3 points and £60 fine for brake lights

sebastianj

Dear all,
I hope someone can help me, I had an MoT done at the end of July, they found the break lights not working and charged me £150 for fixing it. This afternoon I was stopped by the police because my lights were not working, they have terminated my MoT as well.
Not sure what to do, I think it is a bit harsh, no warning etc. Is there any thing I can do, I have never had a ticket for over 20 years and all of a sudden this Person really shows his authority on me instead of catching some real criminal. Mind you I do believe in obeying the law which I have been doing.

Any help, advice most appreciated.
regards,
sebastian

xocbc

I'd suggest paying the fine and taking the points. It is not harsh at all - it is the driver's responsibility to ensure that his/her car is roadworthy EVERY time it is taken out onto the road and having no brake lights could be very dangerous if you had to stop suddenly and the person behind you didn't know you were braking.

You may have some recourse against the garage that undertook the repair - i.e. if it is the repair that has failed, you may be able to get them to fix it again and redo the MOT, however there is nothing you can do against the points/fine.

plane_boy2000

I'm afraid that an MOT only shows the car was roadworthy on the day it was inspected, and not the day after.

Given that many people appear to be just given a warning for far worse offences in this day and age then I think its a bit harsh, but nothing you can do about it now.

nearlyrich

sebastianj wrote: »

never had a ticket for over 20 years and all of a sudden this Person really shows his authority on me instead of catching some real criminal. Mind you I do believe in obeying the law which I have been doing.

What's a "real criminal"? someone who is breaking the law?
Criticising the police for doing their job doesn't make me feel sorry for you, you broke the law they caught you, your lights were defective, pay up and check your lights regularly. I drive a lot for my job and I see loads of cars with fauty lights, they are unsafe so good on the police for stopping them and taking dangerous cars off the road.

goldspanners

sebastianj wrote: »

Dear all,
I hope someone can help me, I had an MoT done at the end of July, they found the break lights not working and charged me £150 for fixing it. This afternoon I was stopped by the police because my lights were not working, they have terminated my MoT as well.
Not sure what to do, I think it is a bit harsh, no warning etc. Is there any thing I can do, I have never had a ticket for over 20 years and all of a sudden this Person really shows his authority on me instead of catching some real criminal. Mind you I do believe in obeying the law which I have been doing.

Any help, advice most appreciated.
regards,
sebastian

im guessing you havent checked them since july?

take it back to the place that charged you £150 to fix them. i would have thought they could have got them working for cheaper than that.

the officer could have been getting out of breath running down the high street chasing some junkie who had just stolen some perfume from boots,but your the easy target im afraid and more than likely will pay your fine. the junkie won't.

but you should be checking those lights more often, it could be dangerous.

Paradigm

sebastianj wrote: »

Dear all,
I hope someone can help me, I had an MoT done at the end of July, they found the break lights not working and charged me £150 for fixing it. This afternoon I was stopped by the police because my lights were not working, they have terminated my MoT as well.
Not sure what to do, I think it is a bit harsh, no warning etc. Is there any thing I can do, I have never had a ticket for over 20 years and all of a sudden this Person really shows his authority on me instead of catching some real criminal. Mind you I do believe in obeying the law which I have been doing.

Any help, advice most appreciated.
regards,
sebastian

Have you been issued with a Fixed Penalty Notice? If so they are pretty hard to defend.

Regards "they terminated my MOT"... I'll think you will find they have given you a prohibition notice giving you a certain amount of time to get the problem fixed before you can drive on the road???

hewhoisnotintheknow

im afraid you are going to have to pay the fine

when was the last time you checked em? I check my each day by looking at the wall as i come off the drive

vaporate

nearlyrich wrote: »

What's a "real criminal"? someone who is breaking the law?
Criticising the police for doing their job doesn't make me feel sorry for you, you broke the law they caught you, your lights were defective, pay up and check your lights regularly. I drive a lot for my job and I see loads of cars with fauty lights, they are unsafe so good on the police for stopping them and taking dangerous cars off the road.

A 'real criminal' where someone causes GBH on a innocent individual, or rape.

The OP is a product of the sadistic police taking the !!!!. They, the police, 'could of' given a friendly warning for a first time 'offence'.

nearlyrich

Funnily enough a lot of "real criminals" get caught as a result of checks on vehicles, remember Peter Sutcliffe? People who drive vehicles with faulty lights are fair game for a stop and everyone should check their lights every week minimum it's not hard.

rev_henry

If your lights have JUST stopped working on your current journey then you're ok to continue but you MUST get them sorted out before the next journey. That is what the law states on this.

vaporate

nearlyrich wrote: »

Funnily enough a lot of "real criminals" get caught as a result of checks on vehicles, remember Peter Sutcliffe? People who drive vehicles with faulty lights are fair game for a stop and everyone should check their lights every week minimum it's not hard.

The term 'real criminals' is a fair game term. The sadistic police are too busy chasing petty 'crime'.