Drinking alcohol in your motorhome

“Mr Graham was found in a silver VW Golf. He was sat in the driving seat and his hands were on the steering wheel.” It was his second offence. If you are that stupid then you should not be allowed to drive even if you are sober. If you are sat in the back of the van with keys put away and the driving seat rotated or full of stuff as ours normally is, are they really going to try and prosecute you. Unless you have really gone out of your way to wind them up I doubt it. "Just popping the kettle on officer," seems to sort most problems.

Richard
 
mariesnowgoose said:
I think it would be a long shot to be arrested in a parked up motorhome.

Has anybody ever been arrested for being over the limit in this situation? Be interesting to know and what the circumstances were.

Methinks paranoia is creeping in, boys.... relax! ;)
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Spot on! It is all about intent. If the police decide you intended to drive or that you were so intoxicated that you might release the handbrake and let the vehicle drift into the path of others then they can (and should in my opinion) arrest you. If they decide, because you are in the back of a motorhome which is clearly pulled off the road, that you do not constitute a potential hazard they will leave you alone. I have several police friends who say that they have no desire to arrest motorhomers drinking on a wildcamp and there have been no examples, as far as I and my friends are aware, of anyone being arrested in a motorhome. This one has been done to death and until anyone provides an example of someone who has actually been prosecuted for drinking on a wildcamp then it remains something that does not and will not happen - if you wildcamp sensibly.
 
I can't believe nobody has considered the possibility of being gassed whilst drinking. :)
 
K9d said:
I can't believe nobody has considered the possibility of being gassed whilst drinking. :)
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I've been affected by noxious gases, probably due to an excess of real ale:lol-053:
 
Absolute Tosh - this guy would have driven in the morning when still over the limit. He committed a defined offence

In france it may be more acceptable to drink and drive but this guy should count himself lucky, I would have told him to sell the car and use the money for taxi's for medical appointments.
 
Whilst I mostly agree with this, I think it also depends a lot on the attitude of the (potential) driver. I could foresee a scenario where a motorhomer parked in a layby, with a no overnighting sign, halfway through a bottle of Pinot Grigio, winding up a policeman, spouting about no "there's no TRO, I've got every right to be here" etc.

I have often found that it pays to be civil with policemen.
 
You seem not to fully understand the English legal system. There are fail-safes built into the heart of it. Thus neither the police, the prosecution service, the judiciary nor the public (through the jury system) have the sole ability to "decide" guilt. The police make an on-the-spot judgement, the CPS decide whether there is a reasonable chance of a successful prosecution, the courts then weigh up the evidence, the jury (if there is one) decides and then the judiciary can hear an appeal. But the whole process starts off with the police making a judgement. You may not like that. You may think the police are stupid (although I wouldn't recommend that attitude if confronted by one of them!) and you may think the law is an ass - but whether you like it or not, that is the way the system works and will continue to work until someone comes up with a better idea.

PS if the police are as stupid as you suggest, why is it that no-one has heard of a prosecution for drunk-in-charge of a motorhome on a wildcamp?
 
Oh dear, oh dear. Back to trying to divert the issue when you can't answer the point, I see.

You criticised my post because you didn't think it was right for the police to be trusted to decide. I pointed out that the police do not decide but that it is their role to make an initial judgement. Do try to stick to the point!
 
Thank you both John and David for providing some interesting reading of a morning:)
 
I've done quite alot of driving in France, so I've seen the 'good' driving of the french which may be great if your a cyclist but terrible if you're on the periphic at 5pm then check your boot cos there will be the front a renualt in it.

I've had business lunches in france that go on for 2 hours and everyone sinks at least 1 bottle (+ a few ricards as well), then they all get in their cars and drive back to the office.

The case quoted is not relevant to wildcampers or motorhome users, the guy was lucky,he was drunk and drunks don't make rational decisions, this really is the basis for the law that he was prosecuted under.

rich
 
In these circumstances, it is not for a police officer to decide whether you intend to drive. Their job is to ascertain a. That the person was over the prescribed limit b. Whilst in charge of the vehicle c. Whilst on a road or public place.

The onus then is for that person to show that he did not intend to drive and there have been numerous post suggesting ways to show this. I also have not heard of any motorhomer prosecuted or even arrested over this.
 
I don`t get anywhere near as drunk as i used to when out in the van nowadays.

What convinced me to ease up was getting into the wrong seat and wondering who`d pinched the steering wheel :confused:

At first i thought the wife was messing about then i realised it was because i couldn`t focus properly and that was causing the problem :rolleyes2:

I backed off a little to only a dozen or so cans each night and that helped immensely :dance:

Now if i squint a little i can see the steering wheel and get in the correct seat first time :drive:
 
As already outlined, the difference between a motorhome and car is one is equipped for overnight accomodation the other isn't. That has a significant bearing.

It is all about intention, sat there in yer jim jams reading a book curtains closed to the cab part keys in a draw, chosen tipple in your hand isn't going to upset too many police..

The things is of course you still need to exercise some common sense if the Police believe you could be OPL in the morning when you drive off, expect them to show a little more interest.

channa
 
SteveM said:
In these circumstances, it is not for a police officer to decide whether you intend to drive. Their job is to ascertain a. That the person was over the prescribed limit b. Whilst in charge of the vehicle c. Whilst on a road or public place.

The onus then is for that person to show that he did not intend to drive and there have been numerous post suggesting ways to show this. I also have not heard of any motorhomer prosecuted or even arrested over this.
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I'm sorry,but intent is a very major part of it. The offence is drunk in charge so, in theory, anyone over the limit in a motorhome can be prosecuted, as can anyone sitting in a car. The law recognises no difference between those two other than intent. Thus, as far as I am aware, nobody has ever been prosecuted in a motorhome that is wildcamped because the intent is usually clear - but there are examples of people in cars being prosecuted on their own drives because it was judged that they could allow the vehicle to move onto the highway.
 
Robmac said:
Whilst I mostly agree with this, I think it also depends a lot on the attitude of the (potential) driver. I could foresee a scenario where a motorhomer parked in a layby, with a no overnighting sign, halfway through a bottle of Pinot Grigio, winding up a policeman, spouting about no "there's no TRO, I've got every right to be here" etc.

I have often found that it pays to be civil with policemen.
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Ah ...............that might be where i`ve be going wrong :confused:

Is telling them to feck off and arrest some burgliers or do some proper police work instead of annoying me and my carlsberg not the right answer then :mad2:
 
The lack of any motorhome being involved in a prosecution for drunk in charge of a vehicle is surely down to why would the police be interested if you are parked sensibly and not causing an obstruction. On the other hand if you are parked up on a pub car park and the police see you staggering to the vehicle then you might reasonably give them cause for concern. To avoid any issue of intent leave your ignition key behind the bar.
Dave
 
Val54 said:
To avoid any issue of intent leave your ignition key behind the bar.
Dave
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Hi. This one has been raised many timesbefore and I'm afraid that it would make little difference. The offence is drunk in charge and you can be in charge of a vehicle without the ability to actually drive it. For example, if you were inside the vehicle and behaving in a way that the police considered might lead you to release the handbrake and allow the vehicle to roll into the path of another then they could arrest you. A remote possibiltiy, I know but it is important to know what the legal definitions are if you are to avoid getting into trouble.
 
I had to read that several times before I could believe that anyone could be so stupid as to post it! Remind me never to drive anywhere near Pontivy - especially after the bars close!
 
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