Caught driving with no L plates..

josephlaffan900

Was coming home from work tonight and there was a check point on the road just to my luck it was the traffic cops.My tax was out and i had no L plates up and was in the car on my own i am on a provisional license.After all the questions the garda just said to produce my insurance cert at my local station could i still be fined or get points?? can someone please give me some advice he didnt mention anything about being fined or appearing in court??

djimi

Its €1000 fine for driving unaccompanied. They tend to take a dim view of learners who dont have their L plates up. Add the tax being out to the equation and Id be very surprised if that is the last you hear of the matter.

josephlaffan900

even though he said nothing about the fine or court does that really matter??

galwaytt

josephlaffan900 wrote: »

even though he said nothing about the fine or court does that really matter??

In a word: yes.

Very unlikely this will 'go away', tbh.....

josephlaffan900

galwaytt wrote: »

In a word: yes.

Very unlikely this will 'go away', tbh.....

Hope so college student really cant afford to throw away 1000€

hitman79

Could be looking at up to 10 years behind bars i reckon

Just kidding. Produce the cert and thats it i reckon.

jaffa20

Afaik, it could be up to 2,000euro if you are summoned. 1,000euro for driving unaccompanied and 1,000euro for no plates.

Seth Brundle

josephlaffan900 wrote: »

Was coming home from work tonight and there was a check point on the road just to my luck it was the traffic cops.My tax was out and i had no L plates up and was in the car on my own i am on a provisional license.After all the questions the garda just said to produce my insurance cert at my local station could i still be fined or get points?? can someone please give me some advice he didnt mention anything about being fined or appearing in court??

He doesn't necessarily have to say anything to you.
Get the car taxed and get some L plates up before you get caught again. In fairness, if you can't keep the car road legal then get rid of it!

josephlaffan900

kbannon wrote: »

He doesn't necessarily have to say anything to you.
Get the car taxed and get some L plates up before you get caught again. In fairness, if you can't keep the car road legal then get rid of it!

The tax is my own fault but the L plates i dont really have a choice i have to drive across town everyday to college nd work and i see myself as less of a target if i dont have them up as i am always in the car on my own when going to college or work.

Seth Brundle

I don't want to sound like I'm on a high horse but there are alternatives - just not very convienent ones!
When I was originally in College, I used to get two busses to get to UCD and two from each day.
I also worked beyond Swords before and had to get two busses again and then walk about 1.5 miles to get there so the excuses don't work on me.

Now as I say, I'm not trying to come across as being on a high horse but do you want the convienence and risk the €1K that you don't seem to have?

L-M

josephlaffan900 wrote: »

The tax is my own fault but the L plates i dont really have a choice i have to drive across town everyday to college nd work and i see myself as less of a target if i dont have them up as i am always in the car on my own when going to college or work.

I think you've just proved you're a "target" either way, and you're making yourself more of one without the tax and/or L plates.

Get your plates up, tax your car and hope for the best.

josephlaffan900

Limerick man wrote: »

I think you've just proved you're a "target" either way, and you're making yourself more of one without the tax and/or L plates.

Get your plates up, tax your car and hope for the best.

Thanks Limerick man

Ps it was by the groody bar where i got pulled!

vectra

Just spotted your username there
I bet you aint "laffan" now

Bonito

Get your insurance to the station, if you got the Garda's name or that ask can you speak to him to see if he's going to go further with the no plates and no tax.

skelliser

I doubt anything will come of this, just produce the cert, in the mean time get taxed and get the L plates up.

If he was going to do ya he would have said and if he was gonna go by the exact letter of the law he would have impounded the car, a nice walk home for you and
a summons in the post.

Try and speak to the garda down the station and explain your situation. If hes not on duty find out when he is. If your sound about and if you seek him out he will let you off with a warning.

questionmark?

josephlaffan900 wrote: »

Was coming home from work tonight and there was a check point on the road just to my luck it was the traffic cops.My tax was out and i had no L plates up and was in the car on my own i am on a provisional license.After all the questions the garda just said to produce my insurance cert at my local station could i still be fined or get points?? can someone please give me some advice he didnt mention anything about being fined or appearing in court??

