Omega Owners Forum
Chat Area => General Discussion Area => Topic started by: tigers_gonads on 17 October 2016, 16:35:31
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Bit of a strange one this ............
About 17:30 last Wednesday while driving home from a nice little job, I had a little exchange of views with a scooter rider while creeping forward in stop start traffic.
I saw Mr Scooter rider weaving in and out of traffic through my rear view mirror.
One minute, he was in the nearside cycle lane, the next he was sat on my and probably others rear corner blind spot and imho, was riding like a complete cock :-X
Eventually, Mr Cock managed to pull past me and plonked his hairdryer about 5 foot in front of my car.
So there we all was, staring through the windscreen, sat in traffic and pissed off with the commute home when Mr Cock starts pulling faces at me and looking at the back end of his nice 16 plate scooter.
Well I looked over the bonnet and they must have been a good 5 or 6 foot separation there so I ignored him and got on with my life ::)
The traffic was stop / start and every time I got anywhere near his scooter, the face pulling started ::)
Eventually, I got a little pissed off and wound the window down and (politely for me) ask him what his problem is ? Well out came his dummy and he had little rant complete with arm waving about how close I was to his hairdryer ::)
Well personally, I don't think 5 or 6 foot (I could see the bottom of his back wheel from the drivers seat) is too close so with engine off and handbrake applied, I jumped out and walked over the hairdryer rider.
Straight away, he was in my face telling me that he was a police officer and I was committing a offence by been too close to his bike and if I didn't back off, his was going to "nick" me >:( >:(
Well I managed not to t@at him or laugh and politely asked him if I could see his warrant card. He refused to show me it and again threatened me with "getting nicked" if I went near his bike ::)
Well by this time, the traffic was crawling again so I jumped back in and followed him for a few hundred yards keeping to about a cars length wile moving and about the same 5 or 6 foot distance when stopped.
As we was stopped at some traffic lights which I know would be on red for a few minutes, I jumped out and again politely asked him if I could see his warrant card.
Well this time, I was threatened with arrest because I was threatening him ::) ;D so I walked back to my car and we parted ways and the road junction.
To be honest, I had forgotten all about the nob but last night I saw him again along side my car at the same traffic lights.
Me been me, down came the window and I introduced myself again and again asked him why he refused to show me his card ;)
Well this time he told me that he didn't have to show me his card and then he told me he had my registration number and if I harassed him anymore, he would "do" me >:( >:(
As he said that, he rode off into the sunset on his hairdryer ;D
Well 3 questions really ...........
I don't think he is plod so thought of popping into the local station and having a word but at the end of the day, its my word against his :( Is it worth it ?
What would our plod / ex plod think is a safe distance to follow / stop behind in traffic :-\
Also I find it hard to believe that he doesn't have to show me his card :-\
As for the threat of "he has my registration number", I also have his ;) ;)
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I would call his bluff. The only thing you are potentially in danger of breaking is the rule of keeping control of your vehicle by leaving it running when you speak to the Walt.
Call him on his being a copper, and then talk about the mates you have down the nick (make them up) ;D
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I don't have any answers for you Mr Gonads, but your story made me laugh! ;D
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Mow him down and make sure they never find the body.
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Why waste your time? Wether he is or he isn't (and personally I doubt it) what difference will it make? He's a winker........and the snow and ice are coming. :)
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Next time you see him, give the hairdryer a little nudge to see what happens and report back! :y
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I would call his bluff. The only thing you are potentially in danger of breaking is the rule of keeping control of your vehicle by leaving it running when you speak to the Walt.
Call him on his being a copper, and then talk about the mates you have down the nick (make them up) ;D
Handbrake was on / engine off when I jumped out Matt ;)
Tbh and after a little thought, I don't believe he is a regular plod :-\
Maybe a Plastic / Powerless Community Support Officer on a ego trip but i'd be surprised if he was a proper copper ;D
I have done work for / have known a few proper coppers over the years due the alarm side of my job and through friends.
