Of those vehicles — many of which were considered unroadworthy — some 222 were scrapped while a further two were of sufficient value to be sold instead.

Chief Inspector Sandy Bowman, head of road policing in Tayside, said, “We hope an awareness and enforcement of these powers is contributing to the downward trend of people driving without insurance or a licence and will continue to do so. As we have stated before, it is totally unacceptable for people to drive without the correct documentation, be that insurance or a driving licence.

“That is why Tayside Police has consistently placed a high priority on detecting those people who show a reckless lack of consideration for their own welfare and that of others on the roads.”

The figures bear out officers’ belief that there are fewer offenders on the streets of the city, with the number of people charged with a documentation offence down from 941 in 2006, when the powers came into force, to 570 so far this year.

Within this year’s figures, most offences were driving with no insurance. A further 155 had no licence, 16 had only a provisional licence and 13 were behind the wheel while under age.

Where a police officer has reasonable cause to believe a vehicle is being driven on a road while the driver is unlicensed or uninsured, that officer will require the driver to immediately produce their driving documents.

If the driver fails to do so, the vehicle may be seized. They then have seven days to produce valid documents and obtain a release notice from police before the vehicle is disposed of. The driver is also liable to pay the recovery and storage cost for the vehicle — a total bill of more than £100.

Since the legislation came into effect, a staggering 1742 vehicles have been seized by officers on the streets of Dundee alone, with 724 of them ending up in the crusher.

Statistics show uninsured drivers are six times more likely to drive an unroadworthy vehicle, up to nine times more likely to be involved in an accident and are more likely to be involved in a hit-and-run collision.

“As well as being without statutory documents, many vehicles have questionable maintenance histories,” continued the police spokesman.

“By seizing them we have removed the immediate risk posed to other road users. We will continue to target these irresponsible drivers who use illegal and unroadworthy vehicles and would appeal for the public’s help in that.

“Anyone with information about people committing such offences should contact us or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.”