Impatience will get you a chase

cormie

I was at a tax/wahats yahar nahame/wheredjya lihive/is this yahar cahar check coming home the other evening and they were taking their time, I saw a green polo behind in the queue do a U turn and drive off. Either impatient or hiding something. Anyway, a garda spotted it and 2 of them hopped in a squad car and sped after them leaving 3 others to check the 2 lanes of traffic. What if their tax/insurance etc etc is all up to scratch and they just didn't fancy waiting? Did they commit a crime by turning around?

Hagar

They may have if they crossed a continuous white line to do the U-turn or carried it out in a manner dangerous to other road users. I don't think it's an offence to avoid going through a checkpoint if you don't break some other law while doing it. I think you'll find most checkpoints are set up in spots that are physically difficult to avoid for that reason.

Thomas_S_Hunterson

It does look really suspicious though, it's fair enough that the guards chased the car, at least they're doing something.

Hagar

sean_keevey wrote:

It does look really suspicious though

Agreed, and full marks to the Gardaí for pursuing them.

Magown3

It's also possible that the only reason for the checkpoint was to look for a certain someone in a green Polo!!

maidhc

I got pulled over before by a garda and was asked why I had turned around at a checkpoint. I hadn't been near the checkpoint at all, but I had the same car as someone who had turned around. They waved me on when they saw everything was in order.

mike65

The best way to avoid detection at a check point is to spot it early!

Last year I was in the work van for a number of months on old tax and I got good at spotting the warning signs, like early breaking by cars ahead of me and a stream of cars coming towards me all at roughly the same distance apart from each other.

Pull over and sit for a while then when both Garda are busy on each side turn round, but so it in a quiet fashion like you were pulling out from a driveway.

Mike.

Ernie Ball

mike65 wrote:

The best way to avoid detection at a check point is to spot it early!

Last year I was in the work van for a number of months on old tax and I got good at spotting the warning signs, like early breaking by cars ahead of me and a stream of cars coming towards me all at roughly the same distance apart from each other.

Pull over and sit for a while then when both Garda are busy on each side turn round, but so it in a quiet fashion like you were pulling out from a driveway.

Or: pay your motor tax and never have to worry....

mike65

Indeed, the boss finally got round to it!

Mike.

cormie

Who'd be at fault for driving it? You or the boss?

byte

I think it's the driver at fault, as the driver is expected not to drive the vehicle if they find everything is not in order.

This isn't always easy though.

ToxicPaddy

Something like this happened to me before..

Where my parents live is just beside a main road and the entrance to their house is on a long straight, so was driving along minding my own business and I pull into the left onto the hard shoulder with the intention of crossing the road when the traffic behind me passed..

When I stopped I noticed in the distance that there was a garda checkpoint, never thought anything more about it, all cars passed me, nothing on coming, so I turned across the road and into the parents place. All perfectly safe and legal.

As I was getting out of the car, I heard the garda car roaring up the road, sirens blaring etc and thought that someone has tried to avoid the checkpoint and they were giving chase.

The about 10 mins later they pulled into the parents driveway, I saw them driving up and went out and here were the 2 boys checking the car, looking underneath it, checking tax, insurance etc. They asked me did I live there, to which I responded I did, but werent convinced so when my father came out to see what was happening, they asked him too.

Then they asked me to open the boot of the car.. I just shrugged my shoulders and opened it, kept it all very friendly, didnt make any smart comments etc just went along with it.

Eventually they were convinced but didnt look too happy about it and drove off without a word

All a bit strange but sure I suppose they have a job to do too.

Tox

mike65

Is avoiding a check point a crime? I don't think so as you have'nt made contact with an officer of the law when making the u-turn.

Mike.

milltown

I seem to recall, a good few years back when compliance with road tax law was a lot worse than it seems now, every tax checkpoint had a motorbike cop facing the oncoming traffic watching for people turning back, ready to give chase. I wonder was that just because they were safer times, when folks could get pissed and drive home slowly, and tax dodging summonses were the garda fundraiser of choice, like speed traps on dual carriageways are today.
Or am I just being sentimental

MrPudding

It happened to be near a few years ago I was trying to find the Wyeth plant in Newbridge. I took a wrong turn and decided to turn round. As I was halfway through the turn a noticed a checkpoint ahead of me, it had been blocked by the lorry in front of me. I saw the copper running for the car so I just pulled over immediately. He was pretty cool, he even gave me direction.

There was a guy I used to work with in the north that did a bit of drink driving. When he was driving home after a few too many he would hang something on his indicator so it was on all the time. If you come round a corner and see the checkpoint and turn off they would follow but if you cam eround the corner with the indicator already on they will figure you could not hve know they were there and it is a genuine turn.

MrP