Might keep a eye open while i'm out and about and have a word about the warrant card bit if the chance comes by :)
Maybe not a good idea to burst into my local nick and have a kick off because if he is a proper copper, it is my word against his so I would loose sadly >:(
If he does input my reg number into the PNC, I believe all logs are recorded and he would be in very serious shite if he did that without very good reason :-\
I'm more than big enough and ugly enough to look after myself but the last thing I want to do is bring anything to my front door for the lads / missus sake :(
It would be interesting to here the forums plods view on the card business because just like us ex military, I would have thought that genuine plod would have a very dim opinion on these sort of games :-\
Told the missus about it last night and her opinion was "Just oppsing leave it alone or you will end up in the cells again" ::)
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It's an offence to impersonate a Police Officer.
Next time, point out the presence of your dash cam and tell him, he'll be on You Tube before the day is over.
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"Mr Cock starts pulling faces at me and looking at the back end of his nice 16 plate scooter"
So why would Mr Plod pull faces at another motorist to antagonise him.
Get a dash cam, call his bluff, then get him prosecuted for everything yo can throw at him. :y :y
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Listen to swmbo :y
You probably look like his therapist :o & chummy isn`t takin his meds.
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Listen to swmbo :y
You probably look like his therapist :o & chummy isn`t takin his meds.
Nah, i've got a face that scares small children :D :D
The lad has said i'm getting a dash camera for Christmas so he can get me and any action on YouTube ::)
The tw @t >:( ;D ;D
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'tyres and tarmac' that was what I was taught on my lessons. (that was for stationary traffic) however, as has been said - impersonating a PO is an offence.
And he is a c0ck. A complete and total one. Irrespective of if he is or not.
Oh, and yes, just forget about it. Definitely! If you see him again, then by all means ask him to pull over, and get him to show you his card/number, the lot. With dashcam footage. :y
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'tyres and tarmac' that was what I was taught on my lessons. (that was for stationary traffic) however, as has been said - impersonating a PO is an offence.
And he is a c0ck. A complete and total one. Irrespective of if he is or not.
Oh, and yes, just forget about it. Definitely! If you see him again, then by all means ask him to pull over, and get him to show you his card/number, the lot. With dashcam footage. :y
................ and if he is wearing lycra ? :D :D :D
Sorry Matt, couldn't resist it :P :P :D
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I cant think of a single copper in all my days who would be seen dead on an L plated hair dryer....
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'tyres and tarmac' that was what I was taught on my lessons. (that was for stationary traffic) however, as has been said - impersonating a PO is an offence.
And he is a c0ck. A complete and total one. Irrespective of if he is or not.
Oh, and yes, just forget about it. Definitely! If you see him again, then by all means ask him to pull over, and get him to show you his card/number, the lot. With dashcam footage. :y
................ and if he is wearing lycra ? :D :D :D
Sorry Matt, couldn't resist it :P :P :D
Then ignore his presence like most motorists do :y ;D
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This is naturally my personal opinion and not advice in any professional capacity, and you will appreciate I can only comment based on the version of events depicted here. I will also add that anything I mention is readily available in the public domain and not classified or restricted.
Driving Element
Focusing purely on any potential traffic offence, the initial incident you describe is that of travelling in slow moving traffic, and a moped rider who placed himself in front of you, feeling you were a bit too close. You dispute this and state you could see "tyres and tarmac" which is the largely recognised distance at which you should be stationary behind someone. (Different to the minimum two second following rule when moving).
Either way, the actual road traffic "incident" here is minimal to nothing. Police forces across the country receive thousands of calls, on a daily basis, about bad driving, and the reality is, there is simply not the resources or means to launch an investigation into every call, especially if there is no collision or injury, and if the evidence is likely to be the word of one person against another, and thus unlikely to meet a burden of proof required to prove an offence beyond reasonable doubt. So, all things considered, the chances of anything coming of that (Eg, you being booked for careless driving) are probably quite slim.
