I was fortunate enough to be not scared from this event that occured on Sunday.
Basically, as I was driving down a road, a car drove straight through my path WITHOUT even looking at around 40 mph. I suspect the driver was either high on drugs, angry over something or drink driving. I managed to follow her to where she was going and I was going to approach her but my friend told me not to. Of course I was angry, but I was calm. But in any case, this wouldn't probably have led to anything good.
Anyway, I have checked and can confirm the car hasn't got a false number plate.
I reported this incident to the Police, but of course this information can only be acted upon if there are numerous complaints about this driver. But in any case, I have done my bit.
My question is, what else can I do. I think the police should write a letter to her saying that someone has complained about her wreckless driving, and any accident will be looked at suspiciously involving her car. And if her insurers were advised of this, she would think three times before driving like a lunatic. And of course, they should suggest extra training in driving as she doesn't seem to be a competent driver.
This might be an isolated incident on her part, but if the driver was aware of the danger they were putting others in, maybe, just maybe there would be one less casualty/ fatality on the road.
Thanks
Greg
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Sounds as if you were lucky. She might be reckless, but she is unlikely to remain wreckless for long!
Not sure what you can do - if your report is 'bad' enough and does not appear to be emotionally charged or spiteful, they might have a word with her/check documents etc which could hamper an uninsured/unlicenced driver, if they happen to come into that category.
Frightening really - but shows the value in treating all junctions/accesses as hazards.
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About three years ago, during rush hour I witnessed some dreadful driving with a car driving along the footpath at high speed and even worse thereafter when I followed it (carefully).
I reported it to the police who wanted to take a statement, but it took them so long to organise it, I was no longer available and in any event the car was from Holland, although followed by a UK registered car as well.
There is so much traffic these days that I am not surprised there is more of this. I saw just this evening a car drive along the footpath for a few yards a low speed to avoid a queue of traffic at a junction.
--
Espada III - well if you have a family and need a Lamborghini, what else do you drive?
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Wreckless driving is one my aims when I get behind the wheel. ;)
Sorry, couldn't resist. :)
You were obviously rather shaken by the experience, and I do sympathise. But I'm not sure that what you are seeking is workable: you seem to be asking for this woman to be convited without trial, on the word of only one witness. I'm sure you are honest, but I hope you can see that this would be a bad principle.
I'm really not sure what you can do about this, other than to remember that there are very irresponsible drivers out there, and give them a wide berth.
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Possibly "under the influence", in which case a test would convict. If the police had a car carrying the requisite equipment, which is a rarity in some parts.
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asking for this woman to be convited without trial, on the word of only one witness.
>>
presumably greg's friend was in the car with him. that makes it two witnesses. in which case:
www.lowfield.co.uk/pub/schadenfreude.html
.....
Reporting
Is it worth reporting stupidity on the roads?
In a word, yes.
In pure legal theory the evidence of one witness is sufficient to prove a case. In practice, the offender, when interviewed, issues a blank denial and will make counter allegations - either against the original witness or blaming the circumstances on a third party. The CPS will not take a case unless there is a good prospect of conviction. In pre-CPS days the police would often have a go, even with less than a 50-50 chance of conviction. Under the guidelines laid down by the DPP, which include such matters as the public interest, the staleness of the circumstances, whether alternative methods of disposal (such as a caution) are suitable as well as consideration of the weight of the evidence, single witness allegations are often unsuccessful. However, if the circumstances are really bad some forces will usually still have a try. A good interview of the offender can often get him/her unwittingly to corroborate the allegation. Few motoring offenders are wise enough to keep their mouths shut if their motoring skills are impugned and will thereby convict themselves. Photographs are useful.
Cutting up cyclists is usually charged as 'Driving without consideration for other road users'. This is at the bottom end of the bad driving offences. What happens by way of punishment does depend to a considerable extent on the individual views of the magistrates. Get a cocky defendant before a stipendiary and you could be surprised by the severity of the sentence. Get a plausible middle aged gent in front of a Chairman who is fed up with seeing cyclists ride through red lights every day, and he could receive a conditional discharge. It's all a big game - sad to say.
