ALMOST 200 vehicles in North Ayrshire were clamped in 2017 for failures to comply with road tax laws.

And nearly a quarter of those came in December alone.

In figures released by the DVLA, the total for vehicles clamped in North Ayrshire for the year was 195 but a marked increase in December wasn’t down to any particular operation.

In the last month of the year, 42 vehicles were clamped in day-to-da y operations by the agency, up from just two in the whole month of November and this made it the busiest month of the year.

The total for each month was: January - 0, February - 22, March - 4, April - 13, May - 33, June - 28, July - 2, August - 17, September - 5, October - 27, November - 2, December - 42. Total - 195.

A DVLA spokesman said: “We write to the keepers of all vehicles to remind them when their tax is due.

“That’s why it’ s so important to let DVLA know if you’ve changed your address.

“We don’t need to spot a vehicle on the road to take enforcement action but if we do, wheel clamping is an effective way to make sure that an untaxed vehicle is not driven on the road.

“We would rather not have to clamp or remove vehicles, but we do need people to understand the consequences of not taxing a vehicle.

“Having your vehicle clamped is expensive and inconvenient.”