Police stoped me for driving to close to car in front at RUSHHOUR

dumbyearbook

barrybevel wrote: »

I told the guard I'm staying at a friends house which I am and I told him I'm from Connaught so he didn't care about the insurance.

I got 2 points before delivered to my Dublin address (I have English Licence).
When getting insured I told them about the points. I dont want them to use it as an excuse not to cover me if anything happens.

FYI to say you're "from Connaught" basically says you're not......:D

Spook_ie

barrybevel wrote: »

Sound, as long as I don't go to court I don't mind getting the points.

Was driving a BMW 318 saloon.

Take the car away and burn it before having you ( and all other BMW drivers ) hung, drawn and quartered....;)

kluivert

If you cant see the tarmac in front of you then you are driving too close to the car in front.

By driving too close to the car in front at any time or at any speed you are increasing the risk of an accident.

ambro25

If you cant see the tarmac in front of you then you are driving too close to the car in front.

Bit more complicated/involved than that, but sound all the same. +1

cabrwab wrote: »

The OP says he is staying at a friends place. He is alright anyway, english licence, can't do nothing YET!

IE offense, UK License =
_ maybe points "put in the register in abbeyance" (for when they establish reciprocity, if ever... been on the books for donkeys' years),
_ definitely the fine,
_ Court unlikely (unless rightfully aggrieved... or being a pr1ck)

TBH, anyone driving in Dublin for any length of time > 1 month should know that, come 24th/25th of each month or thereabouts, you drive scrupulously to the Rules & Regs, because the Smurfs are out to make up their numbers and will do you for even letting a sneaky one out at the lights :pac:

Jack Bauer999

ambro25 wrote: »

Bit more complicated/involved than that, but sound all the same. +1



IE offense, UK License =
_ maybe points "put in the register in abbeyance" (for when they establish reciprocity, if ever... been on the books for donkeys' years),
_ definitely the fine,
_ Court unlikely (unless rightfully aggrieved... or being a pr1ck)

TBH, anyone driving in Dublin for any length of time > 1 month should know that, come 24th/25th of each month or thereabouts, you drive scrupulously to the Rules & Regs, because the Smurfs are out to make up their numbers and will do you for even letting a sneaky one out at the lights :pac:

In defence of the OP,
I dont know where everyone is living but where I am in Dublin every evening going home at 5.30 it’s a necessity to tailgail the car in front simply because if you don’t and leave more than a metre of space then half of dublin and their mothers that are skipping the queues will make sure that space is filled pronto!

Ciaran500

ambro25 wrote: »

TBH, anyone driving in Dublin for any length of time > 1 month should know that, come 24th/25th of each month or thereabouts, you drive scrupulously to the Rules & Regs, because the Smurfs are out to make up their numbers and will do you for even letting a sneaky one out at the lights :pac:

Always see this but I've yet to hear one even slightly reliable source. I seriously doubt guards are given targets for the amount of fines they hand out.

Degsy

kluivert wrote: »

If you cant see the tarmac in front of you then you are driving too close to the car in front.

By driving too close to the car in front at any time or at any speed you are increasing the risk of an accident.

And remember,if you run into the back of another car its ALWAYS your fault.It means you're travelling too close or travelling too fast.

is_that_so

Jack Bauer999 wrote: »

In defence of the OP,
I dont know where everyone is living but where I am in Dublin every evening going home at 5.30 it’s a necessity to tailgail the car in front simply because if you don’t and leave more than a metre of space then half of dublin and their mothers that are skipping the queues will make sure that space is filled pronto!

Disagree completely and having been rear-ended twice I feel little sympathy for the OP. Apart from the very slow < 10mph in some traffic imo tailgating is absolutely unacceptable. TBH If this is your attitude then maybe you should look at your driving. You are responsible for your own driving and driving with care. Much as I dislike some of the carry-on I stay far enough away from it to make sure I'm not part of the problem. If other road users are half-witted or selfish, as long as you get from A to B without damaging yourself or anyone else that's as much as you can ask.

