Speed cameras shown as points of interest

[croyde]

Most car's standard inbuilt Sat Navs do this but I've just read that having a device that does this is illegal in France and subject to a €1500 fine.

So do you hope you are not checked thoroughly when stopped or do you have to make sure this is turned off in the menu?

Seems rather over the top and more to do with making money rather than slowing you down.

[Time4another]

Noticed this even on Waze they wouldn't show up but most did have some sort of marker on the map.

[ZesPak]

Have you got anything specific in mind? Most I've seen is that they are actually not showing in France, 'cause it would be an illegal device anyway...

[andy43]

On Waze the French seem to mark cameras as ‘Police spotted’.
That’s clearly not a database of camera sites so it’s all good

[ferret50]

My Tomtom refers to French camara sites as 'danger areas'. But DVLA do not grass you up to the French anymore.

Le flic do have a habit of setting up mobile traps on roundabouts and expect you to pay up on the spot, though.

[ZesPak]

ferret50 said:

My Tomtom refers to French camara sites as 'danger areas'. But DVLA do not grass you up to the French anymore.

Le flic do have a habit of setting up mobile traps on roundabouts and expect you to pay up on the spot, though.

They also do average speeds between toll boots, and they just pull you off the road at the next "péage".
I've been going to France at least once a year for over 15 years and it's happened more than once.

[balham123]

As speed camera are situated where accidents have happened, legal in France sat-nav should be reporting an accident blackspot, rather than the existence of the camera. I thought all the manufacturers were wise to this now, so you will probably find your system is compliant.

If you have something that specifically reports cameras that would be illegal.

As would possession of a radar detector (even if it's not switched on). I got stopped once as they saw my dash cam and were checking it wasn't a detector

[croyde]

In my car's Sat Nav they are called Risk Areas but on the screen they definitely look like cameras, even a different icon for Average Speed ones.

So to remain legal, are you actually supposed to turn the Risk Area warning off?

[Truckosaurus]

Waze only announces the cameras if you are speeding.

[SuperPav]

They can't be displayed as fixed point cameras.

It is not illegal to show "risk areas" or "zones" as per above posters, therefore most apps/satnavs in affected countries (France a good example) will either highlight it as "Average speed zone", "risk zone", "danger zone" or some other mildly obscure reference, but in it will be a stretch rather than a fixed point on the map. Interpret that, as "there's a fixed camera sometime within the next 1km".

To be fair to the french, all their fixed cameras have a pretty giant sign on the side of the road saying "RADAR CONTROLE" or similar, again within <1km of the actual camera.


It's the roadside police with handheld cameras you need to watch out for. Mind you, they only tend to pull you over when you're going over 150kph...

[fourthpedal]

SuperPav said:

To be fair to the french, all their fixed cameras have a pretty giant sign on the side of the road saying "RADAR CONTROLE" or similar, again within <1km of the actual camera.

I must admit - making speed cameras obvious confuses me. Like, what's the point?

Switzerland bans camera warnings, and the cameras are not made obvious like in the UK or apparently France. They're still not that hard to spot - grey box at the side of the road or attached to the pillars of the motorway gantry - but hidden enough that I see them flashing lots of people (not me might I add).