how much fine for driving without headlights on?

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iapple

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#89507 3-Sep-2011 21:51

JUst been to a family doctor this evening due to a bad flu...I drive my car back home and I forgot to turn it on.. when I turned on then it was too late cause I got pulled over by a police....he said will send me the fine receipt to my mail box.Anyone have any idea how much will it be?thanks

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Networkn
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#516254 3-Sep-2011 21:52

Err he didn't tell you how much? Sounds kind of strange to me.

iapple

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#516257 3-Sep-2011 21:57

networkn: Err he didn't tell you how much? Sounds kind of strange to me.

He took my details and then said will send the bill to my address without telling me how much

michaelt

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#516266 3-Sep-2011 22:23

It does seem a bit strange.

It's possible he decided to let you off without a fine, and just told you that to scare you a bit.

scuwp

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#516275 3-Sep-2011 22:33

It use to be $150 and around 15 demerits. Does sound a bit odd...you sure that's the whole story?

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keewee01

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#516326 4-Sep-2011 08:26

That doesn't seem strange at all. When officers are trying to get high turn over or are busy they will take details and send ticket out later. Very common.

As scuwp said, it was $150. Don't know if that's still the case.

sarg

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#516327 4-Sep-2011 08:29

the fine is $150 payable within 28 days of issue

that would be an ecumenical matter

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iapple

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#516328 4-Sep-2011 08:33

Yes,the whole story is I forgot to turn my headlights on,I drove for about 1km with lights off When I realized that I forgot it and I turned it on,say around 20sec later I got pulled off cause the police drove the opposite way saw that(I did not see him untill I got pulled off)

heavenlywild

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#516329 4-Sep-2011 08:34

Geeesh, so police can now issue "verbal fines" in effect really. Hmmm... a little unprofessional and not a good feeling not to know how much the fine is.

keewee01

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#516336 4-Sep-2011 08:54

heavenlywild: Geeesh, so police can now issue "verbal fines" in effect really. Hmmm... a little unprofessional and not a good feeling not to know how much the fine is.

I don't know the in's and out's of what they have to tell you, etc but I'm pretty sure they've been able to do this for years.

Zeon

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#516363 4-Sep-2011 10:31

I remember I drove straight past a cop sitting at the traffic lights a few months ago after forgetting to turn my lights on after pulling out of the petrol station (maybe 30m or so). Didn't pull me over..... But seriously how can you drive for a decent period without telling. Your console etc. doesn't light up?

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keewee01

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#516367 4-Sep-2011 10:37

Zeon: I remember I drove straight past a cop sitting at the traffic lights a few months ago after forgetting to turn my lights on after pulling out of the petrol station (maybe 30m or so). Didn't pull me over..... But seriously how can you drive for a decent period without telling. Your console etc. doesn't light up?

The first post tells you how:

iapple: JUst been to a family doctor this evening due to a bad flu...I drive my car back home and I forgot to turn it on.. when I turned on then it was too late cause I got pulled over by a police....he said will send me the fine receipt to my mail box.Anyone have any idea how much will it be?thanks

When you have a bad flu you forget to do things such as turn your lights on, and if you are driving in a well lite suburban area then it id easy to miss.

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lonney

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#516404 4-Sep-2011 12:12

I've noticed us Kiwis have a bad habit of not turning on headlights... basically it has to be pitch black before most people will turn them on. Or if visibility is poor (heavy rain, fog etc) at best some people might turn their park lights on which are useless. Might as well hold a candle out the window :)

After spending a bit of time in North America, at first I was surprised at how often people turn their headlights on there, even on perfectly fine days, and deferentially when it's raining or an overcast day. From memory in Canada all new cars are setup to turn their lights on via the ignition - you cant turn them off!

I've owned silver cars in the past and people just don't see you coming and pull out in-front of you and things like that, especially on a gloomy day, I find silver and green cars will just blend in and be harder to see. So I've always been in the habit of turning my headlights on when it's raining or a dull day, I'd rather be seen than get caught up in an accident because of a lapse in concentration either on my or someone else's part..

John2010

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#516412 4-Sep-2011 12:31

Regarding posting out infringement notices (and process from there on), all based on experience (I won

) -

The infringement notice can be posted out afterwards. In my case that took over a week and so over a quarter of the 28 days mentioned below were lost.

You get 28 days to pay or set out the circumstances for police consideration of the notice being withdrawn, or you can advise that you are going to defend. Unfortunately for consideration they have the officer's notes of the claimed offence and those may or may not be truthful.

After 28 days if not paid you get another 28 days to pay. During these times you can decide to defend it in court. If you do nothing it goes to court.

If you defend it or it otherwise goes to court and lose you are then liable to court costs. A small matter will likely be heard in front of JPs.

If it goes to court you will get the police officer's notes he took at the time of the defense and his other claims on a standard form beforehand.

Police officers do lie in the notes they take or otherwise embellish them to promote their case. I have seen this for myself where I have known the exact circumstances of the case. Unless one is lucky or has pretty much irrefutable contradicting evidence the officer is likely to be the one who is believed.

John2010

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#516417 4-Sep-2011 12:38

Zeon:
But seriously how can you drive for a decent period without telling. Your console etc. doesn't light up?

Depends on the car - in our own case the panel lights all come on by means of an ambient light sensor regardless of whether one has ones lights on or not. They come on to a brightness according to the ambent light level sensed. So in dull weather or driving through heavy shade or at night even under strong street lighting the panel lights up. This is pretty common.
So more "seriously" than what you say

it is quite easy to do.

wazzageek

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#516424 4-Sep-2011 12:58

I am in the habit of always driving with my lights on - unconciously I now switch the lights on, if I were to drive with a bad flu, in theory the habit is now so finely ingrained that I would just turn them on.

It's amazing the number of times - even in reasonable weather - how a car really stands out with the lights on.

Driving long distances is another example - when driving a long straight, you can see on coming traffic with their lights on much sooner than those without.

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