AndyT

barrybevel wrote: »

Pretty close - I was in no danger of hitting him - but closer than I should have been.

If you are incapable of driving at a safe distance from the car in front (rush hour traffic or not) then you're certainly not capable of making a judgement on how likely you are to 'hit him'.

It's about time the Garda started prosecuting drivers for tailgating.

Jack Bauer999

is_that_so wrote: »

Disagree completely and having been rear-ended twice I feel little sympathy for the OP. Apart from the very slow < 10mph in some traffic imo tailgating is absolutely unacceptable. TBH If this is your attitude then maybe you should look at your driving. You are responsible for your own driving and driving with care. Much as I dislike some of the carry-on I stay far enough away from it to make sure I'm not part of the problem. If other road users are half-witted or selfish, as long as you get from A to B without damaging yourself or anyone else that's as much as you can ask.

Yup that is my attitude and ive no problem with it what so ever,
I've never been involved in an accident thus far or receive any penalty points so don’t believe there anything wrong with my driving,
Obviously im not talking about tailgating while doing 50 mph, which also I believe the OP said he wasn’t moving very fast,

kleefarr

barrybevel wrote: »

I got 2 points before delivered to my Dublin address (I have English Licence).

Which is your permenant address? Connaught or Dublin?

BostonB

Jack Bauer999 wrote: »

In defence of the OP,
I dont know where everyone is living but where I am in Dublin every evening going home at 5.30 it’s a necessity to tailgail the car in front simply because if you don’t and leave more than a metre of space then half of dublin and their mothers that are skipping the queues will make sure that space is filled pronto!

Which is more important keeping your space or safety?

I can understand in a queue keeping tight up to the quy in front if theres someone bullying their way in and skipping queues, but I don't think this is the case here. I hate tail gaters aswell, its a really dangerous habit to develop. But if you bend the rules, you have to expect at some point you'll meet a cop having a bad day, its just Karma. Especially in Ireland where theres little consistency in the enforcement.

ambro25

Ciaran500 wrote: »

Always see this but I've yet to hear one even slightly reliable source. I seriously doubt guards are given targets for the amount of fines they hand out.

I doubt in the extreme you would ever "hear one even slightly reliable source", as you can imagine the scandal this would bring about.

I have been commuting daily in South Dublin for nearly 4 years, now know all of the "ker-ching spots" in/around D6, and have only ever seen Gards in said "ker-ching spots" in the last 7 or so days of any given month. Note that they have not been there every month, but that I have observed them whenever they have been there often enough to give the 'myth' enough credence to continue voicing it. So, my comment's based on real life observation, not interweb-spread conspiracy (and regardless, I don't partake in Boards' anal retentives' fave game of "prove it with a source or retract it", so take it or lump it - like I care! )

barrybevel wrote:

I got 2 points before delivered to my Dublin address (I have English Licence).

I missed that in the thread the first time around - now that's interesting, as I know for a fact that a person with a UK license, who was stopped under the same offence, got the €80 fine but that the points were clearly said (in Garda letter) to be 'noted down and would be enforced whenever UK license exchanged for an Irish license'. The fine was paid and that was the end of that, no Court.

FuzzyWuzzyWazza

ambro25 wrote: »

I doubt in the extreme you would ever "hear one even slightly reliable source", as you can imagine the scandal this would bring about.

I have been commuting daily in South Dublin for nearly 4 years, now know all of the "ker-ching spots" in/around D6, and have only ever seen Gards in said "ker-ching spots" in the last 7 or so days of any given month. Note that they have not been there every month, but that I have observed them whenever they have been there often enough to give the 'myth' enough credence to continue voicing it. So, my comment's based on real life observation, not interweb-spread conspiracy (and regardless, I don't partake in Boards' anal retentives' fave game of "prove it with a source or retract it", so take it or lump it - like I care! )

+1, you can observe this happening in the greater Dublin area almost every month.

ambro25 wrote: »

I missed that in the thread the first time around - now that's interesting, as I know for a fact that a person with a UK license, who was stopped under the same offence, got the €80 fine but that the points were clearly said (in Garda letter) to be 'noted down and would be enforced whenever UK license exchanged for an Irish license'. The fine was paid and that was the end of that, no Court.

cabrwab wrote: »

The OP says he is staying at a friends place. He is alright anyway, english licence, can't do nothing YET!

