Getting blue lights fitted to own car

[madmax87]

Yes from the title I can imagine all the keyboard warriors saying no you can't do that.

So I need some advice, I'm a trained advanced driver with the CERAD qualification. I'm a volunteer response driver for one of the search and rescue charities and something that I have thought about and not sure about is when I get called out and need to go and get one of the ICU to then drive it to wherever is needed to setup the command and control but my drive to where the vehicle is can be 20-25 mins without traffic, so wanted to ask if any legal or other way to allow me to use blue lights and have them fitted to my personal car for search and rescue business only.

Please I don't need stupid comments and not someone that wants to abuse blue lights its just an area that I know is grey anyway with search and rescue vehicles.


Thank You.

[Starfighter]

Use of blue lights is heavily restricted and only certain body’s may use them. You would need to speak to the organisation you work for and have them approve you and the lights.

[Whistle]

There was a whole thread on this, I think it’s called Walter Mitty.

[MDMA .]

Driving to pick a vehicle up, as a civilian, is not an emergency.

[Dave _]

madmax87 said:

Yes from the title I can imagine all the keyboard warriors saying no you can't do that.

So I need some advice, I'm a trained advanced driver with the CERAD qualification. I'm a volunteer response driver for one of the search and rescue charities and something that I have thought about and not sure about is when I get called out and need to go and get one of the ICU to then drive it to wherever is needed to setup the command and control but my drive to where the vehicle is can be 20-25 mins without traffic, so wanted to ask if any legal or other way to allow me to use blue lights and have them fitted to my personal car for search and rescue business only.

Please I don't need stupid comments and not someone that wants to abuse blue lights its just an area that I know is grey anyway with search and rescue vehicles.


Thank You.

Only emergency vehicles may be fitted with blue lights

https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1989/1796/regu...



Emergency vehicle definition

https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/1989/1796/regu...

[skyebear]

[TGCOTF-dewey]

They're mostly pointless anyway as you are limited to normal traffic rules in a SAR ambulance.

We rarely used hours as they often just meant that folks panicked and blocked the roads.

Just suck up the anger that great aunt lillyofthevalley doing 15mph will add another 10 minutes to your call out response time. It's fking irritating, but the reality is the delay is tiny - just feels longer.

ETA hill teams will deploy on arrival so you and the command vehicle being delayed won't make any difference.

Edited by TGCOTF-dewey on Friday 3rd January 18:04

[nordboy]

Just no.

[R6tty]

Wind up Shirley?

[CharlesElliott]

As per the link above, you would need to comply with one of these:


A motor vehicle of any of the following descriptions–

(a)
a vehicle used for fire brigade, ambulance or police purposes;

(b)
an ambulance, being a vehicle (other than an invalid carriage) which is constructed or adapted for the purposes of conveying sick, injured or disabled persons and which is used for such purposes;

(c)
a vehicle owned by a body formed primarily for the purposes of fire salvage and used for those or similar purposes;

(d)
a vehicle owned by the Forestry Commission or by a local authority and used from time to time for the purposes of fighting fires;

(e)
a vehicle owned by the Secretary of State for Defence and used–

(i)
for the purposes of the disposal of bombs or explosives,

(ii)
by the Naval Emergency Monitoring Organisation for the purposes of a nuclear accident or an incident involving radioactivity,

(iii)
by the Royal Air Force Mountain Rescue Service for the purposes of rescue operations or any other emergencies, or

(iv)
by the Royal Air Force Armament Support Unit;

(f)
a vehicle primarily used for the purposes of the Blood Transfusion Service provided under the National Health Service Act 1977(4) or under the National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978(5);

(g)
a vehicle used by Her Majesty’s Coastguard or Coastguard Auxiliary Service for the purposes of giving aid to persons in danger or vessels indistress on or near the coast;

(h)
a vehicle owned by the British Coal Corporation and used for the purposes of rescue operations at mines;

(i)
a vehicle owned by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution and used for the purposes of launching lifeboats; and

(j)
a vehicle primarily used for the purposes of conveying any human tissue for transplanting or similar purposes.

[hidetheelephants]

If blue lights for your own vehicle were a thing you needed the organisation you're volunteering for would have told you about it.

[Cat]

CharlesElliott said:

As per the link above, you would need to comply with one of these:


A motor vehicle of any of the following descriptions–

(a)
a vehicle used for fire brigade, ambulance or police purposes;

(b)
an ambulance, being a vehicle (other than an invalid carriage) which is constructed or adapted for the purposes of conveying sick, injured or disabled persons and which is used for such purposes;

(c)
a vehicle owned by a body formed primarily for the purposes of fire salvage and used for those or similar purposes;

(d)
a vehicle owned by the Forestry Commission or by a local authority and used from time to time for the purposes of fighting fires;

(e)
a vehicle owned by the Secretary of State for Defence and used–

(i)
for the purposes of the disposal of bombs or explosives,

(ii)
by the Naval Emergency Monitoring Organisation for the purposes of a nuclear accident or an incident involving radioactivity,

(iii)
by the Royal Air Force Mountain Rescue Service for the purposes of rescue operations or any other emergencies, or

(iv)
by the Royal Air Force Armament Support Unit;

(f)
a vehicle primarily used for the purposes of the Blood Transfusion Service provided under the National Health Service Act 1977(4) or under the National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978(5);

(g)
a vehicle used by Her Majesty’s Coastguard or Coastguard Auxiliary Service for the purposes of giving aid to persons in danger or vessels indistress on or near the coast;

(h)
a vehicle owned by the British Coal Corporation and used for the purposes of rescue operations at mines;

(i)
a vehicle owned by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution and used for the purposes of launching lifeboats; and

(j)
a vehicle primarily used for the purposes of conveying any human tissue for transplanting or similar purposes.

