# On-the-spot fines



## Spacerunner (Mar 18, 2006)

Having recently just suffered an on-the-spot fine of 90 euros for allegedly not stopping at one of those red 'Stop' signs I decided to do a rerun on Google Earth's street view. 
At the time neither I or my naviguesser could recall the sign and as the details of the position were given on the fine receipt I traced the exact spot on Google. There was no sign there! And as the junction was a filter lane off a main road there is no way a stop sign should be there.
Anyone else had this sort of treatment and is there anything to be gained by trying to launch an appeal or is a 'Gallic shrug' more appropriate? :roll:


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## rayc (Jun 3, 2008)

c'est la vie


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## Dougle (May 18, 2006)

Hi Spacerunner,

I suffered the exact same fate a couple of years ago, just off the A16 near Calais. I did see the sign [which, as you say, is in English] at a T-junction. I drive a left hooker, the junction was square on, there was no other traffic in either direction and I rolled out at approx. 3mph. Stopped by Le Gendarmerie 50m down the road. Subjected to a humiliating dressing down by the principal officer e.g. "You saw the Stop sign?"......"Er, yes"........."You do not understand the meaning of the word 'Stop'?"......"Er, yes"..........."But you did not stop"........."Er, no"........."This is for your own safety; it is a €90 fine"  ............."It is the last day of my holiday, we are crossing in the morning, so I do not have €90"..........OK, how much do you have?"............Frantic searching of pockets etc....."€65".........."OK, I will accept that"
Well, thanks a bunch, pal. A warning would have done the job, as I have no intention of making the same mistake. Then he informed me that he had just done another UK motorhome minutes before me. Nice little earner!
Obviously, I was in the wrong technically and there is no point in arguing with them [surrounded by four of them, I saw the guns!!] but even if you are sure of the 'Street View' evidence, I would think you would have an uphill struggle on your hands.
I am hoping to return there this year, so it hasn't put me off. They will do what they will do [like the rest of us I suppose]
C'est la vie.

Regards,

Dave

Edited to say: just realised, the picture of my avatar is taken at La Bien Assise site at Guines. That was the only place I knew that would accept a credit card as we were skint. 8O


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## asprn (Feb 10, 2006)

Spacerunner said:


> is there anything to be gained by trying to launch an appeal


Well, there's €90,00. Maybe some of our French residents could point you in the right direction as to who to contact. I'd try.

Dougie.


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## shingi (Apr 18, 2008)

A couple of years ago we were on-the-spot fined for speeding in the Dordogne at a cost of 90 Euros. We were in our car that time. Whilst we were being dealt with I could see any amount of French drivers being stopped for obviously the same thing...only they were document checked and sent on their way. I think it was 'get the English week.' 

Since then we've bought our motorhome but it has served to make us much more careful now.


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## greenasthegrass (Oct 27, 2007)

I would take all my clothes off and let them cart me off to clink and get all the newspapers involved and family could stay in mohome until they released me €90 is €90 robbers!

If they could carry me naked into a car they would earn their €90 can tell ya - and when I was before the local magistrate I would again remove my clothes and by this time 15000 MHF'ers would be over the channel supporting me WOULDN'T YOU?

Greenie


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## erneboy (Feb 8, 2007)

It's the national pass time in Spain for coppers with nothing else to do and they will pick on anyone.

In this case however they were wrong. That would annoy me but after the event it just isn't worth the bother, mind you I am not sure that would stop me challenging it, Alan.


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## Spacerunner (Mar 18, 2006)

Thanks all for your replies.
Thinking about the incident, I realise that I had pulled over to let the patrol car pass as he had his 'woowoo' going just a couple of hundred yards (sigh..ok...metres) past the alleged incident. I was not actually stopped until a further mile up the road. Now, fair do's, that's clever innit?
Too far to walk back to check out the signage but close enough pull you over.

I also lurved the attitude of the female bottle-blonde Jamie Lee Curtis look-alike gendarme. Eased herself out of the driver's seat, smoothed her hair, lit up a Gauloise. Strolled round the van, did a bit of tyre kicking, checked out the beam deflectors and went eyeball to eyeball with June, lost interest and started to tell me where I had gone wrong :roll: .

Meanwhile the elderly gent, sorry gendarme accompanying her was frantically scribbling out the ticket, which although only a few lines long took him all of 15 minutes to complete.


Greenie: I had thought of that, but as I have a very attractive body it might encourage other gendarmes and indeed the whole French judicial system to start booking me so thats a non-starter :lol: :lol: 

Anyway thanks for replies, think I'm just gonna put it down to experience. 

One tip however, don't start off the day's driving during the French's morning rush hour. Seems the gendarmes are at their liveliest then to get the daily quota then they can relax for the rest of the shift!!