Police forces all have slightly different policies, however the Hampshire Constabulary policy is an interesting example in support of the above:
http://www.hampshire.police.uk/internet/advice-and-information/road-safety/collisions-and-poor-driving/poor-driving
This policy is very open with the public that, if the driving is simple careless (and not dangerous), and that there is no collision or injury, then they will not investigate allegations of bad driving, when it is one word against the other - unless the offender has done similar things three occasions within the same three months.
In essence the perceived following distance is therefore likely to be a difference of opinion between the two of you and unlikely to be of interest to police.
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The Confrontation
A) Whilst I have no doubt that you had no intention to be aggressive, rude or violent - you describe getting out of your car and walking over to the other motorist in order to challenge him about his accusations of your bad driving. My personal feeling is that this is a bad move, for lots of reasons. As confident as you are in your own abilities, we live in a society whereby you just never know who is carrying a knife or other weapon, and things can turn sour quickly. For example, if after getting out of the car to confront the person, they turned violent, and you put them on their back, the likelihood is you're going to get investigated, even if nothing comes of it, and have an uncomfortable time on bail, not knowing what's going to happen. At that point, you'd wish you'd just written him off as a plonker, and stayed in your car.
B) You mention that, after the first time you got out to confront him, you later got out of your car a little way down the road, and did the same thing - and also on a later date tried to speak to him again. Whist, as I say, I'm sure you had no intentions of doing anything other than talking to him, and whilst I'm sure he was gobby and rude first - he does not know what your motivations are for getting out of your car, and is likely to feel intimidated (even if in reality he asked for it). What this basically does is give him a degree of ammunition, if he were to make a complaint about you. Even if it's not the case, if you are the one getting out of your car, and going up to him, it's likely any witnesses would be more likely to describe you as the aggressor or initiator, especially if it kicked off and became physical.
Essentially I expect the best course of action would have been to stay in your car, write him off as a plonker, and if possible just go a different way, pull over for a bit, and create some distance between the two of you.
Just for the record, I am in no way criticising or being holier than thou - I have made more than my fair share of mistakes when younger, and would be hypocritical to lecture anyone. Before I joined traffic, I have investigated so many assaults which have come out of incidents exactly as you describe, which have had devastating consequences for folks jobs and livelihood, and have arisen from really stupid, low level disputes over bad driving.
Unless involved in an accident, and thus need to exchange details, I would always suggest to folk to stay in their cars. It just removes *so* much potential for accusations against them.
The "Copper"
Based on the posts here, I'd say the chances of him being a police officer are pretty slim, and he's probably just watched too much road wars :y
Mark makes a valid point, in that, he was displaying an L plate. It's a requirement of the job to hold a full substantive driving licence, so it doesn't make sense that he'd have a provisional licence and be a copper.
Granted, he may passed a car test after 2001, which means he'd still need L plates on a moped, but, the chances of a car driver electing to use a hairdryer are pretty slim.
The way you describing him as talking to you, doesn't fit with how most police officers would talk to people. I certainly don't have any colleagues who would threaten a member of public to "do them".
In terms of being obliged to show you his warrant card, if he's not putting himself on duty and implementing any police powers, then there is no legislation which states he "has" to show you his warrant card. But equally if he's playing the "I'm a policeman and I'm telling you off" card, I can't think of any reason a genuine copper would refuse to show you upon request.
In relation to your PNC question, if an officer see's something off duty which is outrageous and intends to follow it up, they would not be breaching any rules by conducting a check, and then taking appropriate action or submitting intelligence or such like. The rules with PNC are that checks can be carried out providing they are for a legitimate policing purpose. To check someone's vehicle out with a view to dealing with them for a road traffic offence would not breach any legislation. (Although, in all but the most extreme circumstances, it would be quite sad, coppers have more than enough work to do without creating it!)
Ultimately, as has been said on here before, there are good and bad apples in every walk of life and this includes the police forces. The vast majority of coppers are hard working, fair and decent humans, but there are a few plonkers, some of which I have had the misfortune to meet.
