To Think Security Firm Vehicles Shouldn't Resemble Police Vehicles?

[GreenishMe]

It's always bugged me that some security firms try to make their vehicles look like police vehicles, so much so that a few years back I wrote a letter to the Police about my concerns. From the reply I received I was clearly viewed as a neurotic nutcase.

I'm thinking from the point of view of a young child. IMO they could be easily be tricked into thinking someone wearing a (security) uniform with a walkie-talkie and a van like this was actually a police officer.

Obviously I'm not suggesting the security industry is rife with child molesters but it just seems an unnecessary risk given that it seems only to benefit the security firm.

I saw this van today and it really pissed me off....AIBU?

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It's called a deterrent.

A bit like bikers and hore riders whonwear high vis clothing with ,"Polite" written in the back.
The thinking is that people will behave when they mistake them for police.
As an ex biker. I can tell you, it works very well.

So if the security team even stop a single crime from happening I'd say good on them.

I'm thinking from the point of view of a young child

Or somebody with poor/low vision ?

On the other hand, (as far as I know), any attempt to impersonate a police officer si treated extremely seriously. By the police and courts. Certainly it's not a common crime.

And because Police officers are inherently more trustworthy? Surely events in the past 40 years from the Birmingham six, Stephen Lawrence, Hillsborough and news today that three officers are being charged with a 1m fraud shoe that they are not significantly more honest and reliable than the public they are supposed to serve.

No Compo, I'm not suggesting that all Police Officers are 100% trustworthy.....in fact I wasn't even debating the trustworthiness or not of the Police?

....but, as you've pointed out, no sector of society is 100% trustworthy and there are people who obtain positions for themselves that they have no right to be in - which was the point of my original post.

And because Police officers are inherently more trustworthy?

Amen to this. There is another case of severe police corruption that is due to break in the next few months.

But op Yanbu. I think the police should be clearly visible as police. Not as maybe police maybe security.

In some areas the police have actually encouraged this and have got partner agencies like the council enforcement team, to dress their vehicles with hi-vis markings. The idea is that the more vehicles like that there is on the road, the more it gives an impression of a police presence, and deters people who are up to no good.

I thought that was what Community Police Officers were for

The police know these firms are taking their security immensely seriously, not least because they (the police) have to deal with the circumstances when they (the secure couriers) are attacked. Which happens. A lot.

You have to teach children, over time, what is and is not a safe (or safe enough) official when anyone in a hi-viz jacket looks at bit alike.

And of course, as the security staff are so focussed on their own safety that they move purposefully (not quite barging everyone else out of the way, but nearly) and will not be stopping to interact with a child. They also work in teams (regularly switched to prevent criminal conspiracy) and stay together when out and about, which makes is far less likely they could commit an opportunistic crime than an individual (or even likeminded small group who have chosen to be together).

There's a motorcyclist who uses the M1 south of Leeds at the same time as me on workdays who wears a "Polite" hi vis bib. He rides like a loon, cutting in and out of lanes and flashing people out of his way. Really annoys me, he seems to think he can drive badly (not confidently, or aggressively just badly) by making people think he's a police officer.

I don't like it but there definitely seems to be a distinct trend towards this.

Police have delegated their powers to security firms in some cases which complicates things further eg m.bournemouthecho.co.uk/news/11326916.Private_security_guards_given_police_powers_to_tackle_antisocial_behavior_in_Boscombe/

I can see how in some cases they serve a purpose.....I'm just very uncomfortable at the lack of visual difference between police personnel and civilian personnel.

I don't think the onus should be on a young child to distinguish between a real police officer and someone could be anyone trying to resemble one.

I hate it too, but for an entirely different reason.
As a pp has just pointed out, private security is being used in place of the police, and, like a lot of our public services, I suspect they are going to privatise as much as possible. The more security looks like police, the easier it is to blur the lines further.
This is a very bad move, private companies are only in it for profit, and we know how well that worked out for other services/industries!

I say this as someone who is essentially anti-police, they cannot be trusted, the stuff they do in the name of "justice" is nothing short of horrifying.
Dp still remembers being arrested at a demo in the 80s, and being rolled in a mattress (leaves no bruises) and beaten by the police.
Hillsborough, Stephen Lawrence, those undercover officers fathering children (wtf are they doing infiltrating innocent protest groups anyway?!) etc etc.
But I would still rather have the police than private security firms!!

Sorry for the rant, but this subject bothers me!

I have a friend who was hit by police at Greenham common - she's despised them ever since.

You'd think the police would be worried about their own jobs being taken over by ex club doormen - not endorsing them.

I'm afraid you will have to get used to it. There's less and less of them every day. I'm one of 100 people in my force alone who have resigned this month. No one is perfect but I'm confident that my colleagues are all decent people who try to be the best they can be.

Did your decision to resign have anything to do with the use of private companies Tinkle? Or is it because of the number of police officers leaving the force that private companies are being resorted to?

I don't really understand the reasons for using them.......only that it doesn't feel like it's a good thing.