Court summons for been 6" over in a 6ft 6" width restriction HELP

BRADFORDTIGERS

Hi in December last year i was stopped by a traffic officer who informed me at 50mph he thought my vehicle was bigger then the 6ft 6ins width restriction that i had just travelled through on the A1 motorway and that he wanted to measure the vehicle as i had said i believed it was 6ft 6",the officer then proceeded to measure the vehicle at the back and it measured 7ft i apoligised and said i didnt realise that and at the front it is indeed 6ft 6" but the 3" at each side is the overhang for the back body making it 7ft.
To my suprise he then said he was given me a ticket for breaking the width restriction a fine of £30 i accepted this and just said okay as this had now put me behind with my deliveries.
On returning home i checked my tape measure to make sure i hadnt confused 6" as a bigger margin and then sent the form back saying i wasnt paying and would like the matter to go to court.
Then today i received a court summons for Stevenage court with a witness statement from the officer telling of his 20 years experience etc and that he had the paperwork from the highways agencies etc for the temporary width restriction,reading through the paperwork it indicates if i plead not guilty i will have to attend court at some point anyhow, so have the expence of getting there from West Yorkshire and taking a day off work unpaid which will be more than the £30 fine or plead guilty and receive possibly court costs on top so unable to win either way round.
Has anybody else had this or a similar issue that they can let me know or advice on,it isnt the case of paying the £30 ,it is the, in my opinion the lack of common sense used in this incident.:mad:
On a funnier note can you give me items that measure 6" keep it clean:D

Tigsteroonie

BRADFORDTIGERS wrote: »

On a funnier note can you give me items that measure 6" keep it clean:D

A sub from Subway?

BRADFORDTIGERS

Tigsteroonie wrote: »

A sub from Subway?

:rotfl:quality just reminded me its free drink Friday tomorrow for a 6":rotfl:

thelawnet

what vehicle is it? It should be a matter of record what width your particular model is.

BRADFORDTIGERS

thelawnet wrote: »

what vehicle is it? It should be a matter of record what width your particular model is.

Its a mecedes sprinter 311 curtain sider van 3.5 tonne its the overhang for the body which causes it to be 7ft which is 3" at either side:(

vaio

You used to be innocent until prove guilty and if the police were wrong then you got your legal costs plus expenses like travelling & wages paid out of public funds.

Sadly I suspect this is no longer the case

thelawnet

BRADFORDTIGERS wrote: »

Its a mecedes sprinter 311 curtain sider van 3.5 tonne its the overhang for the body which causes it to be 7ft which is 3" at either side:(

The thing is the official width of your van is actually 6' 6.3" anyway, even without the overhang, so it seems to me that you were too wide at the front and too wide at the back as well. Just pay the relatively small fine and forget about it.

Dave101t

i think you can afford it, ignorance of the law and all that..

paddedjohn

vaio wrote: »

you used to be innocent until prove guilty and if the police were wrong then you got your legal costs plus expenses like travelling & wages paid out of public funds.

Sadly i suspect this is no longer the case

sorry but you are never innocent until proven guilty, you are presumed innocent until proven guilty. I cant see how this can apply anyway in this situation as the op has already said his vehicle is too wide by 6 inch's therefore he is guilty of travelling on a in a road with width restrictions.

daveyjp

If the officer measured the van you need to argue he didn't do it right - this is how 'loophole' lawyers work, but you need to pay them!

wealdroam

OP, I cannot understand why have you decided to go to court?

Surely if your vehicle is over 6' 6" wide you would be better off paying the £30.

Or am I missing something?