You might wonder what the driver had done to deserve the censure of the police. The cab was one of 194 vehicles pulled over by the police, but we are guessing that it was the only vehicle that was stopped because it's passenger was transporting a 3 metre long wooden pole by holding it outside the window of the cab, dangling alongside the offside of the vehicle as it made it's way through Basildon.
Apparently the pole was for use as a length of stair banister and one would imagine that the owner of the pole perhaps did not have their own transport to be able to take it home. Unfortunately, the passenger has not received any penalty, but the driver of the taxi has.
A police spokesperson said "the woman could easily have lost her grip on the pole and it could have struck a pedestrian, cyclist or gone through the windscreen of an approaching vehicle on the other side of the road". It probably seemed the most sensible way of transporting the pole at the time, however perhaps not so sensible in hindsight.
As part of the Road Safety Campaign, 9 vehicles were seized, 1 because the driver did not have an appropriate licence, the remaining 8 for having no insurance. 62 vehicles were found to have no MOT certificates, 52 drivers were not wearing seat belts, 23 drivers were using mobile phones, 4 drivers were stopped for speeding and 15 cars were found to have illegal tinting of their windows.
Drivers should be aware that there will almost certainly be many Road Safety Campaigns taking place over the Christmas period, therefore they should make sure that both they and their vehicles comply with the law.
The above is not legal advice, it is intended to provide information of general interest in current legal issues.
