Stopped by the police

[Nanniemate]

To add to Sue's comment ref the Yorkshire Ripper, Ted Bundy was also caught due to a vehicle stop.

Eventually sadly not on the first one

 

[Trevor Wbm]

I stand corrected but are the ‘traffic’ police completely different ‘ branch ‘ than normal shire police ?

They are a separate branch of the local county force, sometimes joint with officers from a neighbouring county. Whilst they prioritise on the policing of roads, road safety and the apparently trivial (according to some) matter of reducing the number of deaths on the roads, they are also proactively involved in crime detection initiatives aimed at burglars, who rarely walk to and from their target premises.

Rest assured if the officers involved in this operation had seen a vehicle that was in anyway suspected of involvement of any sort of crime, it would have got their full attention. The captains seat warriors on here should not however let this get in the way of them churning out the tired old 'nothing better to do' stuff.

 

[Trevor Wbm]

Yes, they are, CID who would usually deal with burglary, assaults, offences against the person, sexual offences, etc don't normally get involved in vehicle checks and Roads Policing officers don't usually attend burglary offences , of course those who reach for the keyboard to type their uninformed comments don't give a thought to that.

Your point is valid, but most of what you talk about is dealt with by the local uniform coppers, some of whom are genuinely interested in finding out what CID do do.

 

[Trevor Wbm]

In Lincolnshire we have just got a new "branch" of the police set up: Roads Policing Unit. "Their aim will be to reduce serious and fatal collisions, promote road safety, and to target criminals who use our road network to commit crime.".
There are real issues in Lincs with road accidents (separate to the A1),: lots of reasons - very little dual carriage way, very few straight stretches on A roads where sensible overtaking is possible, lorries now too big for the roads, too much speeding and bad overtaking, slow lorries and agricultural vehicles. Then add cyclists and motor bikes into the mix.
I know questionnaires and surveys only reach some people, but responses to these in Lincs has constantly highlighted road safety.
Apparently previously roads policing was part of the firearms unit!
These motorhome/caravan checks may have been by this unit, or might have been nothing to do with them - I could not say.

The wheel turns again then .... Roads Policing is one of those jobs that is amalgamated into local policing by the new chief with bright 'new' ideas, then put back to being a specialist department by the next one, then amalgamated by the one after that. All over the county weary long-serving Inspectors reach up to dusty shelves, and pull down the operations manual from last time they ran in the 'new' way.

 

[Trevor Wbm]

And none of that is of any interest to me if I call for medical or fire assistance. Thectosd will already be shut if I'm there using my vehicle

If they wish to turn up and apportion blame that is up to them. Medical and fire assistance is what is required first not someone to shut the road for 12 hours whilst they have a ponce around.

Should you lose a loved one in a road crash, would you prefer a) a forensic examination of the vehicles and scene in support of eventual prosecution of the person responsible or b) the body stuffed in a bin bag, the road open as soon as possible and no further action?

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[Sapper520]

The wheel turns again then .... Roads Policing is one of those jobs that is amalgamated into local policing by the new chief with bright 'new' ideas, then put back to being a specialist department by the next one, then amalgamated by the one after that. All over the county weary long-serving Inspectors reach up to dusty shelves, and pull down the operations manual from last time they ran in the 'new' way.

You bloody old sweat you…..

 

[RioRob]

Most motorhomes are less than 3.5t and the unladen weight is stated. If you do need more than 3,5t then you can upplate. It’s a paper exercise

Not if you don't have a C1 on your licence because you have to have a medical to drive it. Also the unladen weight isn't always of any use to calculate payload. For that you need to know the MRO & the only way to know that for sure is to have your vehicle weighed. I would recommend that anyone buying any PVC or motorhome has it weighed before accepting it. I once didn't & it cost me dear.

 

[Chrisvh]

To add to Sue's comment ref the Yorkshire Ripper, Ted Bundy was also caught due to a vehicle stop.

The wheel turns again then .... Roads Policing is one of those jobs that is amalgamated into local policing by the new chief with bright 'new' ideas, then put back to being a specialist department by the next one, then amalgamated by the one after that. All over the county weary long-serving Inspectors reach up to dusty shelves, and pull down the operations manual from last time they ran in the 'new' way.

Exactly! De-skilling specialists has been the norm for a long time. Road Traffic Departments we’re the bane of the uniform officers life. I seem to recall the phrase “I’ll leave it with you” muttered through a partially opened window before they disappeared. But they were experts in what they did. Unfortunately most departments became ARV/traffic units. Both individual specialisms that were rarely well combined.