Yep the points are now stored for when the EU, not just UK and Ireland, link the points systems across europe. They have been working on this in Brussles for the last few years.

Gumbo

Jack Bauer999 wrote: »

In defence of the OP,
I dont know where everyone is living but where I am in Dublin every evening going home at 5.30 it’s a necessity to tailgail the car in front simply because if you don’t and leave more than a metre of space then half of dublin and their mothers that are skipping the queues will make sure that space is filled pronto!

thats ok when your crawling through the city centre but on one of the countries major roads, ie the M1 a motorway with a speed limit of 120kmph in places tailgating is a major offence and if you agree to this then you should be shot, maybe a bit a harsh there but you get my point LOL

bazzachazza

Which is more important keeping your space or safety?

I can understand in a queue keeping tight up to the quy in front if theres someone bullying their way in and skipping queues, but I don't think this is the case here. I hate tail gaters aswell, its a really dangerous habit to develop. But if you bend the rules, you have to expect at some point you'll meet a cop having a bad day, its just Karma. Especially in Ireland where theres little consistency in the enforcement.

+1

Its Karma.

ambro25

FuzzyWuzzyWazza wrote: »

Yep the points are now stored for when the EU, not just UK and Ireland, link the points systems across europe. They have been working on this in Brussles for the last few years.

Well, so long as they wipe 'em clean at the legal interval (is it 2 or 3 years?) even if the system has not yet been implemented by then (e.g. assuming 2 years, 'note 2 points in 2008, delete them in 2010, whilst the EU-wide system is still not in place by 2010')...

But somehow I doubt that's happening :pac:

[wildly O/T]Moreover so long as different EU countries have different types infractions attracting dfifferent amounts of points which can/cannot be challenged (the 'automatic doubling of points if contesting the fine' over here springs to mind... talk about a f*cking banana republic or what!?!), I can't really see this EU-wide system working... in any other way than for still further bashing motorists on the head, with no recourse.[end O/T]

ramanujan

kceire wrote: »

thats ok when your crawling through the city centre but on one of the countries major roads, ie the M1 a motorway with a speed limit of 120kmph in places tailgating is a major offence and if you agree to this then you should be shot, maybe a bit a harsh there but you get my point LOL

the OP said he was beside the turn off for griffith avenue. which means the speed limit was 50km. so big speeds weren't involved. maybe you said something to piss the garda off? like "what are you stopping me for?" etc!!!
2 penalty points would probably be fair since you were by your own ommission driving too close. Garda should have been courtious to you though and made it clear what he was going to do.


Its funny any time a read a motoring offence thread everyone piles in and says "the gardai, they're dead right, down with that sort of thing". But the majority of the time you dont have complete info.

BostonB

From experience theres no such thing as the perfect driver, or cop. We're all human and make mistakes. The important thing is to learn from our mistakes. But the cops need to be fair if people are going to respect them.

The question here is does the punishment fit the crime. We don't know the facts, and weren't there, and can only judge based on the info given. I think 2 points and a fine would be fairer than dangerous driving in this case. I think some offences are automatically "dangerous driving" even if the event itself was not actually dangerous all things considered.

Gumbo

ramanujan wrote: »

the OP said he was beside the turn off for griffith avenue. which means the speed limit was 50km. so big speeds weren't involved. maybe you said something to piss the garda off? like "what are you stopping me for?" etc!!!
2 penalty points would probably be fair since you were by your own ommission driving too close. Garda should have been courtious to you though and made it clear what he was going to do.


