First time for everything

[The_Duke]

Lower Hutt suburban street, 10am saturday morning (today)

Cops stopping all traffic for breath testing, wof & rego checks. Buddy gets me to count to ten- no problem.
Checks my wof & rego- all current & valid, believe it or not!

Then checks licence...... notices the conditions on the back state I must wear correcting lenses at all times. I'm blind as a bat so am obviously wearing contacts.
He then states "I'm going to look deeply into your corneas now to check for the correcting lenses- look straight ahead please."
After a short eternity, he appears pleased with himself and says: "I can't see evidence of contact lens being worn- I find you in breach of your license conditions."



Incredulous, I explain to him that my eyesight is so bad that I wouldn't have even been able correctly identify my motorbike in the garage, let alone ride the damn thing down the road without contacts!
Cop stares into my eyes for another 10 seconds... then continues to lean in until maybe only six inches away (it was getting weird at this point) before finally giving in with "OK...yeah I see them now.... you can uh, go."

His disappointment at not being able to fine me for ANYTHING was obvious.

I'm all for making sure vehicles are safe for all road-users etc., but the whole operation just had the heavy air of a revenue-gathering exercise. Not good.

[Geeen]

Lower Hutt suburban street, 10am saturday morning (today)

Cops stopping all traffic for breath testing, wof & rego checks. Buddy gets me to count to ten- no problem.
Checks my wof & rego- all current & valid, believe it or not!

Then checks licence...... notices the conditions on the back state I must wear correcting lenses at all times. I'm blind as a bat so am obviously wearing contacts.
He then states "I'm going to look deeply into your corneas now to check for the correcting lenses- look straight ahead please."
After a short eternity, he appears pleased with himself and says: "I can't see evidence of contact lens being worn- I find you in breach of your license conditions."



Incredulous, I explain to him that my eyesight is so bad that I wouldn't have even been able correctly identify my motorbike in the garage, let alone ride the damn thing down the road without contacts!
Cop stares into my eyes for another 10 seconds... then continues to lean in until maybe only six inches away (it was getting weird at this point) before finally giving in with "OK...yeah I see them now.... you can uh, go."

His frustration at not being able to fine me for ANYTHING was palpable.

I'm all for making sure vehicles are safe for all road-users etc., but the whole operation just had the heavy air of a revenue-gathering exercise. Not good.

Ive had to remove one to prove I was wearing it.............

[steve_t]

Man, that's shit. It was probably more a test of your response than actually being able to see or not see your contacts.

Hell, if I took one out at a checkpoint, I wouldn't be able to put it back in! I'm useless and need a mirror

[The_Duke]

Indeed. I don't understand why he didn't just point to a sign, say 30 metres away and ask me what it said...

Surely proving you have adequate vision is better than proving that you're wearing contacts?

[Berries]

An excellent reason not to brush your teeth.

[James Deuce]

Ive had to remove one to prove I was wearing it.............

Did the same. Made the cop take me home to get another (Like that went well. Threatened to arrest me for some undisclosed horrific crime against humanity. I had to get a bus home in my gear and get another.) Sent them a bill for a new box but never got any response. He was mystified as to why I wouldn't put it back in, but once a soft lens drys and folds on itself, you have minutes to clean it or it just glues itself together. I've taken to carrying my glasses ever since.

[rastuscat]

Blame the arses who wrote the law.

How is a cop with nil training as an optometrist supposed to check if you have your contacts in? Would it really be better if they just believed what people said?

I could fill a large swimming pool with the lies told me to while Ive been working.

[rastuscat]

Indeed. I don't understand why he didn't just point to a sign, say 30 metres away and ask me what it said...

Yeah, coz then you could have gone home and started a thread bitching about a cop doing an unlawful eye test.........

[Jantar]

Blame the arses who wrote the law.

How is a cop with nil training as an optometrist supposed to check if you have your contacts in? Would it really be better if they just believed what people said?

I could fill a large swimming pool with the lies told me to while Ive been working.

Or they could apply the same rule that applies in aviation. Spare glasses must be carried. Being able to show that you are indeed carrying spare is prima face evidence that the origional corrective lens are being worn.

[nodrog:Me]

... I'm useless and need a mirror

What are those two shiney things on the front of your mogtorcycle?

[bogan]

Hell, if I took one out at a checkpoint, I wouldn't be able to put it back in! I'm useless and need a mirror

yeh, be handy if they fitted vehicles with those things aye!

How is a cop with nil training as an optometrist supposed to check if you have your contacts in?

Yeh tricky one that, if only there was some way to ask what a person is capable of seeing. Oh wait, you could just ask them to describe something in the distance!

[steve_t]

What are those two shiney things on the front of your mogtorcycle?

Those things are only good at showing me my arms Nah, it's a struggle just to fit the buggers in the bathroom mirror.

Do I really have to remove the bloody thing? Can't I just jiggle it from side to side? You can see it easily when you move it.
The fact that I can actually touch my eyeball with my finger should be proof that I wear contacts - I doubt non-contact wearers would comfortably touch their own eyeball.

[James Deuce]

Or they could apply the same rule that applies in aviation. Spare glasses must be carried. Being able to show that you are indeed carrying spare is prima face evidence that the origional corrective lens are being worn.

Or they could behave like public servants and trust that most people will do the right thing most of the time.

[bogan]

The fact that I can actually touch my eyeball with my finger should be proof that I wear contacts

The fact it says so on the back of your license also proves that however the cop needs to know you are wearing them at the time...

[steve_t]

The fact it says so on the back of your license also proves that however the cop needs to know you are wearing them at the time...

It says correcting lenses, not contact lenses, but yes, the cop does need to see them. As I said before, you can see them easily if they are moved. Heck, they move enough to see them every time I blink