Unreal

rex-x

Just said i'd ask a few opinions here, there are a few local guards who are basically out to ensure the law is enforced upon the youth of the road without discretion, to put it in polite terms.
Anyway long story short my friends car was parked outside work and the guard (always at him for little things) came in and told him he would be receiving a summons because his tax disc was not level with the bottom of the windscreen and was therefore unreadable, even though it was in full view

He received the summons a couple of days ago and i insisted upon going to court with him to see what the judge had to say to this.

there is nothing more to it. car was legally parked, tax in date etc, not blocked by sunstrip or anything at all.

Just to add not talking boy racer

Bandara

rex-x wrote: »

Just said i'd ask a few opinions here, there are a few local guards who are basically out to ensure the law is enforced upon the youth of the road without discretion, to put it in polite terms.
Anyway long story short my friends car was parked outside work and the guard (always at him for little things) came in and told him he would be receiving a summons because his tax disc was not level with the bottom of the windscreen and was therefore unreadable, even though it was in full view

He received the summons a couple of days ago and i insisted upon going to court with him to see what the judge had to say to this.

there is nothing more to it. car was legally parked, tax in date etc, not blocked by sunstrip or anything at all.

Just to add not talking boy racer

To be honest I find it hard to believe that the Guard is picking on this person without some reason. I've a fair bit of dealing with the guards through my line of work and they don't persecute innocent members of the public for the fun of it.

Obviously I don't know your friend etc but by the sounds of it the guards have their eye on him for some reason only known to them and your friend.

Do you really think that a guard is going around for the laugh and summoning people to court (where he has to attend even if his day off) just for a tax disc being out of position?

Sounds highly unlikely to me.

CreepingDeath

rex-x wrote: »

Anyway long story short my friends car was parked outside work

Was it a residential area ? Maybe always parking in front of someones house... and they complained?

JackFrosty

These things always happen to somebodys friend, we must all have the most unlucky friends ever,
has your friend considered logging all the times this guard has hassled him and making a report?

rex-x

It just happened to be my friend . . . . i have been to court myself for motoring matters just not this one. Two of my uncles are guards and i have daily contact with the local station in my work but there are about 4 guards that have a real problem with us (i.e. stopping other people mistaking them for me, asking did they drive a peugeot and other various details about me, i know because they stopped my work collegue for this)
I mean we'd be fairly typical 20 year olds, i don't even drink myself wth no history of any police trouble before my car and still have no points.
Its always trivial things, and just for a look in my car coming home from work at 4am, making up reasons like i indicated left and went right(when i never indicated at all)
The more boy racer types have had their cars confiscated for things like neon lights . . . . .

when did we lose our freedom . . . . and the summons is for exactly as i described, he has had three similarly ridiculous ones by the same guard, all thrown out of court straight away




Just to add, i have only been driving 2.5 years, have 0 points and yet have been stopped at least 100 times, sometimes 5 times a week and yet nothing comes of it bar one time where i got a 50 fine in court for a minor thing

Andrewf20

"100 times" :eek:

Whats the main reason for being pulled?

Ive been stopped about 10 times in 5 years for various things.

rex-x

And that is no exaggeration at all, if anything it has been more. never really a reason, always made up . . . . one day i kid you not i was asked why my passenger was wearing a white hoodie . . . . . . i just stared blankly while he replied his black one was in the wash . . . . . this was at 4am on the way home from work

Hal1

Could you ask your uncle's to make enquiries or are they retired?

galwaytt

CreepingDeath wrote: »

Was it a residential area ? Maybe always parking in front of someones house... and they complained?

Irrelevant - you don't own the space outside your house, and if I want to park the #47a bus there, I can.

OP - take a picture of the (alleged) infraction, print it nice and big - A4 size, and bring a few copies to court with you.

Also, make sure you bring your tax book, NCT, and insurance and licence.

Once judge sees all in order, he'll tear strips off the Garda.

JackFrosty

I agree with galwaytt, also its best to be polite and say as little as possible when you or your friend gets pulled by the local plod

galwaytt

galwaytt wrote: »

Once judge sees all in order, he'll tear strips off the Garda.

Im fairly sure that even if the disc was a little obscured the judge would still eat the head of the Garda for bringing such a pointless trivial matter before the court.

kluivert

Judges are busy enough without having to see her friend for having his tax disk slightly out of view.

If the tax disc wasnt displayed then yes your going to court, but the fact the garda knew it was a tax disc automatically suggests that there are no infractions in which you liable for a court appearance.

I would contact the Garda Omibusman and make a formal complaint. A friend of mine who likes to read my posts for some reason use to get pulled for having a mod'd car, now he has changed his car no problems.

