I was friendly and didn't argue either. Just one of those things, I don't complain at all about being caught and convicted because you take the risk, you take the consequences.
The most points you have had on your license at any time
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I was friendly and didn't argue either. Just one of those things, I don't complain at all about being caught and convicted because you take the risk, you take the consequences.
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To be honest we should count ourselves lucky in this country - it's possible to drive much faster here than it is in other countries, for example.
Do a 500 mile Motorway trip in the UK at 20mph over the speed limit and its unlikely anyone would care.
Do a 500 mile trip in the USA or Australia at 20mph over the speed limit and you'd at the very least be pulled by the cops, probably given a ridiculous fine, and thats before you consider the speed limits are lower anyway.
Do a 500 mile Motorway trip in the UK at 20mph over the speed limit and its unlikely anyone would care.
Do a 500 mile trip in the USA or Australia at 20mph over the speed limit and you'd at the very least be pulled by the cops, probably given a ridiculous fine, and thats before you consider the speed limits are lower anyway.
I agree 100%.
great consistent policing there, since when is awareness a defence for speeding? I was doing 96 on a dual carriageway A road which was empty, weather was dry, visibility was good, the car I was driving was well within its limits etc. but I still got a summons. Wonderful.
The police have always had discretion when it comes to reporting offences. I certainly do not think this should change.
Of course, there are arguments for wholesale reform of speeding laws, but that is a separate issue.
As for luck, relying on luck is a bad idea, and just shows a lack of willingness to accept responsibility for the consequences of actions. It is not bad luck to get caught doing something you shouldn't be, or good luck to avoid it, risk management combined with acceptance of the consequences if you are wrong is the key.
Soldato
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0 in nearly 7 years of driving 
Soldato
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3, about three months after passing my test. Clean now though.
When have I done that?
If you speed regularly then I believe you are lucky if you never get caught, period. You can reduce risk but not eliminate it altogether.
In 19 years of driving and speeding regularly, I got done for speeding once. Some of that was down to being sensible about when and where I 'sped', but it definitely involved luck too.
In short, don't be so smug and think you are cleverer than those of us who have been done for it.
3 points for speeding in 1999, 96 in a 70 coming back from Autosports International at the NEC, oh the irony and 3 points for contravening a white line in the 80's sometime in my Mini which was a real unlucky one. I did get banned just after that however, but no points for that just took the licence away for 3 months and that's it in 25 years of driving...up to now of course, not wishing to tempt fate.
What about your drink driving habit? Was that bad luck to be caught too?
I'm not being smug, I'm being realistic, it will not be bad luck if I get caught speeding, it will be because I've made a mistake, exceeding the speed limit is a conscious decision that is always my choice, if I make a mistake and get caught, that is not bad luck.
Man of Honour
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None - after 12 years on the car and 6 years on the bike. *touches wood*
No, it was good luck not to be caught.
Are you seriously saying that you will never be caught speeding UNLESS you make a 'mistake' ?
Soldato
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18 years of driving and 6 points has been the maxumim at one point. 3 for SP30 and 3 for CU20. All cleared now for the past 4 years.
No, it was good luck not to be caught.
Are you seriously saying that you will never be caught speeding UNLESS you make a 'mistake' ?
By definition, if you get caught speeding, you've made a mistake. I don't believe in denying responsibility for my actions. If I am speeding, and I get caught, it is my fault, it is because I read a situation wrongly and considered the area clear, as such I made a mistake.
I can't see why you're trying to attribute this to arrogance or anything like that, I am fully in control of my actions and my choices, if I make those choices wrong, it's not likely to be deliberate, but a mistake on my part. It is not, in any way, 'bad luck'.
I think you are arrogant, because you think you are clever enough to eliminate the risk of being caught through your wisdom.
Fact is there are so many different ways of being caught for speeding these days, by unmarked cars, hidden cameras a mile away or whatever, the only sure way to guarantee not being caught is to not speed. Otherwise, you WILL need an ELEMENT of LUCK to avoid being caught. You cannot control all the variables and you cannot expect to notice everything in a mile radius in all directions at all times.
It rubs me up the wrong way to see someone smugly say 'oh, I have never been caught because I'm so clever, unlike you plebs'
You are confusing control with awareness. You cannot control all variables, but you can have an awareness of them and the risks they present. You are also confusing eliminating risk with managing it to an acceptable degree. You cannot eliminate risks, but you can mitigate them through understanding them and ensuring your risk profile is reduced compared to (for example) other drivers on the same road.
And even if you get it all wrong, it is not bad luck that you got caught, it is still your responsibility, and you should be factoring the chance of getting caught into your risk assessment, and reducing it to a level that is acceptable to you. It is not bad luck to be the 1 in X, it is the nature of risk management.
Do I think I could never get caught? No, such a position is ludicrous and ignores the nature of risk, but you can manage that risk to an acceptable level where you are significantly less likely than the average to be caught.
Where have I said it is 'bad luck' to be caught?
What I have said is, if you speed regularly but are never caught, there is an element of good luck involved. REGARDLESS of how careful you are.
If you buy a lottery ticket and do not win, it isn't bad luck, because you knew the odds were poor. But if you DO win, it is GOOD luck.
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You've just given the reason why it isn't good luck that prevents you from being caught if you adopt a risk minimisation strategy, because it's the opposite of your lottery example.
The odds of you getting caught if you correctly reduce your risks are poor, so it is not good luck that it doesn't happen...
I've had 3 and would have got another 3 just as they came off if it weren't for the speed awareness course option. both times I got caught I was unintentionally speeding, not to say they are the only times I've been over 30 though.
You've got it the wrong way round. Driving regularly, speeding regularly, never getting caught, is like winning the lottery. The chances of never getting caught are low. Speed regularly, you will get caught one day. Yes even you. Regardless of how careful you think you are. Every time you speed, the odds on you being caught get shorter.
His point is not that he won't get caught but that he says if he does get caught it wasn't luck.