon," Cowen said.