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## litcher (Jul 24, 2006)

greenasthegrass said:


> I would take all my clothes off and let them cart me off to clink and get all the newspapers involved and family could stay in mohome until they released me €90 is €90 robbers!
> 
> If they could carry me naked into a car they would earn their €90 can tell ya - and when I was before the local magistrate I would again remove my clothes and by this time 15000 MHF'ers would be over the channel supporting me WOULDN'T YOU?
> 
> Greenie


You seem to be a bit obsessed with taking your clothes of at the moment - is the hot weather getting to you ? Have another run around the garden. What's that? You did - last night. And the night before...... 8O :lol: :lol:

Viv

{offtopic} Sorry


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## Zebedee (Oct 3, 2007)

Dougle said:


> It is the last day of my holiday, we are crossing in the morning, so I do not have €90"..........OK, how much do you have?"............Frantic searching of pockets etc....."€65".........."OK, I will accept that"


Bet you didn't get a receipt - or if you did it wasn't a genuine one!! 8O

We got done in Italy and didn't have enough cash for the fine, with exactly the same response.

It was just before the border on the way out . . . . there's a surprise then!! 8O :roll:

I still don't know what we were done for, as we were in the middle of a dense stream of traffic and we were singled out, causing great inconvenience to those following behind.

I can't believe it was 'cos of our British number plate!!!! No - surely not!! 8O 8O 8O

No point in trying to argue in a language I don't speak at all well, and it was obvious what the game was anyway!! 8O

A nice little earner for the back pocket. 8O

Dave


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## framptoncottrell (Jan 6, 2006)

I once read that the same sort of money-raising activity is used in the US of A when local funds are short. The locals say that at a 'STOP' sign, they stop, count slowly to '3' and then proceed. No problem.
We have a 'STOP' sign in a local village which is pretty redundant since a by-pass was opened, and the traffic now resembles a Western Isles Sunday. I'm the only person, I think, who bothers to halt - everyone else treats it as a 'Give Way' sign and there hasn't been an accident at the junction since the dinosaurs went extinct.
I always play safe on the continent at 'STOP' signs; Mrs Roy cannot afford €90.......

Dr (musical, not medical) Roy


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## zulurita (May 9, 2005)

I think I would ask for a receipt. At least you have proof you have paid and then if you can prove that there isn't a stop sign there then I would lodge an appeal.

90€ is a fair bit of money.

I must say I make a point of stopping at "Stop" signs because of this even though there is nothing on the road.


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## Zozzer (Aug 13, 2006)

We bumped into a caravan tugger at the Lazy Rancho in Interlaken who had been given an on the spot fine for speeding and overtaking a lorry. When pleading that she was driving a car, the policeman pointed out she was towing a trailer and the combined weight was over 3500kgs and that vehicles towing trailers must NOT overtake on that section of the motorway. Her husband tried to pick her bottom lip off the floor by telling her at least you won't get points on your license.

Let it be a lesson learned to those towing a car on an 'A' frame.


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## teemyob (Nov 22, 2005)

*Police*

30 years ago, I was in St. Tropez with some English Friends in a British Registered Cortina.

We had met some French Women who had a French Registered Citroen.

We had all been at the beach for the day and we followed the ladies back in our car.

Upon arriving in Ste. Maxime, the French Lady driver pulled right across a pedestrian crossing, as had most other french cars due to lack of parking.

Our English driver managed to park on the opposite side of the road just hanging slightly over the crossing.

We nipped into town for a few minutes for bread, milk, the usual.

When we returned, the Cortina had been ticketed. It was the only car that had been. All the other French cars blocking the crossings had no tickets. Not a Gendarme or Policeman in Sight.

Maybe the Officers had run out of tickets and nipped to get some?. No, they were caught hiding under the trees next to the boules area watching us.

No amount of pleading from the French chiefess had any effect as the ticket had been issued and when she was threatened with the same treatment as the English, diplomatic negotiations were brought to an abrupt halt.

We paid the ticket the next day at the Post Office.

TM


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## teemyob (Nov 22, 2005)

*Cars*



shingi said:


> A couple of years ago we were on-the-spot fined for speeding in the Dordogne at a cost of 90 Euros. We were in our car that time. Whilst we were being dealt with I could see any amount of French drivers being stopped for obviously the same thing...only they were document checked and sent on their way. I think it was 'get the English week.'
> 
> Since then we've bought our motorhome but it has served to make us much more careful now.


I was driving along the A1 in an Extremely fast sports car a couple of years ago. As I was driving I looked and thought, AGHhhh, I know this road is quite often controlled by Radar and the Police use the area just ahead.

I will watch my Speed - I think

There were French Cars passing me and I glanced down and the Speedo Read 91mph (146ish kph in a 130kph zone).

As I looked up, I saw a French Cop Running to his BMW bike and hopped on like a crazed lunatic he twisted the accelerator fully (in order to do so he had to lean down hard right and push his elbow forward).

Straight out in front of the traffic and Pulled ME!

He had stopped me at the specially wide hard shoulder.

As I had no cash he insisted I drive to the Next Aire with a Cash machine - Cost me 130 Euros !.

That is the only Speeding Ticket I have ever had.

TM


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## Pammy (Jun 2, 2005)

Pity they don't do on the spot fines in this country then all those foreigners who come over here will have a taste of their own medicine instead of hopping back to their country without paying. This country is not on the ball methinks.  

Pammy


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