Rear numberplate FAIL

[jerzybondov]

Took the car out in London tonight to pick up a friend and wasn't long before I had some flashing blue lights in my mirror. Figured one of my taillights must have been on the blink or something. But no, cops had pulled me because they thought I was wearing american plates. Wanted to run the car through the system. They asked how long I'd had the car - I said 5 years. He then looked surprised, so I explained the car was registered and that was the UK reg on the back. Oh dear. He goes round the front to see there's no plate at all there. I quickly produce one from the boot saying it had fallen off, which of course it JUST HAD.

He goes off for a bit and returns to tell me he's going to issue me with a ticket. 20 minutes later and having now attracted a crowd of local kids taking photos he finally gives me the ticket and says it's £100. £100!!

Anyone else wearing the California style plates on the back ever had a problem with the police with them? I've not had a single problem in 5 years with them, cops have even wandered round checking the car out - and noticed the plate on the back before - and never said anything.

I feel like I could stomach the odd £50 or even £60 fine for it, but £100 seems rather steep to me... a bit of googling tells me apparently the fixed penalty notices all went up by 70% last year.

[andyd]

But no, cops had pulled me because they thought I was wearing american plates.

No he didn't he was just being a cock. Clearly a uk plate, just in a us style.

Not strictly legal I know...

But I recently changed the slightly cracked plate on a bike, threatened with fixed penalty and 3 points!!! quite effective! !

Sorry to hear it tho gez,

Andy

[bandit]

That seems steep Jez, I thought it was £60, but obviously gone up. I'm a bit of a seasoned pro at it, been nicked 7 times (all on the bike, for small plates)
Andy, he was just putting the frighteners on you with 3 points, it's not endorsable & he knows it.
Obviously crime is low in the capital, this week, nowt better to do, pricks

[RobvdVeer]

Being dutchy, i cannot say anything about this, but this: i have us style plates (front and back),but that is no problem as i is stated so on my car documents (”usage of blablabla allowed"). So clearly permission was granted in my case.


Rob

[Starglider]

I suspect you would have gotten away with the US number plate style if you'd had a front plate. Lack of front plate is a major no-no in London (in particular) because the ANPR cameras for enforcing the congestion charge zone are front facing. Also many speed cameras...

[Admin-bloke]

Sorry to hear that Jez, and you wonder why I don't like "that there" London....

I did a lot of work for Thames Water water systems and I hated being down there. Too crowded, congested, expensive etc.

On the ticket does it state if you can contest it? Put a complaint in about his "bullying" behaviour, that'll probably back him off. ..

[jerzybondov]

I suspect you would have gotten away with the US number plate style if you'd had a front plate. Lack of front plate is a major no-no in London (in particular) because the ANPR cameras for enforcing the congestion charge zone are front facing. Also many speed cameras...

It really was the rear plate that gave him a boner - he wasn't that fussed about the front one having 'fallen off' once I'd produced it and shown him the sticky marks on the bumper where it normally sits. Issue is if they're traffic police (rather than bobby driving from A to B) they're on quotas about how many tickets they have to issue (I know someone who used to work for the police) so it removes the question of discretion from the equation. If they've got grounds to issue a ticket they will do, even if they might have previously just given you a chat if you weren't being a dick about it.

On the ticket does it state if you can contest it? Put a complaint in about his "bullying" behaviour, that'll probably back him off. ..

Sure I probably could contest it but the guy was perfectly nice about it. Wouldn't feel right. He was just doing the job he's been given - my issue is really the quota that sits behind these guys and turns it into profiteering rather than a community service.

That seems steep Jez, I thought it was £60, but obviously gone up. I'm a bit of a seasoned pro at it, been nicked 7 times (all on the bike, for small plates)

Well that makes me feel better! Not tempted to change the plates after the 2nd or 3rd time? All the fixed penalty notice amounts went up last August - apparently to bring them into line with other types of offence. So now having an irregular numberplate costs the same as public disorder. Really?

[jerzybondov]

And in today's news...
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-26878761

"There is a "culture of fear" in the Metropolitan Police because of the "draconian" use of performance targets, a report into the force has said.

It calls some targets "meaningless" and "unrealistic" - and says others are "disguised" by senior officers."

[MikeWard]

Must be a Southern thing Gez, I got pulled for exactly the same thing last month.

No front plate was the reason they turned around and started following me, but then they obviously caught the california rear plate as well, tailed me all the way into work (obviously stopped just shy of the office as I knew they were going to pull me, and sure enough as I pulled into the side of the road the blues went on).

They told me that it was a fixed £100 fine for each item, so £200 for the illegal rear plate, and missing front plate would have been an expensive start to my morning.

Luckily I had both front and rear UK spec plates in the car, so I was 'let off' with slapped wrists after fitting the UK plates.

[Dan 6511]

What a joke. I was lucky with mine, but I only had the car 4 years

Having quotas is stupid, they are basically saying they want people to commit crime.... If everyone became law abiding overnight they would be in trouble for not meeting their quotas!