Criminal law practitioners are claiming that the scope for abuse by cowboy wheel-clamping operators is too great to be controlled in any other way than by tough new legal sanctions.Malcolm Fowler, joint honorary secretary of the Birmingham Law Society and immediate past chairman of the Criminal Law Solicitors Association, says he has been getting around a dozen calls a day from motorists who have found their cars clamped by unscrupulous companies.'With some operators, it has nothing to do with trying to deter people from parking on private land and everything to do with making a killing,' he says.Some of the cowboy operators' alleged tactics include: parking their own cars on private land to lure unsuspecting motorists; failing to post adequate warning notices; lying in wait and pouncing as soon as cars are left; and demanding exorbitant release fees, sometimes of more than £100.

'The worst operators will only accept cash,' says Mr Fowler.Barrister John Cooper has also brought a number of cases on behalf of people who have been clamped.

He agrees with Mr Fowler that some operators rely on their staff intimidating motorists into paying.'It is perhaps in the nature of the job that it is done by people of a certain build,' he says.

He too has a thick file of examples of motorists falling victim to cowboy clampers.Private wheel clamping is a notoriously grey area of law.

Both Mr Cooper and Mr Fowler, along with the main motoring organisations, maintain that putting a clamp on a car on private land can amount to trespass.This, however, has yet to be fully established in court.

Rayner Peet of the AA says: 'We have tried on numerous occasions to set a precedent.

But it seems that the private wheel-clampers are concerned that any decision will go against them and they tend to settle.'Mr Fowler and Mr Coo per have had similar experiences.

However, both have advised motorists who have successfully retrieved their money through the small claims court, although small claims decisions do not set a precedent.But while the operators may not be breaking any law by putting on a clamp, the motorist is equally entitled to take it off again - so long as he or she does not damage it.

If the motorist does, he or she risks being prosecuted for criminal damage.'If you knowingly leave your car on someone else's land, you are committing trespass.

But it is equally trespass for someone to tamper with your goods - your car - when putting on a clamp,' says Mr Fowler.As well as advising clients of the legal niceties, Mr Fowler is also able to offer more direct help to motorists.

'I discovered through someone who knows a lot about cars that if you deflate the tyre a little, you can often get the clamp off.'As a result, Mr Fowler has been able to talk at least one motorist, who called him on his mobile phone, through successfully releasing his car.

'So long as you do it without damaging it, you're in the clear,' he says.Mr Cooper has also argued that clamping may amount to theft.

'If the motorist doesn't pay the release fee, the clamping company would keep the car, thus "permanently depriving" its owner of his vehicle,' Mr Cooper says.

It is an argument which has, he says, stimulated a lot of thought and debate.However, Mr Fowler stresses that what motorists need is pragmatic advice.

In theory, a motorist can remove the legal protection conferred on the clamper by the posting of warning notices by simply displaying a notice on the car saying he or she does not agree to be clamped.'It is a very nice legal point.

I'm sure the Court of Appeal would have a lovely time with it, but it is rather irrelevant to what happens on the ground,' he says.All those who are concerned at the activities of cowboy operators agree that there are two distinct legal issues that need attention.

First, the position under the current law needs to be clarified: is it lawful or not for private companies to clamp? And, in the longer term, they want to see changes in the law to protect motorists from unscrupulous operators.It is an issue which is also of concern to the government.

The Home Office issued a consultation paper on the issue over a year ago but, so far, there are no signs of any departmental action.Both Mr Fowler and Mr Cooper believe that bad operators will simply ignore any regulations imposed, and fear that there will be no proper policing.

Instead, they favour an outright ban, which would make private wheel clamping a criminal offence, as it already is in Scotland.In Scotland, it falls under the laws against extortion, however, there is no comparable law here.

Mr Fowler and Mr Cooper both stress they have no mandate for selfish parkers, but say private land owners should be able to protect their property in other ways, say, by physical barriers or telescopic posts.

Mr Cooper adds that there has been no great outcry from landowners since the Scottish ban.The AA, on the other hand, favours regulation rather than a ban.

It wants minimum sizes for the warning notices that need to be displayed; a maximum release fee; and a round-the-clock release service.In some instances, motorists have found their cars clamped at 6pm and had to wait until the following morning, when the company reopens for business, before being released.Mr Peet says the AA is continuously lobbying Parliament to try to get it to act, and unsuccessfully tried to get an amendment ad ded to the current Criminal Justice Bill.Meanwhile, a Home Office spokesperson says the matter is 'still being considered'.