Never thought that this would happen!
Son bought an M3 yesterday afternoon. After a very protracted time attempting to transfer funds he left his SLK and we set off home. His old number plate is to be transferred to the the new beast and the existing number is being retained by the seller.
We got within a few hundred yards of my home and were waiting at traffic lights for a right filter and noticed a police Focus waiting to filter the opposite way.
We had just turned when the blues went on.
They stopped him for the wrong spacing on the number plates.
Son had a copy of the V5, a photo of a laptop PC with the three hour old insurance confirmation on display and invoice to show them.
They ran their checks and all were good.
Driving license ?? No but I can call up a copy from Dropbox. Interestingly they were quite happy with that ( and I suspect impressed )
Full marks to the guys. They were friendly, polite, and efficient for what might be an unusual situation especially as son moved out of his house last week and is yet to get the keys to his new flat so his only real address this week is ours which does not match any docs.
An interesting event and IMO a sensible outcome that they were satified with the story and we went on our ways.
The dealer was of course closed and the proposed new number plates ( to be binned) were in the boot.
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How it should be - DVLA details are on PNC and easilly accesible to them.
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Sounds like a bit of proper coppering to me.
You checked out so no probs, you'd have been very glad for that pull if some scrote had just nicked it.
Last two times i've been followed/stopped were in the wee small hours when going to or from work, in both cases not far from itinerent camps which i think was a factor when they pulled my old Landcruiser.
In neither case was i there for more than a minute, neither car was searched or even looked at, both times bade a cheerful cheerio once we'd passed the usual pleasantries and answered the usual questions who/why/what.
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>> when they pulled my old Landcruiser.
Probably checking to see if you'd got a hookey big telly in the boot...
:-)
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>> Sounds like a bit of proper coppering to me.
>>
Me too. There was a story just last week about some terrorists who had a car load of weapons and bombs (and who fortunately were too late for their intended target) who were only pulled because ANPR showed no insurance. The Police equivalent of winning the Euro Millions jackpot?
(Memo to terrorists: If you're going to drive around in a car stuffed full of weapons and explosives, make sure it's insured so you don't get pulled over).
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The flip side to that was the car was seized with all the gear in it - it was only found when a the car was about to be returned or scrapped by compund staff....a very near miss.
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Another flipside was I passed a Volvo XC90 at lunchtime today with the reg S15 UTT, but it was both mis-spaced and italicised into "SI SUTT"
It's very nice that Si, be they male or female, wants the world to know they are onanists.
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>> (Memo to terrorists: If you're going to drive around in a car stuffed full of
>> weapons and explosives, make sure it's insured so you don't get pulled over).
Bit unfair. I understand that they did look into getting insurance, but once you pick "social/commuting/transporting high explosives" on Confused.com, the premium goes through the roof.
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on Confused.com, the premium goes through the roof.
As indeed their targets would have.
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>> Last two times i've been followed/stopped were in the wee small hours when going to
>> or from work, in both cases not far from itinerent camps
Same here, was doing a bit of late night shunting, making sure the right vehicles were in the right places for the morning - I got pulled in the boss's Hilux (which is known in the office as the p i k e y mobile) pulling a new trailer with a different nunberplate on it. Cue a quick explanation of how another driver had locked the correct plate in his van and gone home with the keys, plus I was able to give an accurate description of the vehicle the plate belonged to. I'm glad they stopped the outfit, it gives me confidence that they'd do so if it were really needed.
Last edited by: Dave_TiD on Mon 17 Jun 13 at 15:12
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Most taxpayers want their police out and about stopping things and poking their noses in...it's what they're paid to do.
When you're young in service, you are taught that acorns can grow into trees...and if something doesn't seem right, it probably isn't..so keep digging.
Trouble is some of the legislation has been watered down (as part of the race relations sideshow) and combined with the robust complaints system, some aren't as thorough as they could be.
