Pulled over by the police with blue lights flashing because I BEEPED at them!

[BeepedAtPoliceCar]

Long but I've tried to make it easy to read!

Tonight, I dropped DS at work and on the way back had just started moving off from a large roundabout to go straight across it. It was 7pm and the road is an A road, not a residential area.

I had noticed a police car coming down from the opposite side of the roundabout (no lights flashing) and assumed it was going straight across as it had no indicators but it turned right towards me so I had to stop.

As I moved onto the roundabout after it passed me. I beeped. A short tap to say where the hell are you going. I had also had to stop. I was moving when I beeped. This is important.

I assumed it was going to take the same exit as me but it It then continued round the roundabout again. Still no indication. So I did another short beep. The direction he was going in was to our local police station about 2 minutes down the road.

Yes it was in frustration as there are many idiots who don't indicate in my area and I've had many near misses. It's pretty shit the police are driving like that as well and it was also a hazard to other road users.

Maybe the driver wasn't aware his indicators weren't working?

Anyway I drive on but see in the my rear mirror a police car speeding up the road behind me, lights flashing, in the bus lane. The speed limit is 40 and I was doing that so he must have been doing 60 at least as he caught up with me in seconds.

I immediately knew he was coming after me.

The car came alongside me and the driver wound his window down, as did I, and shouted at me to pull over now, pull over now. He looked apoplectic with rage!

I pulled over in front of him in the bus lane and he drove behind me, bumper to bumper. I have never been stopped by the police before and got out of my car to go to speak to him (oops lucky it wasn't in the US!).

He's screaming get back in your car now, get back in your car now!

So I get back in and luckily had the presence of mind to start videoing on my phone as he came over. I asked for him name and badge number which he fired off so fast I couldn't catch it. He refused to repeat it. Refused to tell me which police station he was stationed at. He said I had contravened the highway code for beeping inappropriately and would be getting a penalty ticket.

I admit I was a bit argumentative (not rude) and said he only stopped me because he was pissed off I beeped at him and the police should know better.

He then said they were looking for a 'criminal' and were on police business so didn't have to indicate (no lights except when they came for me!) and they also didn't know where they were going. He also said he didn't need to indicate unless he was exiting the roundabout.

I asked him why if he was looking for a criminal, he decided to go after someone who beeped at him for not indicating.

He said I was stationery when I beeped so that is a road traffic contravention. I was moving so I asked him why he was lying. He then stated he'd need to do drug and alcohol tests.

I asked if he was joking and what basis did he have to suspect I was driving under the influence. He said because my behaviour - beeping at him - was 'bizarre' and I was driving dangerously, then asked if I was refusing? So I had to do them. They were clear obviously.

I said I would be making a complaint as I believed he was abusing his power because he was pissed off I beeped at him and 'how dare he bully members of the public'.

He then said MOVE NOW because I was in an active lane (bus lane where he forced me to stop) and if I didn't move now I'd get another ticket for failing to comply with an instruction from a police officer. I said 'who do you think you're talking to'.

I was very WTF and asked him to repeat the law I had broken and told him to give me the ticket so I could challenge it in court, so he said he did and I would get it in the post.

Two tickets - £130 and 3 points.

I then drove off. He didn't come behind me so I can only assume he went back round the next roundabout in the direction of the police station and the looking for a criminal was rubbish. In fact he said it so sarcastically, I think he meant looking for someone to book!

I have video of most of the interaction and he comes across very bullish and rude, especially when he was shouting at me to 'move now'. Literally no more than a minute until I did but he still said he had given me a ticket.

I did tell him I was putting the video on TikTok and would be making a complaint.
Quite shocked about this, and on reading about challenging the tickets in court, it seems that you can end up with a criminal conviction if you lose!

The lie about me being stationery when I beeped (which I have on video) should be easily disproven by their dashcam. Would they have to give me this if I challenge it?

Sadly I don't have my own. I ordered one ages ago, kept forgetting to set it up and it was on top of the bookcase at home!

WIBU?

I think you are ridiculously naive to think you could beep at a police car twice and get away with it, most drivers straighten up
un their driving seats and suddenly start to drive impeccable as soon as they spot a police car near them. Under the speed limit, obeying the Highway Code to the nth etc. They do

That's a normal person with their fair share of brain cells. The OP sounds completely unhinged and a liability, talk about wasting police time. They have a difficult enough job as it is without having to deal with all that crap.

