Questioned by police when leaving UK...
Discussion
The last few years I have spent the autumn (late September to late November, usually) in Southern France as my mother has a place out there she is now too elderly to use, which needs looking after and various DIY, plus of course it's a nice place to spend an extended break, and it's generally the only 'holiday' I take in the year. I drive down, in my own car and take the ferry, either sailing from Dover or Plymouth. Usually on my own, but sometimes with a mate or my girlfriend.
However, it's starting to get on my nerves a bit that the last four years running, I have been pulled aside before getting on the ferry and subjected to quite vigorous questioning - where I am going, why I am going there, what I will be doing. Then I am usually asked if I am known to the police, if I have a criminal record - which I don't - but surely they can tell just by looking my name up on the police database anyway? Various checks are run on my name and registration plates, I've been asked to provide proof of ownership of the car (which I have as I always carry photocopies of my insurance policy and V5 in my vehicle when driving abroad), I'm then asked to open the boot and occasionally my luggage, they often check under the bonnet lining and so forth.
On the whole it's quite a stressful experience and I rarely if ever see it happening to other travellers. It seems to make no difference if the ticket is booked in my name or my travelling companion's name, I still get pulled over anyway. Obviously despite the fact I have a clean record and am not in trouble for anything or on the run, I am a little dismayed at the apparent regularity of these 'routine checks'. I was once arrested (over six years ago) but released without charge due to lack of evidence - because I wasn't actually doing anything wrong, the arresting constable was about 20 years of age and clearly overzealous/misguided) but surely that one event can't be the reason for this? As far as I know there are no 'markers' on my cars - I always HPI check before buying and have on occasion not bought one because the check showed the car was previously of interest to the police in connection with drugs offences.
Funnily enough I don't seem to get any attention from police or HM Customs when returning into the country - it's only ever when I leave.
Can anyone shed any light on why this may be the case, and what I can do to lessen the chances of this happening?
However, it's starting to get on my nerves a bit that the last four years running, I have been pulled aside before getting on the ferry and subjected to quite vigorous questioning - where I am going, why I am going there, what I will be doing. Then I am usually asked if I am known to the police, if I have a criminal record - which I don't - but surely they can tell just by looking my name up on the police database anyway? Various checks are run on my name and registration plates, I've been asked to provide proof of ownership of the car (which I have as I always carry photocopies of my insurance policy and V5 in my vehicle when driving abroad), I'm then asked to open the boot and occasionally my luggage, they often check under the bonnet lining and so forth.
On the whole it's quite a stressful experience and I rarely if ever see it happening to other travellers. It seems to make no difference if the ticket is booked in my name or my travelling companion's name, I still get pulled over anyway. Obviously despite the fact I have a clean record and am not in trouble for anything or on the run, I am a little dismayed at the apparent regularity of these 'routine checks'. I was once arrested (over six years ago) but released without charge due to lack of evidence - because I wasn't actually doing anything wrong, the arresting constable was about 20 years of age and clearly overzealous/misguided) but surely that one event can't be the reason for this? As far as I know there are no 'markers' on my cars - I always HPI check before buying and have on occasion not bought one because the check showed the car was previously of interest to the police in connection with drugs offences.
Funnily enough I don't seem to get any attention from police or HM Customs when returning into the country - it's only ever when I leave.
Can anyone shed any light on why this may be the case, and what I can do to lessen the chances of this happening?
Pretty normal really. I am light-skinned. I do have a beard, but it's not like a crazy Taliban beard or anything, just overs up my double chins! I normally wear jeans and a t-shirt, or a sweater if it's cold. Nothing with any offensive or controversial slogans on it. I don't have any tattoos or dress like a hippy. I do have a foreign surname - but I am a full British national, as were both my parents, I've held my UK passport for 32 years. I was born in Cairo and am half Egyptian - but if that is the only reason they're pulling me every time then that is clearly profiling, and you'd think after the second or third pull they'd realise I'm kosher and leave me be? They must be pretty familiar with my reasons for going overseas by now, as I always tell them the same thing. Going to stay in my mum's house for an extended break and to renovate it. On the occasions I have been travelling with a passenger, they are 100% white English born and bred.
grkify said:
If you drive something prestigious like a big Range Rover or a German Barge I wouldnt be surprised at getting pulled specially with a single occupant with the recent increase in millennium burglaries
Nope, the last few times I've travelled it's been E36 328i, E46 330d, Z3 2.8 - always in good, clean condition, always registered in my name and insured in my name. You will be doing something that ticks a box on their checklist, it will be silly when you find out, find a friendly one and ask.
Mine was Portsmouth to Le-Harve.
In the 90's I as working alternate weeks in France, and I kept suffering the same as you, every bloody time the Brits would pull me, similar stuff to you, Les Flicks never looked at me twice.
Mine was a child seat in the rear of the car, the reason was I had a young child and at that time my wife didn't drive, so the seat lived in the rear of my company car, I was of course travelling alone, so the seat was seen as putting on an air of respectability ....... I kid you not.
Seat removed, never bothered me again.
Mine was Portsmouth to Le-Harve.
In the 90's I as working alternate weeks in France, and I kept suffering the same as you, every bloody time the Brits would pull me, similar stuff to you, Les Flicks never looked at me twice.
Mine was a child seat in the rear of the car, the reason was I had a young child and at that time my wife didn't drive, so the seat lived in the rear of my company car, I was of course travelling alone, so the seat was seen as putting on an air of respectability ....... I kid you not.
Seat removed, never bothered me again.
Edited by Nigel Worc's on Saturday 24th October 19:56
Edited by Nigel Worc's on Saturday 24th October 19:58
bigandclever said:
vsonix said:
I always HPI check before buying and have on occasion not bought one because the check showed the car was previously of interest to the police in connection with drugs offences.
I doubt a HPI check can show anything like that.Nigel Worc's said:
You will be doing something that ticks a box on their checklist, it will be silly when you find out, find a friendly one and ask.
Mine was Portsmouth to Le-Harve.
In the 90's I as working alternate weeks in France, and I kept suffering the same as you, every bloody time the Brits would pull me, similar stuff to you, Les Flicks never looked at me twice.
Mine was a child seat in the rear of the car, the reason was I had a young child and at that time my wife didn't drive, so the seat lived in the rear of my company car, I was of course travelling alone, so the seat was seen as putting on an air of respectability ....... I kid you not.
Seat removed, never bothered me again.
Interesting! How many times would you say you got pulled as a result of it, and who gave you the heads-up? Mine was Portsmouth to Le-Harve.
In the 90's I as working alternate weeks in France, and I kept suffering the same as you, every bloody time the Brits would pull me, similar stuff to you, Les Flicks never looked at me twice.
Mine was a child seat in the rear of the car, the reason was I had a young child and at that time my wife didn't drive, so the seat lived in the rear of my company car, I was of course travelling alone, so the seat was seen as putting on an air of respectability ....... I kid you not.
Seat removed, never bothered me again.
I've been over once in a e36 328i coupe, twice in the 330d and once in the Z3. No child seats in any of them though. Only stickers or adornments on any of the cars has been a 'South West BMW Owners Club' window sticker on the E36 and E46. Otherwise all the cars are absolutely normal looking, no modifications save maybe a different set of wheels from what was on the car when it was bought, but again, nothing flashy or stance-y.
OldGermanHeaps said:
My grandad used to get the same, half egyptian christian, never in any trouble totally clean record but always given extra screening on travel, back in the 80s a policeman called him a shortened version of Pakistani to his face when he was pulled over for driving a nice car.
Yeah, my Egyptian side is christian as well, although I self-identify as agnostic. One thing that's always irked me a little bit - when I opened my Facebook account I didn't use my actual full name as it wasn't really an issue in the early days of FB - and subsequently other people with the same name as me joined Facebook and took fb.com/firstname.lastname - I wonder if they're being lazy and using the passenger manifests to look on Facebook and see if anyone looks dodgy on there - my namesakes definitely look a lot more Al-quaida than I do!
vsonix said:
Nigel Worc's said:
You will be doing something that ticks a box on their checklist, it will be silly when you find out, find a friendly one and ask.
Mine was Portsmouth to Le-Harve.
In the 90's I as working alternate weeks in France, and I kept suffering the same as you, every bloody time the Brits would pull me, similar stuff to you, Les Flicks never looked at me twice.
Mine was a child seat in the rear of the car, the reason was I had a young child and at that time my wife didn't drive, so the seat lived in the rear of my company car, I was of course travelling alone, so the seat was seen as putting on an air of respectability ....... I kid you not.
Seat removed, never bothered me again.
Interesting! How many times would you say you got pulled as a result of it, and who gave you the heads-up? Mine was Portsmouth to Le-Harve.
In the 90's I as working alternate weeks in France, and I kept suffering the same as you, every bloody time the Brits would pull me, similar stuff to you, Les Flicks never looked at me twice.
Mine was a child seat in the rear of the car, the reason was I had a young child and at that time my wife didn't drive, so the seat lived in the rear of my company car, I was of course travelling alone, so the seat was seen as putting on an air of respectability ....... I kid you not.
Seat removed, never bothered me again.
I've been over once in a e36 328i coupe, twice in the 330d and once in the Z3. No child seats in any of them though. Only stickers or adornments on any of the cars has been a 'South West BMW Owners Club' window sticker on the E36 and E46. Otherwise all the cars are absolutely normal looking, no modifications save maybe a different set of wheels from what was on the car when it was bought, but again, nothing flashy or stance-y.
It was HMC pulling me, they were very officious and almost rude, but, on the last occasion there was a very friendly older lady on duty, and I asked her. She checked as to the frequency I had been stopped, and then very nicely told me why.
vsonix said:
Yeah, my Egyptian side is christian as well, although I self-identify as agnostic.
One thing that's always irked me a little bit - when I opened my Facebook account I didn't use my actual full name as it wasn't really an issue in the early days of FB - and subsequently other people with the same name as me joined Facebook and took fb.com/firstname.lastname - I wonder if they're being lazy and using the passenger manifests to look on Facebook and see if anyone looks dodgy on there - my namesakes definitely look a lot more Al-quaida than I do!
I was always surprised it never bothered him but he said it was never a problem compared to what he faced over in egypt, being a christian or a jew was asking for a death sentence in certain places.One thing that's always irked me a little bit - when I opened my Facebook account I didn't use my actual full name as it wasn't really an issue in the early days of FB - and subsequently other people with the same name as me joined Facebook and took fb.com/firstname.lastname - I wonder if they're being lazy and using the passenger manifests to look on Facebook and see if anyone looks dodgy on there - my namesakes definitely look a lot more Al-quaida than I do!
OldGermanHeaps said:
I was always surprised it never bothered him but he said it was never a problem compared to what he faced over in egypt, being a christian or a jew was asking for a death sentence in certain places.
Indeed, religious violence is not a joke over there. One of my relatives over there was attacked in the street in Cairo for having bottles of beer in their shopping bags :/vsonix said:
Trust me, it did. Why would I make that up? The car in question was a silver R reg 318is. I was already on the fence about buying it as it wasn't too clean on the inside and had a George Cross on the license plate which is a pet hate of mine.
No it didnt. Police intel markers do not appear on HPI.
Greendubber said:
vsonix said:
Trust me, it did. Why would I make that up? The car in question was a silver R reg 318is. I was already on the fence about buying it as it wasn't too clean on the inside and had a George Cross on the license plate which is a pet hate of mine.
No it didnt. Police intel markers do not appear on HPI.
Greendubber said:
vsonix said:
Trust me, it did. Why would I make that up? The car in question was a silver R reg 318is. I was already on the fence about buying it as it wasn't too clean on the inside and had a George Cross on the license plate which is a pet hate of mine.
No it didnt. Police intel markers do not appear on HPI.
pigeonskirt said:
Greendubber said:
vsonix said:
Trust me, it did. Why would I make that up? The car in question was a silver R reg 318is. I was already on the fence about buying it as it wasn't too clean on the inside and had a George Cross on the license plate which is a pet hate of mine.
No it didnt. Police intel markers do not appear on HPI.
If you don't believe me, you can ask my mum, she gave me a lift when I went to look at the car and I showed it to her!
vsonix said:
Could it maybe have been a VIC check from VOSA that gave this information? Not that it matters as we're going totally off-topic now anyway!
Shave your beard off, dress a bit smarter and see if anything changes. Other than your appearance/name, what do you think is the reason? The picture page in your passport might trigger a check whatever you do though.Forums | Speed, Plod & the Law | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff