MINI-moto riders who illegally use their small machines on the road are likely to have them seized, say South Worcestershire Police.

They can be confiscated by police whether being ridden on the road, the pavement, or public car parks - even on private land if they are causing sufficient nuisance.

The police have so far not seized any of the small machines, but this could change if misuse continues.

"A number of owners continue to flout the regulations believing, perhaps, that we will not act. They are mistaken. We will take action and that means confiscation after an initial verbal and written warning," said a spokesman for the police.

Police believe that the majority of mini-moto users are committing at least seven offences when they ride on the highway or on the pavement, including riding without a helmet, driving licence, road fund licence and insurance.

"In the vast majority of cases, riding mini-motos on the highway - which includes on the pavement and the kerb, even the grass - is illegal," said the spokesman.

In addition to being prosecuted for motoring offences, errant mini-moto riders who come into contact with the police are almost certain to receive formal warnings about their anti-social behaviour under Section 59 of the 2002 Police Reform Act.

If their machines are seized, they could face paying £102 to retrieve them from an official compound and further payments of £12 a day if they fail to collect them promptly.

"When the first seizure takes place we believe that the mini-moto grapevine will quickly spread the message that we are prepared to act to stop what is a nuisance at best and a risk to life and limb at worst," the spokesman added.

"We recently seized a Mitsubishi car in Worcester under the same legislation and, within a couple of hours, news of that seizure had spread to other groups of young motorists across the south of Worcestershire.

"Hopefully, if we do the same with a few mini-motos, all of the offending owners will take note and begin acting reasonably and within the law. If not, there could be a number more of them having to pay in order to recover their vehicles."