I talked about the L plate rules to a garda friend of mine before and he said quite simply if that person has a genuine reason for driving i.e. going to work and has everything on the car up to date Tax, Insurance, NCT and hasnt being breaking any rules as in speeding, he will let them off with a warning for driving on their own. You had no Tax so....

Bring the Insurance cert down and pray that the garda who stopped you decides to only fine you for no tax.

Seth Brundle

Bonito wrote: »

Get your insurance to the station, if you got the Garda's name or that ask can you speak to him to see if he's going to go further with the no plates and no tax.

I'm not sure where the OP is from but in Dublin the GTC operate from Dublin Castle and not the local station.
(http://garda.ie/Controller.aspx?Page=110&Lang=1)

L-M

josephlaffan900 wrote: »

Thanks Limerick man

Ps it was by the groody bar where i got pulled!

Lol, you'll have to learn where the checkpoints ALWAYS are in Limerick and avoid those places :P

Gran Hermano

I can't believe the Garda allowed you to continue driving. In other countries the car would be on the way to the crusher and you'd be walking home.

As requested, bring your insurance cert to the station, don't ask for the Garda who stopped you, they'll take down that the cert was produced, end of story then me thinks. Unless the car tax is out by over 2 months I reckon you've heard the last of it.

galwaytt

josephlaffan900 wrote: »

The tax is my own fault but the L plates i dont really have a choice i have to drive across town everyday to college nd work and i see myself as less of a target if i dont have them up as i am always in the car on my own when going to college or work.

I'm sorry, but in this day and age, and with the likes of a billion-euro Luas/Dart/Dublin Bus, there is no such thing as 'I have to drive...' anywhere.

vectra

josephlaffan900 wrote: »

Ps it was by the groody bar where i got pulled!

Hate to be the bearer of bad news but I do know in Limerick the Traffic Corp are one of the worst in the country..Even the regular Garda cannot stand them.

If I am correct then it will not be good news for you I am afraid

Fluffybums

questionmark? wrote: »

I talked about the L plate rules to a garda friend of mine before and he said quite simply if that person has a genuine reason for driving i.e. going to work and has everything on the car up to date Tax, Insurance, NCT and hasnt being breaking any rules as in speeding, he will let them off with a warning for driving on their own. You had no Tax so....

Bring the Insurance cert down and pray that the garda who stopped you decides to only fine you for no tax.

So let me get this straight the law regarding driving without a licence and/or L-plates I could ignore. But speeding is a law I have to obey..... Where do I find out about the other laws which I can ignore and which ones I have to obey?

Fluffybums

Fluffybums wrote: »

So let me get this straight the law regarding driving without a licence and/or L-plates I could ignore. But speeding is a law I have to obey..... Where do I find out about the other laws which I can ignore and which ones I have to obey?

Some Garda apply them with a level of discretion, if I was a Garda and stopped some knob of a young lad out cruising around in his Daddies X5 without supervision I'd have him up for it, if I stopped a young lad on the way home from dropping someone to hospital for caemo treatment or similar I wouldn't

dunsandin

Feck you from a height. I did 2 years on a bike, a year on a moped and another couple on a motorbike just to comply with the "having a full licence to drive a car on your own" rules. I walked, bussed and hitched to avoid the situation you are. Not to be too harsh on you, but I hope you get eleventy five years in jail and a 1bn euro fine. And if others say I am being a fascist, bite me, there are rules to driving, and if you get a nod and a wink while you are taking the p1ss, it is a very unequal world. I value my FULL licence, and it was hard earned. Rules should be for everyone, not just those who are straight enough(mug enuf)to comply. I despise this "I had no choice but to break the rules" crap.


Mod Edit: keep the language clean!!!

josephlaffan900

galwaytt wrote: »

I'm sorry, but in this day and age, and with the likes of a billion-euro Luas/Dart/Dublin Bus, there is no such thing as 'I have to drive...' anywhere.

sorry i dont live in dublin its a case or car,bike or walk and i live out the country so no bus to town every 20 mins or luas outside my door!

dunsandin

josephlaffan900 wrote: »

sorry buy dont live in dublin its a case or car,bike or walk and i live out the country so no bus to town every 20 mins or luas outside my door!

Just like me, so. no sympathy, no empathy. I hope you get a fine that rocks your world.:)

Amazotheamazing

Wouldn't it be easier to get your full license?

Anyhow, produce the cert and you'll be sound, imo.

jaffa20

dunsandin wrote: »

Just like me, so. no sympathy, no empathy. I hope you get a fine that rocks your world.:)

dunsandin wrote: »

Feck you from a height. I did 2 years on a bike, a year on a moped and another couple on a motorbike just to comply with the "having a full licence to drive a car on your own" rules. I walked, bussed and hitched to avoid the situation you are. Not to be too harsh on you(b0llox), but I hope you get eleventy five years in jail and a 1bn euro fine. And if others say I am being a fascist, bite me, there are rules to driving, and if you get a nod and a wink while you are taking the p1ss, it is a very unequal world. I value my FULL licence, and it was hard earned. Rules should be for everyone, not just those who are straight enough(mug enuf)to comply. I despise this "I had no choice but to break the rules" crap.

Calm down!

johnos1984

Joseph,

Stop taking the bait by answering people back.

You know you done wrong etc. and now you know what you have to do to try and remedy the situation as best you can. Nobody here can say for sure what the Garda will do

Posters take a poor view of people caught breaking the law on here so stop adding fuel to the flames by answering them.

However I would appreciate if you could let us know how you get on at the station in case someone else finds themselves in a similar situation.

John

josephlaffan900

dunsandin wrote: »

Feck you from a height. I did 2 years on a bike, a year on a moped and another couple on a motorbike just to comply with the "having a full licence to drive a car on your own" rules. I walked, bussed and hitched to avoid the situation you are. Not to be too harsh on you(b0llox), but I hope you get eleventy five years in jail and a 1bn euro fine. And if others say I am being a fascist, bite me, there are rules to driving, and if you get a nod and a wink while you are taking the p1ss, it is a very unequal world. I value my FULL licence, and it was hard earned. Rules should be for everyone, not just those who are straight enough(mug enuf)to comply. I despise this "I had no choice but to break the rules" crap.

taking the piss dont think so was coming home from work,college daily and work nights..its not like i was on my way to town with out the lads for a piss up..as i said already the tax is my own fault but the amount of times ive seen people being pulled over by guards in town with L plates up and no one else in the car is very frequently so sorry if i was trying to avoid trouble and avoid being targeted..

josephlaffan900

johnos1984 wrote: »

Joseph,

Stop taking the bait by answering people back.

You know you done wrong etc. and now you know what you have to do to try and remedy the situation as best you can. Nobody here can say for sure what the Garda will do

Posters take a poor view of people caught breaking the law on here so stop adding fuel to the flames by answering them.

However I would appreciate if you could let us know how you get on at the station in case someone else finds themselves in a similar situation.

John

Yea no problem will give an update as soon as i know
Thanks

Fluffybums

josephlaffan900 wrote: »

taking the piss dont think so was coming home from work,college daily and work nights..its not like i was on my way to town with out the lads for a piss up..as i said already the tax is my own fault but the amount of times ive seen people being pulled over by guards in town with L plates up and no one else in the car is very frequently so sorry if i was trying to avoid trouble and avoid being targeted..

And how was not having a license not your fault since it is clearly a necessity for your life style?

Let me guess, it costs a lot to get lessons/no one to teach me/no time with college and work......

Alanstrainor

Thread cleaned up. If you want to discuss vectras mileage get your own thread!

questionmark?

Fluffybums wrote: »

So let me get this straight the law regarding driving without a licence and/or L-plates I could ignore. But speeding is a law I have to obey..... Where do I find out about the other laws which I can ignore and which ones I have to obey?

See RoverJames post below, the magic word is discretion. For example, Tell me Fluffybums have you ever being drunk and seeing to be drunk by a Guard? Did he arrest you? No didnt think so unless you were doing something wrong along with being drunk.