So, you were at a roundabout, a police car was also on the roundabout but not indicating, you had to stop because the pc didn’t exit before it reached you. You chose to beep at it twice. You allege that the same pc then wound their window down at 40 mph to shout at you???
You were wrong to enter the roundabout whilst a vehicle was coming round as you did not know when they were going to exit - you just assumed they were going straight over. The first rule of using a roundabout is to give way to traffic approaching from your right. Beeping at then arguing with the police is just plain stupid.

Give me strength.

It would have been your fault as you have to give way to traffic from the right on a roundabout.

The OP is one of those people who could argue in an empty room.

So there were 2 PCs in the car and yet you said the driver was the one who shouted at you? Sure!

He probably thought you were drunk for having the cheek to beep twice at a police car! Of course he was going to pull you over and inconvenience you. He probably would have just given you a telling off but I suspect you asking name and badge immediately got his back up rather than “good evening sir. Is there a problem?”
Yes he was an arse as well but you were monumentally crazy to beep twice. And tbf it is clear in the Highway Code that your beeping was unacceptable so you can’t be complaining about his driving when yours was wrong too.

Girrrrrl what was you thinking ?! Beeping at the po po. You can’t be this dumb lmao 💀

I wouldn't have beeped at a police car personally, but this officer sounds like a bully who thinks he can use his position to intimidate and threaten. Good for you in not meekly accepting it.

Never beep at police - it’s a bit like cheeking customs officers or joking about “packing a bomb” - expect to get a full latex glove search! They have a job to do, better to let them get on with it.

Do you think maybe they are particularly hacked off this week as two of their colleagues (another force) have just been killed? You know you aren’t a threat, they don’t.

Yes, I've no idea why someone would not only act in a provocative manner with the police, but escalate the situation. There seems to be little self examination here.

agree!

you are not supposed to rely on indicators to show what exit is being taken, or in this case no indicators. You are supposed to wait and see. You were lucky not to have caused an accident.

op you failed to give way on a roundabout and blamed others for your poor driving. Police no less. Then when you got pulled over, you got out of your car (in a live lane) and approached the officers. Then are surprised you got shouted at.

you were acting like a complete idiot - no wonder they did alcohol and drugs tests.

even now you have had time to reflect you don't see the issue with your driving

There are rules about giving out tickets and fines. Being annoyed with a member of the public isn’t one of them. Beeping, as far as I know, is not customary in Britain, but if it was done when the police car was driving in front of her without indicating, it was perfectly legal. If it was afterwards, it might warrant a £30 fine, but no more. Not indicating is just as much a driving offence. So, she was foolish, but the police officer appears to have misused his powers.

You were wrong to beep at the police, you used your horn inappropriately. But are not wrong about his behaviour but it’s unlikely you would win in court. I would pay the fine and complain about his behaviour.

Not rtft and don’t intend to. I imagine this has already been pointed out but Highway Code states one should indicate to leave the roundabout once they pass the exit prior to the one they will follow. If someone on a roundabout is not indicating to leave, it is safe to assume they will continue round the roundabout.
Im no great fan of the police but OP just looks like a knob here. Just pay the damn ticket and learn a lesson.

@BeepedAtPoliceCar I'm exhausted having read your thread. Do you have a life outside policing other people's behaviour and pulling them up on it?

If he was chasing a criminal he should have had his blues on. Sounds like hes on a power trip.
Make a complaint

Is this the same poster who swears at people in the supermarket?

You sound so full of rage, it makes me wonder if there’s something else wrong in your life that would make you act so bizarrely?

If so, it might be useful mitigation if you’re intending to appeal?

You would have also sounded really stupid to the officer when telling him you were putting the video on tiktok.

Yes....but particularly hacked off should not be interfering with policing, with implementing the law FAIRLY. This is what is compromising the reputation of the pilice and leading to the mistrust.

If medical staff iget hacked off having to deal with drunks and druggies in A&E every friday night, are they allowed to show they are hacked off? No, there is a code of conduct to follow.

I know. Why would you even do that?

You admit you don't know what the rules are around beeping and it shows. What OP did was not legal. The ticket wasn't given because the police officer was annoyed, it was given because she broke the law. Giving out a ticket when someone breaks the law is not an abuse of power.