 

[Sapper520]

Should you lose a loved one in a road crash, would you prefer a) a forensic examination of the vehicles and scene in support of eventual prosecution of the person responsible or b) the body stuffed in a bin bag, the road open as soon as possible and no further action?

Don’t……..I really want to have a beer with you.

 

[iandsm]

Your point is valid, but most of what you talk about is dealt with by the local uniform coppers, some of whom are genuinely interested in finding out what CID do do.

That has not been my experience in my 30 years service, at least in my area.

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[Trevor Wbm]

That has not been my experience in my 30 years service, at least in my area.

Met?

 

[Sapper520]

Masons in……..sorry can’t say where, I’d be Black Balled.

I worked with many, many good CID Officers, but a fair few were……’Fire up the Quattro’ types. Others looked down on us lowly Uniform types.

Yes, even within the Police Service there are divisions……but most do their best.

Family member just joined CID…..gave him my tips….leather jacket, grow a moustache, increase his drinking, call his boss ‘Gov’ (male or female), join the Mason’s……..

 

[sylvester1954]

Good to see the boys and girls in blue not wasting time and energy on assaults, burglaries, petty theft and making their presence felt in our towns and villages.

I have absolutely no problem with the Police carrying out safety checks when we all know there are owners/drivers out on the road with vehicles unfit for the road either legally or mechanically especially if preventative proactive policing saves the life of others.

 

[iandsm]

Met?

Suffolk

 

[jongood]

I think there needs to be a middle position. If its a fatality or serious injuries then yes a thorough investigation is required. If however its just bent metal then Imo it should be dragged out of the way and the traffic cleared.

Should you lose a loved one in a road crash, would you prefer a) a forensic examination of the vehicles and scene in support of eventual prosecution of the person responsible or b) the body stuffed in a bin bag, the road open as soon as possible and no further action?

s re

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[Sapper520]

I think there needs to be a middle position. If its a fatality or serious injuries then yes a thorough investigation is required. If however its just bent metal then Imo it should be dragged out of the way and the traffic cleared.

s re

Most minor bumps are never reported.

 

[Trevor Wbm]

I think there needs to be a middle position. If its a fatality or serious injuries then yes a thorough investigation is required. If however its just bent metal then Imo it should be dragged out of the way and the traffic cleared.

s re

Fair point. There is however the grey area of the serious injury that could prove fatal, eventually. Once the scene is opened up, evidence is destroyed, so they are treated as 'fatal' initially.

 

[Trevor Wbm]

Suffolk

Fair enough .... still done properly there then.

 

[Paulypaul]

It seems that owning a motorhome is quite a popular pastime amongst retired old bill?

Certain posts seem to encourage disclosure about ones past life, in particular ex- jobbers.

Nowt wrong with it, it's just my power of observation.....should have been a copper me?

 

[Jonno1103]

Anyone here who has been unfortunate enough that they needed the police will know how stretched they are for resources and getting them to come to your aid is not without long delays , and imo to be wasting their time by again picking on the easy motorist is just BS , crimes are so hard these days to solve due to lack of police , so why are they our again targeting the easy targets , the motorist.

Traffic officers only deal with motorists and the associated offences.

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[Sapper520]

It seems that owning a motorhome is quite a popular pastime amongst retired old bill?

Certain posts seem to encourage disclosure about ones past life, in particular ex- jobbers.

Nowt wrong with it, it's just my power of observation.....should have been a copper me?

Done several others jobs as well….…

 

[Jonno1103]

A overloaded mh , is a danger to the public, I am all for it checking everything

This is very true. Stopping distances and driving stability can be seriously compromised, however...

How many motorhomes are left for the majority of the year then hit the road without even a kick of the tyres or a quick check to see if there's a gas leak? It's a huge amount.

The weight of most 3500kg motorhomes is a sales ploy, nothing more, designed to be attractive to younger drivers who don't have C1. Yes it's breaking the law but it's no less safe 150kg over the weight plate than a similar motorhome up plated to 3650kg. Many coachbuilders won't even charge you a fee to simply alter the gross.

We have a Transit base which is rated to 4100kg, tyres weight rated overall to carry 4400kg, it's plated to 3500kg. I could load it upto 4 tonne tomorrow and break the law or leave it a week or two for Sv Tech to arrange the up plating paperwork and without any inspection or remedial work drive it lawfully.

Same motorhome, doesn't need larger rims or tyres nor any work done to the suspension. The only change is to the towing limit which drops from 1000kg to 500kg.

Neither outlook makes me any less safe although one makes me illegal... which isn't the same thing.

For the past 25 years those who passed their test post January 1997 have been deemed unsafe to tow anything more than a 750kg unbraked trailer of any description without further training.

This year that all changed, now, without said training... just the simple flick of the wrist signing off the legislation, anyone can now tow upto 3500kg.

Personally I'm more concerned about the amount of 'legal' road using nutters I frequently come across than I am of the guy driving his motorhome steadily 150kg - 200kg over what the coachbuilder decided to have stamped on the conversion plate for the sake of making his product more attractive to a wider customer base.

 

[jongood]

Fair point. There is however the grey area of the serious injury that could prove fatal, eventually. Once the scene is opened up, evidence is destroyed, so they are treated as 'fatal' initially.

I think the distinction should be an injury that somebody has to go to hospital for. Anything less, just sweep up the bits and get everything moving again.

 

[Nigel P]

Your point is valid, but most of what you talk about is dealt with by the local uniform coppers, some of whom are genuinely interested in finding out what CID do do.

a touch of humour about those 'friendly' rivalries

 

[ghiaguy]

Which documents did you have checked? I didn't know we were required to carry any.

I presume that’s a joke?

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[Bart]

Traffic officers only deal with motorists and the associated offences.

In this thread so far I have received a few notification's when people have quoted my post and have also said the same about "Traffic officers" only doing vehicle checks and not normal policing duties , but no where in the OP's first post do they mention "Traffic officers" , they say police , now I don't know about the UK mainland but I live in N.Ireland and in my 35+ years of driving I think I have been checked by the "Traffic branch" as we call it here maybe twice , where as I have been checked by "every day police" in various check points etc at least 50 times.

 

[Northernraider]

In this thread so far I have received a few notification's when people have quoted my post and have also said the same about "Traffic officers" only doing vehicle checks and not normal policing duties , but no where in the OP's first post do they mention "Traffic officers" , they say police , now I don't know about the UK mainland but I live in N.Ireland and in my 35+ years of driving I think I have been checked by the "Traffic branch" as we call it here maybe twice , where as I have been checked by "every day police" in various check points etc at least 50 times.

Likewise

 

[Northernraider]

This is very true. Stopping distances and driving stability can be seriously compromised, however...

How many motorhomes are left for the majority of the year then hit the road without even a kick of the tyres or a quick check to see if there's a gas leak? It's a huge amount.

The weight of most 3500kg motorhomes is a sales ploy, nothing more, designed to be attractive to younger drivers who don't have C1. Yes it's breaking the law but it's no less safe 150kg over the weight plate than a similar motorhome up plated to 3650kg. Many coachbuilders won't even charge you a fee to simply alter the gross.

We have a Transit base which is rated to 4100kg, tyres weight rated overall to carry 4400kg, it's plated to 3500kg. I could load it upto 4 tonne tomorrow and break the law or leave it a week or two for Sv Tech to arrange the up plating paperwork and without any inspection or remedial work drive it lawfully.

Same motorhome, doesn't need larger rims or tyres nor any work done to the suspension. The only change is to the towing limit which drops from 1000kg to 500kg.

Neither outlook makes me any less safe although one makes me illegal... which isn't the same thing.

For the past 25 years those who passed their test post January 1997 have been deemed unsafe to tow anything more than a 750kg unbraked trailer of any description without further training.

This year that all changed, now, without said training... just the simple flick of the wrist signing off the legislation, anyone can now tow upto 3500kg.

Personally I'm more concerned about the amount of 'legal' road using nutters I frequently come across than I am of the guy driving his motorhome steadily 150kg - 200kg over what the coachbuilder decided to have stamped on the conversion plate for the sake of making his product more attractive to a wider customer base.

Exactly

 

[ChesterB]

Whilst I fully support checks on any section of the motoring community, especially where safety is the main concern, I was surprised that the police motorcyclist would not have to have some grounds for directing the vehicle to a specific location for inspection.
Any uniformed officer may stop you to examine/check your driving licence, but to enforce a visit to a weighbridge, you would need to have at least some reasonable suspicion that the vehicle was actually overweight in the first place.
Given the woefull lack of knowledge of the relevant law in many fields exhibited by our boys in blue these days, it doesn't surprise me though.
Cb.

 

[grumps147]

Oops, no reasonable suspicion needed… but they do need to be authorised officers.. https://www.gov.uk/government/publi...-of-practice-enforcement-weighing-of-vehicles

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