RoverJames wrote: »

Some Garda apply them with a level of discretion, if I was a Garda and stopped some knob of a young lad out cruising around in his Daddies X5 without supervision I'd have him up for it, if I stopped a young lad on the way home from dropping someone to hospital for caemo treatment or similar I wouldn't

Mr Benevolent

Using discretion? He's broken three laws.

Having no tax
Driving unaccompanied
Not displaying L plates

Discretion is not applicable here, the OP showed a flagrant disregard for the law and rules of the road.

rebel.ranter

Just make sure when you are producing your insurance cert that you also produce your license (even if it is prvisional) too, also NCT cert (where applicable) & finally the newly obtained tax disc. It would be rare that a Garda would ask only to produce insurance on its own. It might help prevent a summons due to a misunderstanding.
Finally you should apply for your test ASAP, if you are that reliant on your car then your driving should be proficient enough to pass no problem. In addition you'll probably save a few quid on insurance that will make it easier to tax the car in the long run.

rebel.ranter

Confab wrote: »

Using discretion? He's broken three laws..

Technically he has broken more than 3 laws but I'm sure everyone on here breaks at least one road traffic law with frightening regularly without getting caught/prosecuted. Anyway on the point of discretion, discretion is an mportant tool in a Garda's job IMO, they can give this guy a chance to get his affairs in order this time & if he doesn't the next time he is stopped & the Pulse system is checked then the Garda will go to town on hm. Of course it is up to the Garda to make up their own mind whether or not to exercise this discretion, if it was Traffic Corps given the anecdotal stories you hear then there is a reduced likelihood of any discretion!
There's enough far more serious crime going on thata Garda could be better spending their time on than processing reams of paperwork prosecuting every case like the OPs.

Max Power1

RoverJames wrote: »

As requested, bring your insurance cert to the station, don't ask for the Garda who stopped you, they'll take down that the cert was produced, end of story then me thinks. Unless the car tax is out by over 2 months I reckon you've heard the last of it.

+1
There is many cases that the gardai dont record that it was a learner driver. I'd say go down to the cop shop, produce your insurance cert, say nowt to no one about the tax/l plates/learner permit & you'll be fine.

FWIW I always drove around unacompanied with no l plates before I passed my test. I was stopped a few times and let off. Once I was stopped with no tax and was told "dont be driving on your own, and get the car taxed" - it did help that I had the form filled out and was on the way to tax it. The accompanied driver rule is, like most other laws here, enforced randomly and half arsed. OP you will probably be fine.

bauderline

dunsandin wrote: »

Just like me, so. no sympathy, no empathy. I hope you get a fine that rocks your world.:)

Typical of this country, infested with high horse, begrudging malcontents !

Robxxx7

This should be a lesson to all those people who drive around unaccompanied without a full licence ... time to cop on and realise that your 'provisional' is just a learner permit ..its not an open invitation to drive around on your own regardless of the situation.

Now i hope the OP uses this experience to realise that there is no easy way to be able to drive round, you need to pass your test and get a licence or atleast have someone with a full licence in the car with you.

Its about time the Gards started to enforce these laws more strigently instead of a half arse effort that they continually show ... until that time people will still be driving on their own

5uspect

josephlaffan900 wrote: »

Thanks Limerick man

Ps it was by the groody bar where i got pulled!

Groody? Are you a UL student? Where are you living?

Cookie_Monster

Robxxx7 wrote: »

This should be a lesson to all those people who drive around unaccompanied without a full licence ... time to cop on and realise that your 'provisional' is just a learner permit ..its not an open invitation to drive around on your own regardless of the situation.

Now i hope the OP uses this experience to realise that there is no easy way to be able to drive round, you need to pass your test and get a licence or atleast have someone with a full licence in the car with you.

I think this incident proves it perfectly alright to do it, Gards don't seem to give a ****. As long as you're not speeding it seems to be grand to do nearly anything and get away with it *sigh*

Dr_Colossus

What are the insurance implications also, the law states you have to be accompanied while driving on a provisional permit so wouldn't that apply to your insurance cover also? What if the OP crashed into someone while driving unaccompanied, would his insurance cover not be void since he was breaking the law and driving unaccompanied?

corktina

Confab wrote: »

Using discretion? He's broken three laws.