Ultimately, I don't think it matters to you whether he is, or he isn't. You've formed the opinion he's a moron, so I'd just leave it at that :y
In terms of advice on here about getting him to pull over next time you see him and challenge him / film him, I urge you not to. Ultimately if you did, this would be the forth time you've approached him whilst he's been out on the road, and if he were to make an allegations against you (whether he's a copper of not) this would only serve to strengthen his allegation and weaken yours.
I would honestly just let it drop :y ;y
This post does, however, raise the question of Dash Cams. I now have a front, and rear dash cam in my BMW. Although it has been rightly pointed out, they could be a double edged sword, I have decided that the benefits outweigh the risks. There are SO many aggressive, incompetent, tailgating drivers out there, that I think in the event of a collision, they'd be worth their weight in gold, if only to protect your insurance premium :y :y
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Sounds like one of those 'Wanna Be In the Job' types to me, I used to know a few of them ::)
Moons ago I used to work with a guy bit like that, He was on Motorbike as well, He had managed to get hold of a Pad full of Producers, if it got cut up or something, he flag them down, give it the 'Im an Off Duty' blah, blah, give them a bollocking and then write out and issue a Producer, did it too many times though, as one car he stopped was an unmarked Duty Car full of plan clothed CID. They let him go through the motions to see how far it was going to go then Nicked him. ;D
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Life is too short, don't worry and move on, this was yesterday,
In a similar situation, my reply was
Put my thumbs in my ears, stuck my tongue out, waving my hands, going nah nah, and blowing a raspberry. By heck it felt good and the muppet just rode off, thinking I was mad ( maybe-) ;D
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Great write up there James :y
Thanks for the official outlook on the little incident :)
Tbh, I only jumped out of the car because I was sick of his face pulling and arm waving.
Me been old school and not understanding what the opps his problem was, I jumped out to have a word.
At the end of the day, if i'd done something wrong i'd would have quite happily put my hand up and apologised but me been me, tossers acting like that really grips my shit and even now its like a red rag to a bull :-[
Anyway, i'm more scared of the missus then any copper ;D She would have slapped me silly if i'd have got into trouble and for 5ft 3 and 7 1/2 stone wet threw, she is one scary oppser when she starts ;D
In the good old days, problems was sorted out by removing your coat, administering / taking a dry slap or 2 then moving on with your life.
Sadly the world isn't like that nowdays so with hindsight, I can see why I would be seen as the aggressor :(
You only have to look at the amount of body armour c/w body cam and the contents of the utility belt to see what coppers have to put up with out there :(
Shit world we live in :(
Again with hindsight, the cock was acting more like a daft kid with his gobbing off about "him been a copper" ::)
I should have asked him if he was going to tell his mam and dad too but that just might have inflamed the situation a little :-X ;D
As for the PNC system, I take it that if a officer uses it to gain information, there will be a box on the screen asking about the nature of the inquiry that is recorded ?
I know your not criticising or being holier than thou mate and you also have the dubious honour of seeing it (and its consequences) from the other side so feel free to call it the way you see it :y
Tbh, its good to hear the official view without it been rammed down your neck :)
We all (should) live and learn by our experiences ;)
Its good to see I got the tyre / road bit right. I don't know why that was my rule but i'll give myself a gold star on the wall chart in my bedroom anyway ;D ;D
A dash cam is now firmly on the on the Christmas list :y
After driving around the M25, the south and the midlands / south west a lot this year and seeing / having to take evasive action opps knows how many times due to some of the arseholes driving various motor vehicles, I think it might be time to wind the male ego in a little and fit one :y :y
If only to stick the coverage on YouTube at a later date :D
I don't know where the "L Plates" bit comes from, it was a 16 plate scooter in a very nice metallic bronze colour ;)
Maybe I should have said I was admiring the colour first or something to calm the nob down :P ;D
Oh yeh, if I do see him again I cross my heart that i'll smile at him in a non confrontational way and leave it at that :y :y