Am soon to take my annual trip to the Worlds greatest motor race in France in June and have acquired a garmin 350 euro navigation system. I recently read a post in Honest John in the telegraph about what was and was'nt legal across the channel. Can anyone help? I believe there was a website mentioned which outlined which sysytems were allowed and which not.
Chris
ps is that the same smokie as Club Arnage?
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A quick look through HJ's articles in the online version of The Telegraph...
www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/main.jhtml?xml=/motor...l
found the following link (in french) www.controleradar.org/detecteur-de-radar.html
In short though, (and to quote from HJ's article) - any device that can detect radar or laser signals from speed cameras or guns is illegal. They are classified as ?détecteurs? and the presence of such a device, whether in use or not, is a serious offence that can lead to a large fine or even confiscation of the vehicle. GPS systems that combine laser/radar detectors should not be taken to France.
To answer your last part of the question - Re: Smokie. The very same.
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SFAIK any bit of equipment which detects speed cameras, either by GPS or by being a radar detector in itself, is illegal in France, Unless you have an excellent command of French, with which to explain the function of your suspicious device to Les Flics, I suggest you leave the device locked in your luggage in the boot The penalties are draconinan and start with the confiscation of the kit and go on from there. If you put your route into viamichelin.com, you will get the locations of the fixed cameras which is a bit of a help!
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SFAIK any bit of equipment which detects speed cameras either by GPS or by being a radar detector in itself is illegal in France
To quote from a previous post of mine:-
GPS speed camera detectors are legal in both the UK and Europe because they use a database of camera locations and because this data is available to all members of the public, any new speed cameras which are installed have to be registered onto the database so the information as to their location is out there for all to see, including drivers, of course.
In short, all the GPS device is doing is flagging up a point of interest. In this particular case the "point of interest" being a fixed speed camera location.
If however it is a radar detector (or your GPS device incorperates a radar detector), then it is illegal to use radar detectors in some European countries.
www.safermotoring.co.uk/SpeedCameraDetectors.html
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DD thank you for your gentle correction and useful links. Now I know and you know, but do Le Plod Francais know? I have read reports of past police actions re confiscation etc which do not accord with the links you have posted.
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Thank you gentlemen. When the equipment arrives I will check it, I believe from what you have said that it is OK. Having said t hat I will also print out those couple of pages of french in case I get an problems,
Cheers et Bon Voyage
Chris
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Came back last week - saw several plods using their hand held guns on the autoroutes, although how long it would take the guy in the Megane Saloon to catch a Porche doing 120mph ! ! ! !
Lots more activilty than we usually see.
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