I once got posted with a new lad, when I was still fairly young... and to show him the ropes we stopped stuff on Victoria Embankment in Central London, just to see what we could find. I stopped a bloke in a 3 series BMW for having a light out...and started digging. He looked alright until I asked him what was in his briefcase on the seat...and then looked uncomfortable...so dig we did....in there were several different cheque books in various company names...so we dug a bit more. Eventually I had a 50/50 decision as to whether or not to bring him in...I did (wondering if I'd get a rollocking off the Custody Sergeant).. but struck trumps. The end result after some tremendous work by a detective after i'd handed it over...was a large multi million pound fraud...for which the detective got a Judge's commendation from Southwark Crown Court...and deservedly so. Matey boy went away for yonks.
The detective was a bit sheepish about his commendation and felt I should have had a walk on part for stopping it in the first place...but the reality was he did an enormous amount of work on it...and I enjoyed the chase at the beginning, then soon got bored...and wanted to look for the next one.
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When I was working in Wiltshire years ago the Chairman of Salisbury Magistrates had a Range Rover with deliberately mis-spaced letters and figures to spell out the name of his company.
Somehow, I've never taken the number plate thing seriously since.
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I must admit, whenever I see a deliberately wrongly spaced numberplate, I think, what a bleep idiot and hope they get stopped by a bored policeman with a nose for finding other transgressions.
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It's completely beyond me why anyone gives a tuppenny damn about this.
The world is swarming with egotistical, slightly silly people. Why single this category out? Anyone would think some of the people here were petty officials manqués...
Silly number plates are always funny, sometimes witty. If I can ever afford it I will buy ONAN15T just to annoy you all.
TCHAH!
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My Mrs has her heart set on AR51 COW which resides not far from here.
Can't really be bothered with personal plates, too much of a faff when you buy another car, but that particular plate i would indulge her.
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>> Can't really be bothered with personal plates
Nor me. But I could make the effort if it would generate a bit of apoplexy in the pub here. It's an agreeable fantasy anyway.
:o}
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I'm interested WP, in what you would do if you pulled over my Austrian-registered car & found a UK resident (my son) driving it. Given the vehicle was fully road-legal in Austria, and my lad was fully covered by my insurance and his licence covered him for that class of vehicle, and everything was in order, how would you deal with it? A quiet word for us to change places? Report it as an offence? I'm intrigued as what you feel would be the common-sense approach.
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The MIB's stance is that if the vehicle is being driven in contravention of the foreign vehicle requirements it would not invalidate the insurance in existence from a Green Card country.
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>> I'm interested WP, in what you would do if you pulled over my Austrian-registered car
>> & found a UK resident (my son) driving it. Given the vehicle was fully road-legal
>> in Austria, and my lad was fully covered by my insurance and his licence covered
>> him for that class of vehicle, and everything was in order, how would you deal
>> with it? A quiet word for us to change places? Report it as an offence?
>> I'm intrigued as what you feel would be the common-sense approach.
>>
I've been out now for 18 months..and it feels like 5 years, so my copper's nose isn't what it used to be.
Also, for 21 years of my service, I was in management ranks, so to be honest, latterly, I didn't do a helluva lot of 'collar feeling'.
When I was out and about as a PC (so over 22 years ago), you'd concentrate on those that you felt needed it, because in reality, you could walk out of a police station and find something wrong almost anywhere, but what would that achieve?...so you try to go for some quality.
You might well stop loads of people for minor stuff, not really be interested in the minor stuff, but try to get an 'inner' in to something else and the more experienced you get, you'd target people. Just before I got promoted to Sergeant, with 9 years service, I was getting quite/reasonably good at it.
Now if someone 'p'd you off (failed the attitude test) well that's different, they'd go in the book for whatever you could find.
To cover your specifics, that side of things was a customs issue (all to do with the duty paid ....or not as the case may be), so at the time i'm talking about, you'd seize the car, inform customs and let them deal. Zoll plates in the 80's were a favourite. At one point, if there wasn't much going on, I did it a lot because i'd choose a flash car and get to drive it back to the nick (nowadays contractors would be called).
Nowadays, certainly where I ended up policing, they are so damned hectic, that most traffic matters were routinely ignored by local cops, they just couldn't get the time in, so your scenario wouldn't get a look in. I can't answer for more rural policing or traffic cops, but they (traffic) are increasingly rare beasts nowadays anyway.
Bottom line is it's minor. If everything else checked out, why bother yourself with that? There is still discretion with policing (just) so even if it was known to be 'wrong' a warning could be issued.
You do occasionally though get PC Pedantic or PC Obnoxious..can't answer for them.
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GMP reported to be cutting another 30 off the road patrol to save money. Not much chance of seeing a patrol car in the county now. Reports mention just 7 cars out some days with fewer at night.
How things change, WP. I remember parading for night shift where everyone ( all male ) was required to put 2 shillings in a pot before we went out. First one back with a prisoner won the lot ! A nice bonus on £24 a week pay.
Incentive policing !
Ted
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>> I remember parading for night shift .....
>>
>> Incentive policing !
I once went on a burglary squad in Belgravia, voluntarily, because the Chief Inspector had suspended me from driving police cars as a punishment...for being done off duty for speeding....twice...:-(
So rather than plod about with my pointy hat for 6 months off I went to the burglary squad a joint uniform/CID initiative to impact our increase in residential burglaries.
At the briefing, the DCI offered a large bottle of our choice for the first burglar charged...
...and I kid you not, no bull's excrement, I had one in within 2 hours. What's more, my posted partner had cleared off for a Magistrates Court appearance, so I was on my own. I did get lucky though, my uniform team were on duty that afternoon, so as I was following this herbert around, thinking he was up to no good, I got some of my uniform colleagues to plot up nearby, because he looked like: A, he could run fast..and B, fight hard.
Worked like clock work. I watched him disappear down some steps to a basement flat, heard the door kicked in, waited for him to come back out again minutes later, then got the uniform van to drive down the road nonchantly..until the van passenger and I jumped on him.
Result. DCI didn't think so. Miserable git wanted one of 'his' troops to have that accolade, so I never did get my bottle.
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You should write a book, Piggy.
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>> You should write a book, Piggy.
>>
You are right. I did start a draft a few years back, still got it. I ought to really, if only for the kids sake later in life. Some of it you'd find hard to believe.
When i've got more time, remind me to tell about the prolific car thief who I kept stumbling across at the most odd times..inc when driving off to go on holiday..and on the 'p' in my local pub....and I didn't live anywhere near my working ground or his address...he was just exceptionally unlucky.
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>> Some of it you'd find hard to believe
Nah :)
I enjoy reading your posts reminiscing about your many experiences Wp, and I'm sure others do.
I was speaking to the missus (again!) about your jottings, and she reminded me about the Cop from (I think it was) Carter St. nick in S.E.London, who wrote a series of books in approx. the late 1970's.
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>> >> You should write a book, Piggy.
A follow on to Harry Cole would be a good read - I'd buy it!!
EDIT. I think Harry Cole is the guy Dog's missus has in mind
Last edited by: Bromptonaut on Tue 18 Jun 13 at 15:24
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Yep me too, a book singeing day for us all at WP's seaside mansion eh?
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>> book singeing day
Oh I say gb... I know you're a dissident but I never suspected nazi or Islamist tendencies...
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>> I know you're a dissident
pfft, very good..:-)
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>>I think Harry Cole is the guy Dog's missus has in mind
Well done that man!
www.travellerstales.co.uk/bookinfo.asp?id=01163A
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>>> You should write a book, Piggy.
Some years ago, I used to visit ham radio rallies (a bit like autojumbles but for radio junk) and some of these were a long way away. I used to give a lift to a retired cop (of the old school) and I have never been so entertained during a 2 or 3 hour drive than listening to him and his, never repeated, stories. Picked up a few driving tips as well..
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>> I used to
>> give a lift to a retired cop (of the old school) and I have never
>> been so entertained during a 2 or 3 hour drive than listening to him and
>> his, never repeated, stories. Picked up a few driving tips as well..
>>
I quite like re-telling the yarns...but am conscious it's not for everyone, so try to keep it to a sensible limit....(don't want to be the pub bore).
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Stopped by Police re number plate spacing. - R.P.
