A host of luxury cars are being impounded because drivers are increasingly unable to afford the insurance, it is claimed.

There are an estimated 2 million uninsured cars in the UK, and roughly 150,000 were seized by the police in 2007.

They end up in pounds like the one managed by Chris Pearson in west London, who says it is not just Escort drivers who skimp on insurance.

“We work in two teams, four days on, four days off, for 12-hour shifts and are open for incoming vehicles 24 hours a day,” said Mr Pearson. “Usually we get 30 - 40 cars a day but sometimes it can be as many as 70. We’ve had Porsches, BMWs, Mercedes - even a Hummer and a Lamborghini.”

“I have seen cars sent to scrapyards that are better than the one I drive to work in,” he added. “But it is a means of making a point.”