Its funny any time a read a motoring offence thread everyone piles in and says "the gardai, they're dead right, down with that sort of thing". But the majority of the time you dont have complete info.

thats fair enough, my mistake!

Del2005

ambro25 wrote: »

Well, so long as they wipe 'em clean at the legal interval (is it 2 or 3 years?) even if the system has not yet been implemented by then (e.g. assuming 2 years, 'note 2 points in 2008, delete them in 2010, whilst the EU-wide system is still not in place by 2010')...

But somehow I doubt that's happening :pac:

[wildly O/T]Moreover so long as different EU countries have different types infractions attracting dfifferent amounts of points which can/cannot be challenged (the 'automatic doubling of points if contesting the fine' over here springs to mind... talk about a f*cking banana republic or what!?!), I can't really see this EU-wide system working... in any other way than for still further bashing motorists on the head, with no recourse.[end O/T]

They can't wipe them before they go onto the licence. They will be stored and whenever the EU gets their act together and implements the system they will be added. It's like when you get points here now, it's not from the date of the offence but when it's added to your licence.

But AFAIK Ireland and the UK are working on mutual recognition of offences now, like Germany Austria and some others already have.

astraboy

Ciaran500 wrote: »

Always see this but I've yet to hear one even slightly reliable source. I seriously doubt guards are given targets for the amount of fines they hand out.

BA hahahahah BA hahahahah BA hahahahah! Are you for REAL? Of course there are targets handed out to the traffic corps, for our "safety", nothing to do with fines or political image of course.:cool:And the cops won't admit it openly, though GTC, a poster from the Traffic corps, has stated that targets are indeed handed out. Your a fool if you believe they sit behind bushes shooting fish in a barrel for their own health and not to reach targets........:mad:

G-Money

I kind of feel bad for the guy who was stopped as he seems like a reasonable enough guy and I'm sure everyone on this thread, myself included, have committed this particular offence at some point.

Having said that, tailgating is one of those driving habits that (excuse the pun) drives me ****ing insane. I've lost count of the amount of times I've been driving along at the speed limit and some prick tight up the back of my car. It can be hard to tell from the rear view mirror but often it seems like they are no more than 1 car length behind me. This annoyies the hell out of me as I'm hardly tiddling along at 40 mph, I'm usually close to the speed limit or driving at a speed suitable for the conditions. Yet everytime there is some wanker driving right at your bumper. I too wish the cops would pull these ****ers over more often.

I reckon if they fined everyone who drove dangerously, they'd make a fortune. I often drive to Dublin from the north and there is a road from Castleblayney that bypasses Carrickmacross and Ardee. I think the road was only completed about 3 years ago. Every time I am on it, there is someone with a death wish driving like a maniac. Usually tailgating, or overtaking when there is something coming and you have to hit the brakes to let them back in. It's at the point where everytime I'm on that road because of others dangerous driving I feel like I'm having to take action to avoid a crash.

Also I wish they'd fine people who speed past you on the fast lane on the motorway then who swerve across in front of you across all the lanes to take the exit. I guess sometimes it happens as a newbie doesn't realise their exit is coming up, but a lot of other times I think it's someone who's driving dangerously.

BostonB

I find that a lot of the time when I pull over to let a tailgater past often they'll not want overtake or they'll overtake and then slow down. Seems like many are happy to follow someone but so confident when let past. This happens a lot in bad weather or at night.

Kazzehh

This really annoys me that you could get points or a fine for a thing like this. Obviousally in moving traffic its perfectly reasonable and should be enforced more. If i understand correctly you where in slow moving traffic, less than 10 km per hour. I hate being in traffic like this, as another poster mentioned if you fall back and leave a space you will have everyone dangerously swooping in in front of you or else everyone beeping and blaring at you. Should have told the copper im not a fool and im not breaking the two second rule. And he wasnt ven a traffic cop...<SNIP>

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