Reporting dangerous driving.

[Genestho]

Hi slightly off topic but whoever blinged me, sorry I dont know who you are to pm you back, but site is www.badd.co.nz, under my sigy line. Cheers.

Good to know you have to be specificly asking to lay a formal complaint if the cops dont book the motorist themselves, otherwise you may expect to get a follow up call and now we know you never would.

As usual its up to yourselves to be responsible for yourselves, and follow things through yourself instead of waiting for things to come to you.

See you at Pareoa.
PS I wont be setting up shop at Paeroa this year, I want to cruise around and watch the racing as this is something Leon and I did together, this was our "romantic" day together.
But I will be on a low key mission, dont be scared if I approach you in the pitts, I dont bite.

If you see me give me a yell, Im up for it. Ill be wearing my Tee.
If as a Motorcycle Road Racer if you support what Im doing then let me know baddnz@gmail.com.

I have some plans involving the Motor Cycle Racing community, alot will be expecting a well overdue visit (Craig if you read this) and some Ive yet to meet.

And yes please continue to leave a post here with your 111 or *555 experiences.
Cheers

[Patrick]

So my lawyer wasn't lying to me when he said that 95% of people falsely accused of dangerous driving type offences through *555 just plea guilty to get it over with? So it seems to me that when you "Go hunting" it doesnt matter if the person is guilty or not, you will believe the complainant to get the catch?

Nah... he was "misleading you..."

95% of the people accused of shite driving are driving like shite... which is why they nod in court or pay the ticket. Guess you're a 5%er...

[Banesto John]

"Police and other emergency services receive thousands of nuisance and hoax calls each year including heavy breathers, people wanting taxis and those upset that their takeaway meals were bad.

Last year, a bride in Christchurch, panicked by a large oil stain on her wedding dress, dialled 111 in a desperate plea for help.

Other calls have included:
* A man rang to say there were two hedgehogs fighting on his lawn.
* A woman called to get police to make her boyfriend ask for her hand in marriage.
* A man rang to say there was a cow at his letterbox - and he was scared."

No f***ing wonder the cops can't deal with things reported to them, they are all out trying to control the countries cows.

[BIHB@0610]

I wonder if the man who rang to say there was a cow at his letter box was the boyfriend of the woman who called to get police to make him propose ..... he he......

[slowlegs]

I have found it works although the motorist has to be doing something pretty bad for them to do something about it. If you visit the police station and fill out a form you have a much better chance although if you want them prosecuted you have to either go to court or two people have to complain about the same incident. I got warned by the cops one time that the guy was a patched gang member and they advised me not to go ahead with it for my own safety.I suppose he could have killed me with his driving or after the trial. The only other time the cops called me back was when a guy in a skyline tried to run a pedestrian over. Otherwise I didn't ever even get a letter.

[Mikkel]

I wonder if the man who rang to say there was a cow at his letter box was the boyfriend of the woman who called to get police to make him propose ..... he he......

You'd like to think that the idiot density was low enough for that to be plausible.
Alas, I fear it is not so...

[Soul.Trader]

I phoned *555 to report a truck driver who I'm pretty sure was pissed. He ran through a couple of reds (almost taking me out in the car), and couldn't stick to his lane. Never heard anything back from the cops, so no idea what happened in the end.

[BiK3RChiK]

I phoned *555 to report a truck driver who I'm pretty sure was pissed. He ran through a couple of reds (almost taking me out in the car), and couldn't stick to his lane. Never heard anything back from the cops, so no idea what happened in the end.

IME, *555 is a waste of time. Something like this I'd ring 111 !!!! That is an emergency if ever there was one!

M

[Soul.Trader]

In hindsight, you're definately correct BC. I wish the *555 operator had made such a suggestion.

[kevie]

Ringing *555 in most cases only gets a 10-1 (all points bulletin) put out for the vehicle on the police radio... this depends on a unit being free/in the vacinity to intercept the offending driver which understandably isn't always the case.
They recomend you either go into a station and file a report or go to the website and 'dob the driver in' (if you do a *555 and DONT follow it up with a written or online complaint you're only wasting your time)
If you dont do this followup they can not ticket the offending driver. there is also a noting on the vehicle file (QVR) that there has been previous 'one new' complaints against this vehicle/driver. if theres several the driver is more likely to be charged for the slightest offence.

I put in a LOT of *555s being a linehaul trucker, I dob in probably one in thirty offences I see (I dob in the dangerous ones and usually the passing on yellows). I make NO apology for that as the highway is my workplace and I feel I have a moral obligation to assist in keeping my workplace safe and also a crash can delay me up to 2-3 hours in some cases.

I ALWAYS follow up a *555 with a online or in serious cases written complaint/statement. And if the driver is 3T'd (pulled over) ahead of me I always stop and have a chat to the officer.

I run a scanner in my car and my rig and hear some of the results of the calls. and in many cases hear the offending driver pulled over so the *555 does have a effect on offending drivers.

And yes, an online report results in the offending vehicle owner being sent a letter to notify him of the complaint. Note that the owner isnt always the offending driver.

I have had a couple VERY STUPID AND DANGEROUS drivers I have instead of *555 rang 111 instead, those ones I go to the police station and ask for the FULL complaint form to fill in, the one where theres more detail and a tick box section at the end asking "Do you want the driver charged?" YES!! and "will you be prepared to appear in court?" YES

Another thing I do .... I keep a note book and record all the *555 calls I make for reference later and has been useful when I have been called back by the police and asked something about the incident.

Some of the amusing (and not so amusing) results of my calls are:
1/ The police called me back when I called in that a car that had been parked on roadside almost a week now had a suspicious car parked behind it. they sent a unit out, found 2 guys stripping the car, cop said to me the driver of the suspicious car was disqualified hence his car got impounded and the other guy had arrest warrants so he also was arrested. both were charged also for stripping the car
2/ Had a driver passed me, a van in front of me and a minibus full of elderly in the Manawatu gorge on blind windy corners, I 111'd him, cop called me back, he was disqualified driver, had GF's car and had 8 *555 or 111 calls re his driving that day, he was done for a raft of charges including 6 of dangerous use.
3/A driver passes me in the path of oncomming cars ON yellow lines, I write down his rego but wasnt going to ring it in, he then passed a fuel tanker on yelows on a blind hill ...... I called 111.... while talking to police he passes a ambulance in the path of a oncomming truck. Cops got him about 10 km up the road, I stopped, also the tanker driver. Offending driver was disqualified, been forbidden several times and was driving his GF's car which got impounded (wonder if he still had a GF). HE SAID ... the passing moves were safe because nothing happened and saw nothing wrong with them.
Again ... I make NO APOLOGIES for dobbing in stupidity on our roads.

[Ixion]

Ah the blissful glory of total moral superiority.

Did you ever stop to consider that the manoeuvres that you think are dangerous based on what would be safe for you , at your age (I'm picking you are very old), in a huge truck or a Virago 750 (and I own one of them ), may be quite safe for a younger person on a fast sports bike, or even a fast car?

And considering the appalling behaviour of most truck drivers on the road nowdays (I do remember when long haul truckies were VERY good and courteous drivers - those days are long gone), I suspect that you are indeed the poit calling the kettle black.

[RT527]

last time i had cause to use *555 I was towing my horses in a built up area doing the speed limit 50ks .. & a blardy idiot passed on the inside .. very lucky for him & us as I contemplated turning left to take the horses back to their paddock but decided to shoot home first and kept travelling straight ..

the "idiot" was probably doing at least 80 given the way he was pulling away from me .. gave me a hell of a fright cause I never seen him coming up on the inside ..

however I did get a visit from a cop over it & they tracked him down & had a strong word (what ever that means) but would not prosecute cause it would only be his word against mine ...

I would still use *555 but realise it can be pretty useless

Hope you had them in a horse Float......

[Soul.Trader]

Again ... I make NO APOLOGIES for dobbing in stupidity on our roads.

Good for you.

Ah the blissful glory of total moral superiority.

God I hope you havent bred Ixion. That would be a crime on humanity.

[chanceyy]

Hope you had them in a horse Float......

but of course

[car]

Is it worth it? Forgive a newcomer to these fine isles, but we have some sort of telephone hotline for this don't we? *555 or somesuch? Is there anypoint? Do things get done, is it recorded?

O, the irony! I got *555'd at the weekend, for "weaving in and out of traffic" and "riding erratically." I lane-split between the single line of stop-go traffic and the double-yellows, along a mile or so of tailback between Paekakariki and the McKay's Crossing roadworks. I did so slowly and carefully, only when the traffic volunteered to move over and let me past, because I had my son on the back. But obviously not carefully enough for someone, because I never got to Paraparaumu -- full disco lights and a chat at the side of the road.

The policeman was very pleasant and polite, and when I told him what I'd been doing, he seemed satisfied that I didn't need any sort of education on the dangers of motorcycling. He did apologise for pulling me over, though, and said that once someone had made a complaint they were obliged to act on it if they were able to -- he had been in the area. He suggested that the reason someone had complained was probably not my riding per se, but probably that I had a young child on my motorcycle. I said "well, at least their heart's in the right place, I suppose." "That's the way to look at it," he agreed.

He wished us good luck with the fishing and posed for a photo with my son.

Your tax dollars at work.