Police have slammed the owner of a caravan as “totally reckless” after dumping the vehicle on a road along the Powys-Shropshire border.

Officers were called out following reports that a white caravan was left on a live carriageway on the A490 between Chirbury and Churchstoke.

West Mercia Police’s South Shropshire-based Safer Neighbourhoods Team tweeted: “This is totally reckless and puts members of the public at risk!

“This act also diverts us from more serious matters.”

A photo shared on Twitter of the abandoned caravan shows a police vehicle and traffic cones placed near the vehicle between the two border villages.

Councils must remove abandoned vehicles from roads and can penalise people either by issuing a fixed penalty notice if the offence is relatively minor, or by prosecuting them, according to government guidance.

If the owner cannot be found or fails to comply with a seven days’ written notice to collect the vehicle, authorities may dispose of the vehicle. If it is sold, the owner can claim the money raised up to a year later minus the authorities’ removal, storage and disposal costs.