What car do you drive yourself.

Are you a young lad, who wears hoodies and drives a white Honda Civic, with a sports exhaust.

Even if the disc wasnt displayed isnt that why there is a fixed fine for no tax so that minor offenses do not waste court time?

ShadowHearth

kluivert wrote: »

Judges are busy enough without having to see her friend for having his tax disk slightly out of view.

If the tax disc wasnt displayed then yes your going to court, but the fact the garda knew it was a tax disc automatically suggests that there are no infractions in which you liable for a court appearance.

I would contact the Garda Omibusman and make a formal complaint. A friend of mine who likes to read my posts for some reason use to get pulled for having a mod'd car, now he has changed his car no problems.

What car do you drive yourself.

Are you a young lad, who wears hoodies and drives a white Honda Civic, with a sports exhaust.

Good question, what car he drives? Alot of gardas just being thick on modded cars. You can be driving like a Twat in some opel vectra and they wount notice you, but if you drive pass in subaru or celica, you will be pulled and probed in all holes.

And i whant to buy myself a nice sporty yoke and gief mine car to misses. But being pulled by garda and take that crap from them does not make me whant one now .

Keith186

rex-x wrote: »

And that is no exaggeration at all, if anything it has been more. never really a reason, always made up . . . . one day i kid you not i was asked why my passenger was wearing a white hoodie . . . . . . i just stared blankly while he replied his black one was in the wash . . . . . this was at 4am on the way home from work

Nice answer.:D

AFAIK it's an offence not to display a tax disk in public so your friend hasn't committed an offence.

I'd love to go to court for that, the judge will make a fool of the garda.
The garda is then going to try and get his own back somehow so I would get your mate to actually keep a record of how many times he stops him as said above and for what the reason was.

pipsqueak

rex-x wrote: »

Just said i'd ask a few opinions here, there are a few local guards who are basically out to ensure the law is enforced upon the youth of the road without discretion, to put it in polite terms.
Anyway long story short my friends car was parked outside work and the guard (always at him for little things) came in and told him he would be receiving a summons because his tax disc was not level with the bottom of the windscreen and was therefore unreadable, even though it was in full view

He received the summons a couple of days ago and i insisted upon going to court with him to see what the judge had to say to this.

there is nothing more to it. car was legally parked, tax in date etc, not blocked by sunstrip or anything at all.

Just to add not talking boy racer

no such thing as s summons for tax disc not level with bottom of window, you can put it anywhere on the windscreen you like once its visible, can you ask your mate what the actual summons was for?? like the heading of it??

Henry Ford III

"No smoke without fire" springs to mind.

rex-x

Wel, he does drive a twincam but its quite slow and its only because he loves the shape. i drive a diesel . . . . .
the summons said 'unreadable tax disc'
i must say i appreciate the replies in our favour as i cant stand people that hate young drives and love the guards. while my car is not really modded if i wanted to i should be able to without receiving mre police attention . . . . where has the freedom of personality gone

ninty9er

Diesel/twin-cam makes no difference.

What make/model and any modifications (even led bulbs/respray job)

I agree that it should go to court where the judge will tear strips off the Garda, I'd also speak to a local reporter who might like to be in court on the day.

What was the summons for as already mentioned, there is no summons for "badly placed tax disc"

Steve

rex-x wrote: »

the summons said 'unreadable tax disc'

Just curious about this, what law is this in breach of? (it is written on the summons)
I'm asking because where the holder is in my car, the discs are covered by the wiper blade, I've never even been questioned about it at a checkpoint.

I didn't put it there on purpose, it was there when I got the car and I've never been bothered to move it.

crocro

Does your car have tinted windows? I had a loan of a car with tinted windows and was pulled over every day.

TestTransmission

I would say theres a lot more to this story than the OP lets on.

rex-x

jackncoke wrote: »

I would say theres a lot more to this story than the OP lets on.

Its comments like this i do not like, oh there must be something else this could never really happen attitude

I mean a twin cam as in a toyota levin twin cam, yes with tinted windows. he may be a lawyer going to town for instance yet gets so much more hassle for the car and being young and everything is scrutinized to find the smallest thing wrong. of which 90% of th time ends in no punishment whatsoever just time lost on both sides and it really does bother me.

I feel as though it is illegal to drive around at night, not in a cruise, not speeding just going from place to place or home from work if i meet them they swing round and follow 5mm from my bumper until th blue lights flash

smash

A Toyota Levin with tinted windows is bound to get attention from the police. Lets face the facts that socially it falls in the same bracket as a Glanza turbo and the Civic brigade.

does it have cruise-irl stickers on the windows by any chance?