Due care, disobey red light, double white lines and a number of other offences involve the sending of a notice to the potential offender (or the owner of the vehicle) within 14 days of the incident. Sometimes these may be sent in the cases of written letters of complaint, in the hope that it will at the very least give the offender a fright.
The evidence of one witness is unlikely to be sufficient to convince the CPS to go ahead and then the court to convict. With only one witness, if he gets torn up in the witness box, the whole case is out of the window. So a note will be made of the allegations. If a second witness then comes forward with consistent evidence then a prosecution is much more likely. If, therefore, you can find other witnesses - even collecting a few car numbers of those who must have seen what went on - there is a reasonable prospect that one of them will be prepared to go to court. I recall hearing of an allegation of careless/dangerous involving stupid overtakes. A friend reported details to the local station and found that two others had independently reported the matter and the case was taken to court. Cases can turn nasty, involve a lot of wasted time and end up with the public spirited witness being mad to look a fool in the box. There are a lot of barristers and solicitors around only too willing to prostitute their skills by hectoring the well meaning but inexperienced witness. It's not a pleasant experience and they very often come away resolved to keep their mouth shut in future.
In theory, anybody can take out a private summons themselves, but it is an expensive process since legal aid is not available to private prosecutors. If the matter is reported, try to talk to a traffic policeman. Very often these days the chap on the front desk is a civilian who couldn't tell a 'due care' from Cap'n Bob's will (at least one of which is a work of fiction). You are more likely to get a straight answer from someone who's dealing with it every day. There are a lot of myths about sufficiency of evidence, even within the those in the know.
This was written with the input of someone who really does know more about the situation than the rest of the population. .....
www.christianvoice.org.uk/sin1.html
THE NINTH COMMANDMENT
Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour. Exod 20:16
See also: Exod 23:1; Lev 19:11; Ps 27:12, 35:11; Mark 14:56-60.
The scriptures state in connection with this commandment, some basic principles:
Firstly, no-one shall be convicted on the evidence of only one witness. Two or three witnesses are required to establish a conviction. God's eternal standard is especially important in capital offences, but it applies to all. See: Numb 35:30; Deut 17:06; Matt 18:16; John 8:17-18; 2 Cor 13:1; 1 Tim 5:19; Heb 10:28.
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did she come across a road junction without stopping or something like that,your description is not very clear
I would ask a few questions before commenting such as were there ample road markings to warn her of a junction coming up ?,was there a stop or give way sign ?,was the sun in her eyes? I am not making excuses for her but you are asking people to judge without knowing any facts
this once happened to me with a VERY near miss but on looking someone had knocked the stop sign down and from the other road the junction could not be seen
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My question is, what else can I do. I think the police should write a letter to her saying that someone has complained about her wreckless driving....
The police have enough criticism made about them already for their time being taken up with being buried in endless amounts of paperwork. I'm sure your suggestion would go down a storm.
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Many years ago my father had reason to report to the Police about a lorry drivers reckless driving behaviour etc.
The Police could not act on his complaint without an independant witness.
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Arrgh.
Have you reported it to the Police ? What are they doing about it ?
I hope they havn't fobbed you off.
"But of course this information can only be acted upon if there are numerous complaints about this driver."
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After driving a few years, I found this incident to be amazing. What made it worse was that the driver shot through the junction where there was a stop sign, and came flying back down the closed road that followed. If it was the sun/ poor markings that caused this, she would have been driving slower and when coming down, she would have realised her fault. But obviously, there was something very wrong with this driver.
I have learnt a big lesson from this...look more into the roads that you pass. However, if a car is going about 40 mph, there really is no time to take action.
What I really hope doesn't happen is she causes a fatality. Because I am sure she will, and with what the police have on file will realise that maybe it was the drivers fault.
I really wish the police were more prominant on the roads. If drivers feared the police, then maybe this type of thing won't happen so much.
Sorry about my waffle. Anyway, Pugugly, I think they did fob me off but I did get a reference number. Obviously, the police are very busy, but I wish there was more I could do.
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I'm not sure that anything really can be done about private individuals. But if this happens and it is a commercial driver, and you get the company name from the van etc, then action can be well worth taking.
Reputable firms are usually sensitive to the public image of their drivers, and someone driving as in the example probably already has a record of customer complaints or damage to the firm's vehicles. One more complaint may be just what they need in order to justify disciplinary action.
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Funnily enough, I was going to post a similar thread: I saw an Irish HGV on the A41 in Shropshire last night, no number plates, driving like a lunatic. If he had a restrictor on his lorry, then it wasn't connected: he overtook a line of traffic uphill near Market Drayton pulling out ahead of me when the line of traffic was doing 60!I have the company name but couldn't get the number, but I'm sure the internet can find me that.
I am a little concerned that my complaint may be seen as trivial, and a waste of time... not concerned as in I am dubious about making the complaint, concerned that people see it like that. If the police are "drowning in paperwork" and have too many complaints (?!) then doesn't that tell us all something? I am not going to hold back on complaining about someone who may cause a death because the poor police are busy.
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I enquired at the local police station about the value of such reports, having seen a lunatic (white baseball cap turned backwards, etc.) drive along the pavement to get past someone whose progress was frustrating him in an almost stationary queue. Happily, they handed me a form specifically designed for this very purpose. That may be a local initiative (Herts) or a more widespread practice, so it may be worth asking in your locality.
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Excellent... that could be very useful.
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Most of my driving is on the motorway so I see quite a lot of very bad driving with people swerving through lanes etc.
Occasionally there has been someone that I've been tempted to report - people who are driving as if they are drunk etc - but I never know who to tell. My journeys are across the entire country so I don't usually have the local police number or even necessarily know which county I'm in at the time. Clearly I don't want to do a 999 call as it's generally not quite *that* important.
What I'd like to be able to do is call up, and then have a traffic police car waiting at a future junction to 'observe' said bad driving for a little while. Any suggestions?
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Did she do anything else to cast doubt on her driving apart from the main incident?.
I appreciate it's pretty unsettling to have someone drive through your path without looking, but how many of us have never missread the priorities at a junction or seen the next green light ahead but not the red in between?
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I can appreciate we all make mistakes. I for one can say I don't always drive 100% correctly, but I try to drive to the best of my ability.
But her speed was completely inappropriate, and this was the obvious factor that could have caused a really nasty accident. The road in question has a blind summit, so driving there quickly would make me ask questions.
And despite this happening, she continued driving at high speed even when coming back down the dead end road and realising what she had done.
I think she had something on her mind, but then when a person is angry they shouldn't drive should they? Anyway, I am ok from the event, I am just anxious the driver will cause a R.T.A. that will kill someone.
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yes great idea, if enough people reported to police reg numbers of dangerously driven vehicles , then surely police must take some notice.
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I'm not sure about the legality of this, but what would prevent somebody creating a website where you could log reg details of vehicles driven carelessly/dangerously, and thus build a trail of records which the police could have ?
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I'm not sure about the legality of this, but what would prevent somebody creating a website where you could log reg details of vehicles driven carelessly/dangerously, and thus build a trail of records which the police could have ?
Not sure if police use it, but there's www.baddriving.com/
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I'm not terribly keen on this vigilante approach. I should have thought that OP put himself into considerable danger, chasing after a car driven by either a lunatic or a drug-crazed person.
Can you imagine the fun that naughty schoolboys could have with listing their schoolteachers' numberplates on a website?
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Not sure if police use it, but there's www.baddriving.com/
What happens with that site; do they pass info. on to the Police after so many logged incidents? If not whats the point of it - the people being reported may never see the website and not know they are being criticised?
Problem with it is it could be open to abuse by people with a grudge against a neighbour/ colleague etc. And in many cases the severity of an incident may be subjective. (Just meaning in general, I'm not referring to the OP's incident).
Im not sure its a very good thing; but then I noticed you can report motorway middle lane hogs - I could report ten of those every morning and evening!
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