I was horrified after my broken down car was crushed while waiting for it to be fixed – nobody told me

A WOMAN was horrified when her broken down car was crushed while waiting for it to be repaired.

Caitlyn Whent, 26, from Cwmbran in South Wales, was driving her Ford Fiesta when the engine died and she was forced to park in an industrial estate.

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Months later, she and her family collected her car – but it had disappeared from the Cwmbran site.

Confused, Caitlyn then discovered that her car had been sent for crushing by the owners of Springvale’s industrial estate during clean-up operations.

FI Real Estate Management bosses have now apologized to Caitlyn for the “irrevocable damage”.

Caitlyn said: “This was the first time I’ve been involved in a breakdown, I didn’t know what to do.

“My uncle came home from holiday and said we would get the car and he would fix it himself, but by the time we got there it was gone.

“I had a £100 Barbour coat in the car, candles and my glasses, which I need for reading and writing.”

Caitlyn abandoned her car last October before returning in January to find it was gone.

She said: “FI Real Estates kept saying they would pay me, but they started ignoring us and withholding payment.

“First they told me I would get £1,500, then that changed to £1,050.”

Caitlyn has now been compensated by the company with £1,050.

A spokesman for FI Real Estate Management commented: “We would like to offer Ms Whent our sincere apologies for the irreparable damage to her vehicle sustained during the clean-up of a development site in Cwmbran.

“We have compensated Ms Whent for the hardship and inconvenience caused and apologize for the delay in making this payment.”

It comes after a family who had parked in a “safe and secure” £160 car park at Heathrow returned from holiday to find their vehicle written off.

Oliver and Amy Clague from Bristol had just landed with their one-year-old baby after a sleepless long-haul flight when they discovered their car’s catalytic converter had been ripped out.