Gone Drinking

Bullshit

kippy

What age is your friend?
Has your friend ever been in trouble with the authorities before?
Has he ever been involved in an accident?

Despite you saying this is not about a boy racer, it is VERY obvious that it is related.... Why didnt you mention the car type and tinted windows from the start? Its a pretty relevant point.

While I dont agree with the authorities being over tough on one person, I do think there is a lot more to this that what was initially said. (I was under the impression that tinted windows were not road legal in a car for a start)

I think when you drive a modded car or a typical "Boy Racer" car, you need to expect to get more heat from the authorities. If everything is above board you have nothing to worry about.
Kippy

Ciaran500

I started driving when I was 20 in a standard Laguna and I've yet to even get a second glance from the guards.

If you're driving around in a car like that you're associating yourself with a group that is well known for acting the tit on the roads.

Berty

another thread from a boy racer about being picked on for being a boy racer but claiming not to be a boy racer even if it is about "your friend".

Twin cams are mostly used because the are rear wheel drive, light with a lot of power and usually associated with "steer from the rear" brigade.

If I was a Garda I would pick on you also. If you do not want to be pigeon holded into a class or category buy something less conspicuos.

*Sigh again - Ok a Skyline GTR just went sideways around the back of my car after coming out of an underground apt complex.

Anybody still wondering why the Gardai pick on these cars? :mad:

smash

Gone Drinking wrote: »

Bullshit

It's not bullsh!t at all - I drive a modified car myself, but it's not a boy racer car.

I drive sensibly, I don't act the git on public roads, I don't 'cruise'... and because of this, I don't get police attention!

cpoh1

Berty wrote: »

another thread from a boy racer about being picked on for being a boy racer but claiming not to be a boy racer even if it is about "your friend".

Twin cams are mostly used because the are rear wheel drive, light with a lot of power and usually associated with "steer from the rear" brigade.

If I was a Garda I would pick on you also. If you do not want to be pigeon holded into a class or category buy something less conspicuos.

*Sigh again - Ok a Skyline GTR just went sideways around the back of my car after coming out of an underground apt complex.

Anybody still wondering why the Gardai pick on these cars? :mad:

Sigh

Twincams only have 120bhp and weight over a 1000 kgs. Car enthusiasts love these cars because of the rally heritage they have and their near perfect handling. Performance wise they wouldnt pull the skin off a sausage.

GTR Skylines are 4wd when traction is lost at the rearmaking them extremely difficult to go sideways esepcially in an underground car park.

Incidentally I used to own one of these and never got pulled in it. And I dont fit the boyracer stereotype either.

Incidentally would you pick on a fella cos he was black too? Or just because he had a modified car?

OldmanMondeo

Does sound like getting pulled for what he drives rather than how he drives. As other have said, the Guard's will not keep pulling the same person without a reason. Who he be the tyope that would stand up for him self in a manor the Guard's would see as being a cheeky git? All stops are kept on the Pulse system so they know who is being pulled and why. If he is a cheeky git this might be the reason.

faceman

OP, you get a fine in the post when parked for not displaying your tax. Im struggling to understand how you are special and got a summons for a law that doesnt exist.

Can you let us know exactly what is on the summons?

cianclarke

rex-x wrote: »

It just happened to be my friend . . . . i have been to court myself for motoring matters just not this one. Two of my uncles are guards and i have daily contact with the local station in my work but there are about 4 guards that have a real problem with us (i.e. stopping other people mistaking them for me, asking did they drive a peugeot and other various details about me, i know because they stopped my work collegue for this)
I mean we'd be fairly typical 20 year olds, i don't even drink myself wth no history of any police trouble before my car and still have no points.
Its always trivial things, and just for a look in my car coming home from work at 4am, making up reasons like i indicated left and went right(when i never indicated at all)
The more boy racer types have had their cars confiscated for things like neon lights . . . . .

when did we lose our freedom . . . . and the summons is for exactly as i described, he has had three similarly ridiculous ones by the same guard, all thrown out of court straight away




Just to add, i have only been driving 2.5 years, have 0 points and yet have been stopped at least 100 times, sometimes 5 times a week and yet nothing comes of it bar one time where i got a 50 fine in court for a minor thing

You've been pulled at least 100 times? You've got to be doing something wrong then, be it the way you present yourself or your car. Nobody gets pulled 100 times out of the blue...

cpoh1 wrote: »

Sigh


Incidentally would you pick on a fella cos he was black too? Or just because he had a modified car?

Just because he had a modified car? Yes, a modified '98 civic is a lot more likely to cause trouble than a Laguna... Any gardai halfway decent at his job will be able to spot a troublemakers car from an enthusiast or indeed a regular driver.