This is what was included when the legislation was originally introduced. It has been amended several times since and is no longer current.

Cat

[Batfoy]

No, you can't do that. Am I a keyboard warrior now? Cos if that's all it takes I'm all in.

[CharlesElliott]

Cat said:

This is what was included when the legislation was originally introduced. It has been amended several times since and is no longer current.

Cat

Thank you, I didn't check sufficiently. So this is the latest....

---

A [F7vehicle] of any of the following descriptions–

(a)
a vehicle used for [F8Scottish Fire and Rescue Service] [F9or, in England or Wales, fire and rescue authority] F10... or police purposes;

(aza)
[F11a vehicle used for ambulance purposes or for the purpose of providing a response to an emergency at the request of an NHS ambulance service;]

(aa)
[F12as regards England and Wales, and so far as relating to the functions of the Serious Organised Crime Agency which are exercisable in or as regards Scotland and which relate to reserved matters (within the meaning of the Scotland Act 1998), a vehicle used for Serious Organised Crime Agency purposes;]

(ab)
[F13so far as relating to the functions of the Serious Organised Crime Agency which are exercisable in or as regards Scotland and which do not (within the meaning of the Scotland Act 1998) relate to reserved matters, a vehicle used for Serious Organised Crime Agency purposes;]

(b)
an ambulance, being a vehicle (other than an invalid carriage) which is constructed or adapted for the purposes of conveying sick, injured or disabled persons and which is used for such purposes;

(c)
a vehicle owned by a body formed primarily for the purposes of fire salvage and used for those or similar purposes;

(d)
a vehicle owned by the Forestry Commission or by a local authority and used from time to time for the purposes of fighting fires;

(da)
[F14a vehicle owned by the Natural Resources Body for Wales for the purposes of its functions relating to forestry and woodlands and used from time to time for the purposes of fighting fires;]

(db)
[F15a vehicle owned by the Scottish Ministers for the purposes of their functions under the Forestry and Land Management (Scotland) Act 2018 and used from time to time for the purposes of fighting fires,]

(e)
[F16a vehicle owned or operated by the Secretary of State for Defence and used]–

(i)
for the purposes of the disposal of bombs or explosives,

(ii)
[F17for the purposes of any activity—

(aa)
which prevents or decreases the exposure of persons to radiation arising from a F18... radiation emergency, or

(bb)
in connection with an event which could lead to a F18... radiation emergency;] [F19or]

(iii)
by the Royal Air Force Mountain Rescue Service for the purposes of rescue operations or any other emergencies, F20...

(iv)
F21...

(f)
a vehicle primarily used for the purposes of the Blood Transfusion Service provided under the National Health Service Act 1977(4) or under the National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978(5);

(g)
a vehicle used by Her Majesty’s Coastguard or Coastguard Auxiliary Service for the purposes of giving aid to persons in danger or vessels indistress on or near the coast;

(h)
a vehicle F22... used for the purposes of rescue operations at mines;

(i)
a vehicle owned by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution and used for the purposes of launching lifeboats; F23...

(j)
a vehicle primarily used for the purposes of conveying any human tissue for transplanting or similar purposes; F24...

(k)
[F25a vehicle under the lawful control of the Commissioners for Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs and used from time to time for the purposes of the investigation of serious crime (which, save for the omission of the words “and, where the authorising officer is within subsection (5)(h), it relates to an assigned matter within the meaning of section 1(1) of the Customs and Excise Management Act 1979”, has the meaning given in section 93(4) of the Police Act 1997)] [F26; and

(l)
a vehicle used for mountain rescue purposes].

[Sebring440]

madmax87 said:

I'm a trained advanced driver with the CERAD qualification. I'm a volunteer response driver for one of the search and rescue charities.

Luckily, this is easily answered. Speak to the search and rescue charity that you are a volunteer driver for. They will explain very clearly to you what you can and cannot do.

[Tighnamara]

madmax87 said:

Yes from the title I can imagine all the keyboard warriors saying no you can't do that.

So I need some advice, I'm a trained advanced driver with the CERAD qualification. I'm a volunteer response driver for one of the search and rescue charities and something that I have thought about and not sure about is when I get called out and need to go and get one of the ICU to then drive it to wherever is needed to setup the command and control but my drive to where the vehicle is can be 20-25 mins without traffic, so wanted to ask if any legal or other way to allow me to use blue lights and have them fitted to my personal car for search and rescue business only.

Please I don't need stupid comments and not someone that wants to abuse blue lights its just an area that I know is grey anyway with search and rescue vehicles.


Thank You.

Part time Coastguard and firemen can’t have blue lights on their own vehicles to drive to their stations, absolutely no chance you can use a blue light on your own vehicle legally.

Your own vehicle is not a search and rescue vehicle so don’t think there is any grey area.

Note it is a first post, wouldn’t talking with your management inform you very easily of the correct answer to your question rather than PH.

Edited by Tighnamara on Friday 3rd January 20:55

[Jimjimhim]

This is guaranteed a wind up post.

[fttm]

OP, never forget to prepare some weak lemon squash before you deploy , no need to rush with blue lights , small things like squash and hi-viz are more important to focus the mind on .

[The Gauge]

Just slap one of these on yer roof, you'll be fine, honest..

[mac96]

The Gauge said:

Just slap one of these on yer roof, you'll be fine, honest..

You are Kojak! Just need a brown car...