Drunk in charge of a motorhome
Discussion
I don't advocate any amount of alcohol and driving, but was wandering if anyone can shed any light on how the law works for motorhomes (and other vehicles you can sleep in).
I like a glass or two in the evening and most of the time we stay in campsites so I see this a private land and not a public place. But occassionally we stay in a car park or have wild camped.
I'm clearly in charge of a motor vehicle and may well test positive for alcohol, but if I have no intention of driving have I still committed an offence?
Does anyone have a legal understanding of how the law is applied in this scenario?
Many thanks
I like a glass or two in the evening and most of the time we stay in campsites so I see this a private land and not a public place. But occassionally we stay in a car park or have wild camped.
I'm clearly in charge of a motor vehicle and may well test positive for alcohol, but if I have no intention of driving have I still committed an offence?
Does anyone have a legal understanding of how the law is applied in this scenario?
Many thanks
IANAL....but reading up on this:
Don't sit in the drivers seat, don't have the keys in the ignition. Have the bed made up, things on things on the side.
"" a person shall be deemed not to have been in charge of a [ mechanically propelled vehicle] if he proves that at the material time the circumstances were such that there was no likelihood of his driving it so long as he remained unfit to drive through drink or drugs.
The court may, in determining whether there was such a likelihood as is mentioned in above, disregard any injury to him and any damage to the vehicle.""
& perhaps don't park somewhere they may be obliged to tell you to move on!!
Don't sit in the drivers seat, don't have the keys in the ignition. Have the bed made up, things on things on the side.
"" a person shall be deemed not to have been in charge of a [ mechanically propelled vehicle] if he proves that at the material time the circumstances were such that there was no likelihood of his driving it so long as he remained unfit to drive through drink or drugs.
The court may, in determining whether there was such a likelihood as is mentioned in above, disregard any injury to him and any damage to the vehicle.""
& perhaps don't park somewhere they may be obliged to tell you to move on!!
So, go to bed and you've no idea where the keys are :-) The bib would have to find them to prove you could drive the vehicle. All you have to say is you lost them somewhere or somebody distant has them for safe keeping.
At the end of the day you may never be challenged. Would be a real downer if you were. What do people on sites think?
At the end of the day you may never be challenged. Would be a real downer if you were. What do people on sites think?
Campsites are all on private land, generally behind a gate so I see no issues there. It's just the rare occassion when we park up somewhere more public.
Our van very much has a driving mode with the seats in their usual position and all things put away, and a parked mode with the cab seats swivelled to face the lounge and all sorts of things (kettles, cups, food, beer cans etc) scattered about. Hence, it would be fairly clear that the intention would be to stay the night - that's the whole point of the vehicle!
Could I prove that at the material time the circumstances were such that there was no likelihood of me driving? It only takes 5 - 10 minutes to put the van in driving mode so this would be difficult to prove beyond all reasonable doubt.... But I think it would be harsh to take this point.
Our van very much has a driving mode with the seats in their usual position and all things put away, and a parked mode with the cab seats swivelled to face the lounge and all sorts of things (kettles, cups, food, beer cans etc) scattered about. Hence, it would be fairly clear that the intention would be to stay the night - that's the whole point of the vehicle!
Could I prove that at the material time the circumstances were such that there was no likelihood of me driving? It only takes 5 - 10 minutes to put the van in driving mode so this would be difficult to prove beyond all reasonable doubt.... But I think it would be harsh to take this point.
Burgerbob said:
Could I prove that at the material time the circumstances were such that there was no likelihood of me driving? It only takes 5 - 10 minutes to put the van in driving mode so this would be difficult to prove beyond all reasonable doubt.... But I think it would be harsh to take this point.
Private land does not mean not a road or other public place.The "material time" is not at the moment of contact with an officer, but the time when you will be either:
(a) over the prescribed limit
or
(b) unfit to drive through drink
The applicable standard of proof is not "beyond all reasonable doubt." The burden of proof is on you to show that there is no likelihood of driving whilst OPL / when unfit.
An accurate breath test machine will assist with (a).
agtlaw said:
RegMolehusband said:
There is some helpful information here. /
Would be more helpful if it were accurate. Clearly its a grey area, and the best advice is when not staying on a campsite, don't drink. But the article makes an interesting reference. There are more and more pubs that will let you stay over free of charge, normally on the basis that you intend to visit the pub, have a meal and a drink or two. In these circumstances the pub will be aware that you intend to stay overnight.
Burgerbob said:
But occassionally we stay in a car park or have wild camped.
If you clutter up the countryside by 'wildcamping' (lol) and are too tight to shell out the nominal site fees to stay within the law like the rest of us and furthermore you cannot resist a drink it sounds like you don't value your driving licence particularly highly.Gassing Station | Speed, Plod & the Law | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff