Devon & Cornwall police
Discussion
Early in December I reported a vehicle as having no insurance whilst still being driven and parked on the highway to Devon & Cornwall police via an email to the 101 service (non emergency).
A couple of days later a reply came back from Devon & Cornwall police: "Good evening. Thank you for your email. Intelligence has been submitted regarding this vehicle. Kind Regards"
Not sure what that implies but the uninsured vehicle is still being driven daily and parked over night on the highway two weeks on from the initial report. I have called 101 to enquire what action if any Devon & Cornwall police intend to take in relation to my email? The response was that they will wait until the vehicle drives past an ANPR camera then a prosecution will take place. I advised the operator that there are no fixed ANPR cameras locally and the chances of a police car equipped with ANPR catching this vehicle was probably limited. I have given the police the exact location of this vehicle but the police are not interested. I appreciate there are receding resources and this one uninsured vehicle is way down on the police priorities.
This is not the crime of the century but when we all pay a premium on top of our own insurance to cover scroates who don’t insure their vehicles it ticks me off not to mention the grief it can cause when involved in a collision with a non insured driver!
Devon & Cornwall police……FAILED!
JT
A couple of days later a reply came back from Devon & Cornwall police: "Good evening. Thank you for your email. Intelligence has been submitted regarding this vehicle. Kind Regards"
Not sure what that implies but the uninsured vehicle is still being driven daily and parked over night on the highway two weeks on from the initial report. I have called 101 to enquire what action if any Devon & Cornwall police intend to take in relation to my email? The response was that they will wait until the vehicle drives past an ANPR camera then a prosecution will take place. I advised the operator that there are no fixed ANPR cameras locally and the chances of a police car equipped with ANPR catching this vehicle was probably limited. I have given the police the exact location of this vehicle but the police are not interested. I appreciate there are receding resources and this one uninsured vehicle is way down on the police priorities.
This is not the crime of the century but when we all pay a premium on top of our own insurance to cover scroates who don’t insure their vehicles it ticks me off not to mention the grief it can cause when involved in a collision with a non insured driver!
Devon & Cornwall police……FAILED!
JT
Silly say there speeding that will get them going.
Devon and Cornwall are pretty good in my experience I once complained about what appear to be fire/police service unmarked being driven by nutter swerving/undertaking with any warning lights on around the m5 and it turned out to be high ranking officer with marriage problems and she got a telling off and a new driver course. (I did have an ex police advanced driver next to as a second witness which did have some clout)
They probably havent got resources to hunt them down like a dog the next and inform NCA and do a raid.
However it will be circulated as intelligence in the area it was spotted so local officers will be aware of the car.
It never amazes tescos/asda can issue a fine in a few days but even with RPU with anpr and apnr all over the place people can still drive without valid cover/mot/docs.
I had a young lad fall asleep in his car blocking my drive in the summer he was waiting for a young girl couple of doors down. His clio looked a shed. I ran the plate and mot out by couple weeks gave him the benefit of the doubt. I continued to see that car weekly for 4 months and the mot never changed. I decide to report it and the next day he gets it mot'ed but i think that was cause the tax was out in a week and he probably realised he had no mot.
Some people are blessed.
My local force A&S I reported an unmot'ed/uninsured death trap being by a chap in my road with tyres to the canvas rear suspension which had dropped it looked like some kind of indian shed. He used it daily for nearly 3 weeks, when a pcso rocks up it just happens to be on the drive and they can only tell him not to use it again. In his defence he did just park it and leave it to rot on his front garden after that day.
Devon and Cornwall are pretty good in my experience I once complained about what appear to be fire/police service unmarked being driven by nutter swerving/undertaking with any warning lights on around the m5 and it turned out to be high ranking officer with marriage problems and she got a telling off and a new driver course. (I did have an ex police advanced driver next to as a second witness which did have some clout)
They probably havent got resources to hunt them down like a dog the next and inform NCA and do a raid.
However it will be circulated as intelligence in the area it was spotted so local officers will be aware of the car.
It never amazes tescos/asda can issue a fine in a few days but even with RPU with anpr and apnr all over the place people can still drive without valid cover/mot/docs.
I had a young lad fall asleep in his car blocking my drive in the summer he was waiting for a young girl couple of doors down. His clio looked a shed. I ran the plate and mot out by couple weeks gave him the benefit of the doubt. I continued to see that car weekly for 4 months and the mot never changed. I decide to report it and the next day he gets it mot'ed but i think that was cause the tax was out in a week and he probably realised he had no mot.
Some people are blessed.
My local force A&S I reported an unmot'ed/uninsured death trap being by a chap in my road with tyres to the canvas rear suspension which had dropped it looked like some kind of indian shed. He used it daily for nearly 3 weeks, when a pcso rocks up it just happens to be on the drive and they can only tell him not to use it again. In his defence he did just park it and leave it to rot on his front garden after that day.
Edited by surveyor_101 on Saturday 2nd January 12:17
Edited by surveyor_101 on Saturday 2nd January 12:19
So we have a suspected crime, reported to the police. They have, apparently, not responded.
Let us assume for the moment that the offence does exist. What should the police do?
There are three obvious options, each one of which has various subtle sub-methods.
1/ The police could send a letter to the registered keeper and ask if they still own the vehicle?
2/ Or remove the vehicle and send it to a secure facility to be stored until the registered keeper comes in to claim it?
3/ Then there's the overt action of sitting on the vehicle until such time as a person attends the vehicle.
3/ has no hope due to the manpower requirements. A police officer is an expensive item and with the security demands of the holiday period, it would not get past the person whose responsible for managing resources.
2/ has cost implications as well. Most forces do not own vast areas of land where they can store cars. So there is a charge. If it was police-owned secure storage then there is still a cost implication. And on top of that there is the cost of towing the vehicle, and any claims of damage.
1/ might seem the most sensible, but if they follow the most cost-effective response, they will be accused of not caring and failure.
Difficult decision time then.
Let us assume for the moment that the offence does exist. What should the police do?
There are three obvious options, each one of which has various subtle sub-methods.
1/ The police could send a letter to the registered keeper and ask if they still own the vehicle?
2/ Or remove the vehicle and send it to a secure facility to be stored until the registered keeper comes in to claim it?
3/ Then there's the overt action of sitting on the vehicle until such time as a person attends the vehicle.
3/ has no hope due to the manpower requirements. A police officer is an expensive item and with the security demands of the holiday period, it would not get past the person whose responsible for managing resources.
2/ has cost implications as well. Most forces do not own vast areas of land where they can store cars. So there is a charge. If it was police-owned secure storage then there is still a cost implication. And on top of that there is the cost of towing the vehicle, and any claims of damage.
1/ might seem the most sensible, but if they follow the most cost-effective response, they will be accused of not caring and failure.
Difficult decision time then.
That's a bit of a cop-out though isn't it?
2 minutes for the Police to check if valid insurance exists.
Another 2 to check if the registered keeper lives close to where the vehicle is reported as parked.
And then get somebody to go knock on a door at a convenient time (for the Police doing rounds etc) if this pans out.
Maybe the vehicle is insured, if so then give the OP some feedback to stop him coming on here and slagging you off.
2 minutes for the Police to check if valid insurance exists.
Another 2 to check if the registered keeper lives close to where the vehicle is reported as parked.
And then get somebody to go knock on a door at a convenient time (for the Police doing rounds etc) if this pans out.
Maybe the vehicle is insured, if so then give the OP some feedback to stop him coming on here and slagging you off.
If you feel that strongly about this....
If you are in a neighbourhood watch scheme then tell your co-ordinator, and they will contact the local bobby/pcso and advise...maybe they will get a visit.
Contact the "roads policing unit" or " traffic department" for your force, and advise, maybe they will get some one to "have a look" for it.
You could put a note under wiper (when not being observed) suggesting to the owner that Police have been advised this vehicle may not be legal on the road.....and maybe they will do the right thing?....if you do this....put the name of a neighbour you dislike, and his address for the inevitable punch up.
Police are very very stretched in man power, they are not able because there are so few of them to go to "every report of something we don't like", reporting to a phone line is unlikely to get a decent response, a letter to your local nick (if still open) is more than likely going to get a better response.
Most folk have no clue at all how few Police officers are employed any more, and if they did it would horrify them. So don't expect anything to be done soon, if at all. The perp will get caught eventually, lets hope he does not cause a crash in the meantime
If you are in a neighbourhood watch scheme then tell your co-ordinator, and they will contact the local bobby/pcso and advise...maybe they will get a visit.
Contact the "roads policing unit" or " traffic department" for your force, and advise, maybe they will get some one to "have a look" for it.
You could put a note under wiper (when not being observed) suggesting to the owner that Police have been advised this vehicle may not be legal on the road.....and maybe they will do the right thing?....if you do this....put the name of a neighbour you dislike, and his address for the inevitable punch up.
Police are very very stretched in man power, they are not able because there are so few of them to go to "every report of something we don't like", reporting to a phone line is unlikely to get a decent response, a letter to your local nick (if still open) is more than likely going to get a better response.
Most folk have no clue at all how few Police officers are employed any more, and if they did it would horrify them. So don't expect anything to be done soon, if at all. The perp will get caught eventually, lets hope he does not cause a crash in the meantime
My local police for are just as effective.
A local drink driver who also happens to be a parish councillor has been reported at least 4 times over the last few years. He still does it, car parked clearly outside pub. Lives about 1/2 a mile away. The pub is in one county and his house is just over the border in another.
The police have been told where he lives, his car reg, the pub etc.
He is still doing it. It is very frustrating!
A local drink driver who also happens to be a parish councillor has been reported at least 4 times over the last few years. He still does it, car parked clearly outside pub. Lives about 1/2 a mile away. The pub is in one county and his house is just over the border in another.
The police have been told where he lives, his car reg, the pub etc.
He is still doing it. It is very frustrating!
In Cornwall a few years ago the police were very helpful after thieves smashed the rear quarter light to try to get into the car.
They took the usual details of the incident and then went into full gaffer tape and sticky-backed plastic mode - when I drove away from the local police station in the rain the car was adorned with a very neatly applied patch over the broken window.
The patch was a section cut from a vinyl poster that was laying around, just the writing:
'Car crime, together we'll crack it'.
They took the usual details of the incident and then went into full gaffer tape and sticky-backed plastic mode - when I drove away from the local police station in the rain the car was adorned with a very neatly applied patch over the broken window.
The patch was a section cut from a vinyl poster that was laying around, just the writing:
'Car crime, together we'll crack it'.
Lincolnshire are no better.
A while ago, I reported a foreign plate vehicle that had no tread on any of the tyres and visible metal threads. There were also bits hanging off the vehicle and I had noticed it ages before then (it was always parked up at my old work place car park).
The car was clearly in no fit state for the road and despite turning up in the work car park for months and months, had no visible tax disc.
Was anything done? Nah. The car kept appearing in a worse state for months after. When I left that place of work for good, the car was still there.
A while ago, I reported a foreign plate vehicle that had no tread on any of the tyres and visible metal threads. There were also bits hanging off the vehicle and I had noticed it ages before then (it was always parked up at my old work place car park).
The car was clearly in no fit state for the road and despite turning up in the work car park for months and months, had no visible tax disc.
Was anything done? Nah. The car kept appearing in a worse state for months after. When I left that place of work for good, the car was still there.
No copper I know of sits on his or her respective arse doing f*ck all and is actively lazy. Most people fail to consider that resources and budgets for the health service and police are constantly being cut, vast groups of individuals fail to take responsibility for their actions and behaviour and place a massive burden on the shared resources and then wonder why stuff like this isn't the top priority at that moment in time.
This is the kind of crime that isn't an active offence against persons and who knows, the driver may carry on driving without harming a fly, but if I, as an officer, was presented with a number of offences, this would be about as low down the list as I could imagine.
Your beef is not with the police, but a society that doesn't care. Much like driving with no insurance.
This is the kind of crime that isn't an active offence against persons and who knows, the driver may carry on driving without harming a fly, but if I, as an officer, was presented with a number of offences, this would be about as low down the list as I could imagine.
Your beef is not with the police, but a society that doesn't care. Much like driving with no insurance.
funkyrobot said:
Lincolnshire are no better.
A while ago, I reported a foreign plate vehicle that had no tread on any of the tyres and visible metal threads. There were also bits hanging off the vehicle and I had noticed it ages before then (it was always parked up at my old work place car park).
The car was clearly in no fit state for the road and despite turning up in the work car park for months and months, had no visible tax disc.
Was anything done? Nah. The car kept appearing in a worse state for months after. When I left that place of work for good, the car was still there.
So what should the police have done? Gone around to the registered keeper's address? Foreign registered so little point there. Sit on the vehicle for some time? All but impossible. There would be many crimes that would be crying out for the resources for a stake out.A while ago, I reported a foreign plate vehicle that had no tread on any of the tyres and visible metal threads. There were also bits hanging off the vehicle and I had noticed it ages before then (it was always parked up at my old work place car park).
The car was clearly in no fit state for the road and despite turning up in the work car park for months and months, had no visible tax disc.
Was anything done? Nah. The car kept appearing in a worse state for months after. When I left that place of work for good, the car was still there.
How about putting it on the notice board in the briefing room so the officers reporting for duty can put it in their pocket book and hopefully remember it if they are passing en route to another job.
But, of course, it will be competing for attention with quite a number of other low priority jobs.
Or they could give it to traffic division, roads policing or whatever the department used to be called before it was all but shut down.
As pointed out, resource management, or triage, is what the job's about nowadays. What crime should not be covered in order to sit on this vehicle? We've had threads complaining that the police don't attend burglaries.
If you want policing on the cheap, you have to make sacrifices.
I must have had a dozen break-ins over the years I had my pharmacies in Exeter. One time we had someone remove roof tiles, then smash through and down into the pharmacy triggering the alarm and causing thousands of pounds worth of damage.
Devon & Cornwall police would attend, offer sympathy but never caught a culprit. Happy to nick people for speeding though.
Devon & Cornwall police would attend, offer sympathy but never caught a culprit. Happy to nick people for speeding though.
The Five Standard Excuses
1 The Anthony Blunt excuse There is a perfectly satisfactory explanation for everything, but security prevents its disclosure
2 The Comprehensive Schools excuse It's only gone wrong because of heavy cuts in staff and budget which have stretched supervisory resources beyond the limit
3 The Concorde excuse It was a worthwhile experiment now abandoned, but not before it provided much valuable data and considerable employment
4 The Munich Agreement excuse It occurred before important facts were known, and cannot happen again (The important facts in question were that Hitler wanted to conquer Europe. This was actually known; but not to the Foreign Office, of course)
5 The Charge of the Light Brigade excuse It was an unfortunate lapse by an individual which has now been dealt with under internal disciplinary procedures
1 The Anthony Blunt excuse There is a perfectly satisfactory explanation for everything, but security prevents its disclosure
2 The Comprehensive Schools excuse It's only gone wrong because of heavy cuts in staff and budget which have stretched supervisory resources beyond the limit
3 The Concorde excuse It was a worthwhile experiment now abandoned, but not before it provided much valuable data and considerable employment
4 The Munich Agreement excuse It occurred before important facts were known, and cannot happen again (The important facts in question were that Hitler wanted to conquer Europe. This was actually known; but not to the Foreign Office, of course)
5 The Charge of the Light Brigade excuse It was an unfortunate lapse by an individual which has now been dealt with under internal disciplinary procedures
Paul Dishman said:
I must have had a dozen break-ins over the years I had my pharmacies in Exeter. One time we had someone remove roof tiles, then smash through and down into the pharmacy triggering the alarm and causing thousands of pounds worth of damage.
Devon & Cornwall police would attend, offer sympathy but never caught a culprit. Happy to nick people for speeding though.
Our warehouse was broken into 12 months ago. Police attended, took the CCTV and forensics took the boxes that were left on the roof (we disturbed the burglars) for evidence. Devon & Cornwall police would attend, offer sympathy but never caught a culprit. Happy to nick people for speeding though.
The crooks were clearly experienced, with covered faces and hands so little evidence for them to work on, but the police investigated anyway.
A couple of weeks later we had some youths walking down the side of our building, which isn't a thoroughfare. When confronted they made a poor excuse and legged it. We 999d and had a squad car plus dog van shortly after.
Pretty pleased with their response tbh.
The burglars were caught a few weeks later, albeit not on our evidence.
Paul Dishman said:
I must have had a dozen break-ins over the years I had my pharmacies in Exeter. One time we had someone remove roof tiles, then smash through and down into the pharmacy triggering the alarm and causing thousands of pounds worth of damage.
Devon & Cornwall police would attend, offer sympathy but never caught a culprit. Happy to nick people for speeding though.
Ah, obviously the new breed of psychic police hadn't started then. You know, the ones who know who the baddies are even when there's no evidence. If you phone up now they might be able to send one round. They aren't the sympathetic ones though so the choice is yours. Devon & Cornwall police would attend, offer sympathy but never caught a culprit. Happy to nick people for speeding though.
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