Back in the early 70s I was making a right turn in my lorry from a yard onto a dual carriageway.I waited till it was clear both ways and set off.When about to enter far carriageway(still clear),a car comes flying out of a side road towards me,so i have to stay where I am.
Traffic is now coming from my left,so I have to wait for a gap before setting off.Traffic is passing behind me ok,but police mini panda does u turn and follows me down the road and pulls me in.
I very politely explained the situation and he seemed ok about it,but said he would have to report me for driving without due care.Got a NIP a few days later.
I really didnt think I deserved a prosecution,but as it was his word against mine,and being a young married man with no money for legal representation,I was reluctantly going to pay up and take the points.
I worked for a family business with a great gaffer,when I told him the situation,he said he would get me a solicitor and he would pay.
Anyway,long story short,this guy spent a long time questioning the copper in court,and he ripped him to sheds,so much so,I almost felt sorry for him,and the case was dismissed.
I know some will say a union will get you representation,but many wont when its a “your word against a coppers word situation”.
My point is if I hadnt had such a good gaffer ( and it cost him a lot of money),I would not have had a clean license for all this time.
Anyone else had to pay up and put it down to experience ?
Regards John.
Yes on a speeding ticket about 11 years ago. Ticket said 36 (in a 30). Tachograph said 30-33 (I had cruise set to 30 and it was on a slight downhill). I wanted to appeal it but my then employers wouldn’t help in anyway. It was hard enough to get a photocopy of that days’ tachograph chart. TM said the firms’ policy was not to argue with the police as it looked bad on their reputation. I couldn’t afford to risk the courts bumping up my fine or points as we were getting a mortgage at the time. To rub salt in, my TM took my load bonus away for the week but as it didn’t equal the week when the offence happened, they took more the following week. It cost them more in the long run as I was the only tipper on the fleet to do 40mph on single carriageways after that, and would happily find ways of getting delayed on site early afternoon so all the late loads had gone when I’d got back.
I don’t miss the pathetic load bonus culture of tipper work one bit.
Sometimes coppers hands are tied as in my one & only run in with them but the bloke you describe sounds like a ■■■■■■.
Used to be two approaches by the police when they pulled you. By the book, called you sir, did everything as it should be, you knew there was no way out and you were getting done. The other way was to call you “son” or something a lot worse, give you a right bollocking, words of advice and the tell you to “■■■■ off and don’t let me see you do that again”. I got one of the former in 1965, my fault, red light jump, he who hesitates is lost, copper stood on the line and watched me do it, no argument, £3 fine and a “black blob” on my ticket. I also had a number of the other sort, did me more good! My brother was unfortunate enough to get both, he met a copper on a narrow de-restricted road, copper bottled it and ran off the road, brother got a bollocking and a nick, solicitor told him he was wasting his time fighting it, put his hands up and take it in the dirtbox, your word against a copper, blah blah blah. He didn’t and went to court, case took a while to get there. In the meantime the copper had left the force and was living 200 miles away and working as a milkman, didn’t turn up at court to give evidence as he “couldn’t get the time off”. Case dismissed!
Bernard
I got a tug in January for no Mot. Turns out when id taken for test this garage hadn’t uploaded the information to Mot web site.
Yeah i could have argued but i should have checked the wedge of paper i got when my car was tested. Cost me £100
Working men dont get justice if they cant pay for it.Up here in Bonnie Scotland convicted murderers are entitled to legal aid to bring a test case as they want the RIGHT to vote in the Referendum.