VANDALS have left a Lepton pensioner with a huge repair bill after repeatedly attacking his Reliant Robin van.

George Wilkinson, 71, has paid out about £1,400 to get his motor fixed - after 12 attacks in less than two years.

The bill is almost three times what the three-wheeler is worth on today's car market.

On Saturday the vandals struck again.

The van is kept on the drive at Mr Wilkinson's home on Ings Way.

But the vandals have made a special effort to reach it and wreak havoc.

Mr Wilkinson was woken at 2am on Saturday by people shouting and laughing outside.

Later that morning, he discovered a concrete block had been smashed through his van's windscreen.

Mr Wilkinson said: "I have Parkinson's disease so I use the car every day to get about. This whole business is making me poorly. I feel like I am under siege."

Retired Mr Wilkinson bought the van in 1991 when it was worth £3,500.

He said: "I bought it because I worked shifts and needed to get about. When I retired I kept it because it always passed the MOT and it was cheap to run.

"Paying for all this takes money away from other things.

"I even spent £1,800 having a drive done so there was somewhere safe to park the van."

Mr Wilkinson parks the van in front of his other car, a Nissan Almera.

That has had its tyres slashed once - but is usually untouched by the vandals.

The attacks usually happen in the early hours of the morning and Mr Wilkinson believes the culprits are young men making their way home after a night out.

He said: "I will hear the noise and them laughing and get up to see them running away.

"It happens about once a month, depending how much beer they have had and where they get out of the taxi."

The van has had its tyres slashed and on one occasion, the vandals picked the car up, carried it from the drive and placed it across the pavement.

Six weeks ago, while Mr Wilkinson was on holiday in Tenerife, they turned the van on its side and then dropped it back to its normal position.

Mr Wilkinson returned home to find the suspension ruined. It cost £225 to repair.

He got the van back on the road just days before Saturday's attack - which left Mr Wilkinson with another £140 repair bill.

He said: "It has cost me nearly £400 in a week.

"Over the past two years it has cost more than £1,000.

"I can't really claim on my insurance as it is only third party, fire and theft.

"There is no way we can control them and the police seem powerless.

"I have reported the incidents but no-one has been caught."

Neighbourhood Watch liaison officer David Whitteron said: "There are reports of vandalism in Lepton and I know the neighbourhood policing teams are working hard to eradicate it.

"If anybody has information about who is responsible for these incidents, the best thing to do is contact Crimestoppers."

People can contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

"A lot of people do get caught and prosecuted, either by being caught in the act by police or some information supplied by members of the public," said Mr Whitteron.