Halliwell Jones' Warrington BMW dealership has lodged a planning application which would allow it to make use of derelict land to store 150 vehicles in preparation for the arrival of vehicles subject to the brand’s “safety critical” recall.

The Winwick Road business has submitted an application for planning permission to Warrington Borough Council to make use of the space off Hopwood Street and Grey Street, according to a report in the Warrington Guardian.

Temporary consent has been sought for a period of two years, with CCTV and additional street lighting set to be installed in the area as part of its plans for the site.

Planning application documents said: "It is proposed to use the land on a temporary basis for a maximum two-year period as an open car storage area for up to 150 vehicles.

"This is the worst case scenario, assuming a backlog of vehicles that cannot be processed by the dealership due to unforeseen issues.

"It is anticipated that a maximum of 70 to 80 vehicles will be stored at any one point, with typically 15 to 20 vehicle movements per day."

BMW issued a recall for 268,00 cars in the UK due to a potential fire hazard, as part of a worldwide recall of 1.6m cars back in October last year.

The affected models are all diesel, and were produced between August 2010 and January 2017.

BMW said that, in affected diesel vehicles, glycol-leakage from the EGR (Exhaust-Gas-Recirculation) cooler can occur.

When combined with typical soot deposits, and the high temperatures that are normally present in the EGR module, it can result in smouldering particles.

Stories of BMWs catching fire have continued to enter the national press since the recall, however, and many owners claim that they have yet to be contacted by the brand to organise for any issues with their vehicle to be rectified.

Last month Autocar reported that many BMW owners had been left without their vehicles for months, however, as the brand struggled with limited supplies of the new EGR valve parts required to implement the fix.

Halliwell Jones does not appear to be the only franchisee struggling to deal with the volume of vehicles affected by the recall and the shortage of parts.

Engineer Nick Gilden was shocked to find his 4 Series XDrive had been stored at the Norfolk Showground, off the A47 in Norwich, after his vehicle was recalled.

He contacted the Eastern Daily Press to alert other owners to the “dosens” of recalled vehicles parked on grass in the unlocked and uncovered gated compound.

Cooper BMW Norwich, which rents the field from the showground, told the publication that the compound was secure and monitored by security.