Having no tax
Driving unaccompanied
Not displaying L plates

Discretion is not applicable here, the OP showed a flagrant disregard for the law and rules of the road.

IF this is real and not a wind up , OP should be off the road IMHO

Were it me, I wouldn't admit on here to such breaches of the law.....I'd keep quite and my head down

This isn't a new law, it has been there for years. I would be very very surprised if most of the posters on here who are 25+ now didn't drive unaccompanied on their first provisional. The amount of folks on the high horse is unreal.

kirving

Dr_Colossus wrote: »

What are the insurance implications also, the law states you have to be accompanied while driving on a provisional permit so wouldn't that apply to your insurance cover also? What if the OP crashed into someone while driving unaccompanied, would his insurance cover not be void since he was breaking the law and driving unaccompanied?

No, you're still covered, just like you'd still be covered if you were speeding(breaking a law) and crashed. The insurance company though, might try and sue you for the money afterwards, but that would be in extreme circumstances I think.. (As if you crashed while being chased by the Gardai for example)

Robxxx7

Cookie_Monster wrote: »

I think this incident proves it perfectly alright to do it, Gards don't seem to give a ****. As long as you're not speeding it seems to be grand to do nearly anything and get away with it *sigh*

Agree totally with you, and that's what my last point in my post was saying about the Gards have to be more ruthless in enforcing the law

Viper_JB

RoverJames wrote: »

This isn't a new law, it has been there for years. I would be very very surprised if most of the posters on here who are 25+ now didn't drive unaccompanied on their first provisional. The amount of folks on the high horse is unreal.

I'm sure if half the people on here had their way the majority of the country would be in prison serving life time sentences back to back for any minor motoring incident they were in. I'm sorry but the whole driving unaccompanied isn't an option for some if they want say....an education or a job etc. but I guess if you live outside of dublin you don't deserve that stuff :rolleyes: and don't say public transport untill you've tried it out side of built up areas.

seriouslywhat

bauderline wrote: »

Typical of this country, infested with high horse, begrudging malcontents !

Come off of it. There is nothing high horse about this situation.

Its clear cut. The OP broke 3 seperate laws. He should be punished.

The real problem here isnt that this person will more than likely get away with this more so that the Gaurdai that deal with these types of scenarios all have different outcomes due to their discretions.

It should be clear cut you broke 3 seperate laws you will be fined. No second chances, no right we'll let you off this time. NO EXCUSES.

Fine, car taken off the driver, whatever it takes to get people to comply with the laws and make our roads safer.

Learner, not accompanied, no L plates! Come on this should be delt with properly.

And to those who say I'm being harsh why have rules at all if they dont get implemented?

Why have a rule that someone who is a learner has to have a full licensed driver with them if it doesnt get implemented. Its for his own safety as well as our safety (other road users)

Anyway I really hate this so typical Ireland. Cant imagine getting away with it in other countries. :mad:

Rant over.

alias no.9

Tax your car, make sure the tax is valid for the date you were stopped. Produce your Insurance Cert and Tax Disc at the Garda Station.
Put L plates on your car and apply for your test, it's only 7 weeks average wait for a test in Limerick, one of the lowest in the country.
Limit your unaccompanied driving to absolutely essential trips until you pass your test and keep all correspondance about the test appointment with you in the car to show the Garda in the event of getting stopped. You may think you're avoiding being targetted but I've never been asked for my licence at a checkpoint even with the tax a month or two out of date :eek: which has happened (I've had difficulty with a dealer sending change of ownership in a timely manner). The fact is they'll probably tell quick enough from your driving style and body language if you're likely to be on a Learners Permit / Provisional, having no L plates displayed is little protection.
Finally, stating publically that you drive without L plates to avoid being targeted (read to avoid detection) is just silly. If a Garda were reading this and were able to piece together your identity based on information from your other posts, a student stopped last night at the Groody Bar with a Learners Permit / No Accompaning Driver and out of date Tax, perhaps that would mean more serious charges or almonst certainly it would be a prompt to step things up from a warning to a summons.