A teenager whose moped was stolen has been landed with a £400 bill and threatened with court action.

Hannah Sterry's stolen bike was found by police and then removed by Wessex Recovery Limited without her permission.

The 50cc Aprilia moped, worth £400, was stolen from Westbury Crescent, in Rose Hill, Oxford, on June 4.

An officer found the bike hours later in Beauchamp Place, Cowley - but it was in the recovery firm's Culham depot by the time Miss Sterry was told it had been found.

Miss Sterry, 17, from Horseshoes Close in Appleton, near Abingdon, told Wessex to scrap the vehicle two days later, on the understanding she would not have to pay the firm anything. She only had third-party insurance.

On Saturday she received a letter threatening court proceedings on the grounds she had not told the company her intentions for the bike.

The company also told her she was liable for £400 recovery and storage costs.

Miss Sterry said: "I cannot describe how worried I am. I am having to pay for a new moped and the person that stole it in the first place has got away with everything."

Thames Valley Police said contractors had been employed by the force to remove vehicles for about 15 years.

The spokesman said the bike was removed because the force had a duty of care to prevent stolen vehicles being damaged further or stolen again.

Wessex Recovery Limited refused to comment. No one has been arrested in connection with the theft of the bike.