A doctor whose distraught girlfriend returned to Germany after her camper van and possessions were crushed, blames Bromley Council for the breakdown of their relationship.

Philip Mairs, 35, of Chancery Lane, Beckenham, says the callous way his lover was treated by the council "soured" their romance and a year later he has been left broken-hearted and single.

Dr Mairs, a registrar at University Hospital Lewisham, met 33-year-old German doctor Anna Mazick while they were working at Dover Hospital.

Dr Mazick was staying at her lover's Beckenham home when the German-registered Volkswagen disappeared from nearby Limes Road on March 14, 2001.

It had been crushed by Bromley Council.

The council says checks

revealed the DVLA had no record of the vehicle but News Shopper has discovered it need not have been registered as it had not been in the country for more than six months.

Dr Mairs said: "We had just been on holiday and at that stage were very much in love.

"All her belongings were in it, even her childhood toys. She was just absolutely distraught."

The smitten doctor noticed a change in his lover after the incident.

He said: "She was very unhappy and felt English people were against her and none of her possessions were safe.

"There was no human feeling for this woman who had lost everything, they were so callous."

The pair did try and pursue the matter through the courts but could not afford a lengthy legal battle.

Dr Mairs said: "Our barrister felt we had a good case but said the council would just tie us up in legal knots."

"Anna just gave up and went back to Germany about six months later.

"It definitely soured our relationship and her view of British people."

Bromley Council's director of environmental services Gordon Hayward maintains the vehicle had been reported to them as abandoned and it was correctly and legally removed.

He added: "As there are still outstanding legal issues surrounding this case, we are reluctant to comment further, except to say we are confident any legal action would vindicate our position.

"We were saddened to hear the couple have since split up but this is clearly a personal matter and it would be inappropriate to comment further."