FOUR drivers are facing a choice between paying a £200 fine or having their car crushed after a two-day crackdown on tax dodgers in Derwentside.

Police were joined by officers from the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) in taking to the streets of Burnhope and Langley Park for checks on untaxed and unroadworthy vehicles.

Four vehicles were towed away to a DVLA compound on Tyneside, where the owners can come forward to pay outstanding tax and reclaim their cars. Another 20 drivers were reported for other motoring offences during the campaign.

The two villages primarily targeted over the past two days were chosen following requests from the local community for police to crack down on tax dodgers.

A team of eight officers stopped vehicles in Langley Park's Finings Avenue during a six-hour operation.

PC Chris Dover said: "Residents were asking us what we were going to do about speeding and tax dodgers in the village. If we get information that there is a particular problem in a particular area, we will act on it.

"As well as the tax-dodging side of it, there is a safety issue in high-visibility operations like this: it raises awareness of the problem, it deters speeding when they see us at the roadside and also if we find a bald tyre in today's operation it may mean we are not attending a fatal traffic accident next week."

Officers promise further operations in coming weeks, including sweeps of Blackhill and Leadgate, as well as returns to Langley Park and Burnhope