Garage hit by £6,000 wrecking spree

Accrington car dealer Walker Farrimond was ordered to dismantle the lethal looking wire by Hyndburn planners last year because it was unsightly.

But the the Volvo dealers has vowed to re-install the razor wire following a raid in which 11 cars and a caravan were attacked at its Sydney Street paint and body shop.

Councillors claimed the security wire made the compound look like a prison camp and was dangerous.

The owners of the garage believe the latest attack was planned by the vandals.

Three security cameras, each worth £800, were stolen three days before the incident.

The vandals returned and smashed the windscreens and dashboards of cars in the compound. They then forced their way into the workshop and smashed a caravan and other cars and stole radio cassettes.

Michael Walker, who manages the paint and body shop, said: "We are still trying to work out how much damage was done by these people.

"Seven of the cars belonged to our customers and we still do not know exactly what was in each car. All I can say is that at the very least this going to cost around £6,000.

"I just can't work out why these people have to do this. They have smashed dashboards and kicked in windscreens just for the hell of it."

Mr Walker added: "What does makes us bitter is the council's decision which meant we had to get rid of the wire.

"The council told us to take down the wire because it was unsightly but what they don't seem to understand is people's jobs could be at risk because of these vandals.

"Before we put the wire up we were putting in so many claims it was getting to the stage where the site was uninsurable."

Mr Walker added: "At the end of the day all this costs money and somebody has got to pay.

"When we had the razor wire up we just didn't have problems like this to contend with."

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