A driver who thought they had nabbed a bargain after purchasing a BMW for £850 got a rude awakening when police revealed the car was stolen.

The unlucky motorist was pulled over by Thames Valley's roads policing team on Bank Holiday Monday.

The vehicle was stolen from London and has now been returned to its rightful owner, police said.

Posting about the incident on social media, a spokesman for the roads policing team said: "£850 someone paid for this BMW, probably too good to be true, right?

"The penny finally dropped when the seller went all sheepish about the whereabouts of the log book."

The post has gathered more than 1,000 likes on Facebook and has been shared 40 times.

Dozens of people have praised police for their efforts although some queried the officer's estimated for the car.

Some agreed saying,: £850 wouldn't get them four new tyres for that."

While another said: "£800 is probably what the car is worth, the car is 20 years old. BMWs aren't known for holding their value at the best of times."

According to Autocar, a used BMW E46 can range anywhere from £500 in the 'rough diamond' category up to £9,000 for convertible used models with low-mileage.

Police commented on some negetive comments that were left by readers about the social media post and the crime.

One reader commented on their parking which was blocking the road for other road users.

TVP Road Policing said: "The 'poor example of parking' was on purpose to block the car from the rear. Luckily other road users spotted our brightly coloured car a mile off."