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Limousine Seized By Police At Prom
Glamourous pupils arrive at the prom where police found eight limousines committing offences.

16 July 2009

A stretch limousine was seized by police just minutes after it had transported Spalding students to their year 11 prom at Springfields.

Police and VOSA (Vehicle and Operators Services Agency) officers inspected 12 limos that carried pupils of Spalding’s Grammar and High Schools to their joint prom on July 3, eight of which were found to be committing offences.

One of them, a stretch Land Rover, was seized by officers for not having the correct licence and being overweight – which posed a safety risk to the students on board.

Others received fines for various reasons, including having no MoT certificates and excessive window tinting.

According to VOSA, the reason why its officers could not check the vehicles before they took the pupils to the prom was because of a complex law that says they have to see the vehicles as they are being used with passengers.

Bill Harrison, VOSA area manager for Lincolnshire, added: “The operation was a complete success helping to take un-roadworthy and illegally operated vehicles off the road, improving road safety and protecting the public.

“The check was planned meticulously so that we did not spoil the evening for the young people.

“I can confirm that VOSA and police officers found a significant amount of offences and serious defects to justify any time spent.”

The news will come as a shock to parents who shell out for the vehicles each year so that their children can make a grand entrance to their prom.

In recent years there has been ever-increasing contest among South Holland students to out-do each other by arriving at their proms in the most unusual vehicles – and limousines are often a popular choice.

Pc Rob Hook, of the Lincolnshire Police road policing unit, said: “We are concerned that such a high percentage of the vehicles we checked did not meet safety requirements or licensing regulations.

“We would like to warn limousine operators that they must ensure their vehicles are safe and adhere to legislation.

“Many people see travelling in a stretch limo as part of a really special occasion, and we will continue to do all we can to ensure that they are transported safely and within the law.”

Source; SpaldingToday - brought to you by The Lincolnshire Free Press & Spalding Guardian

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Kind regards,

Brummie Cabbie.

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Only one thing for it.

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IDFIMH

I would guess that the "land rover" was actually a "range rover". If they had to wait until the passengers were out of the vehicle, how can they say that it was "overweight"? Unless of course that the unladen weight of the vehicle was not matched by the weight rating of the tyres.

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Grandad,

my bus is overweight all th etime

cos im a fat bastsrad

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Of all the things ive lost, i miss my mind the most

Are you Chubby Brown's mate then?

"Ya Big Fat Ba***rd, ya Big Fat Ba***rd .... etc"

Brilliant stage entry!!!

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Kind regards,

Brummie Cabbie.

Type a message, post your news,
Disagree with other members' views;
But please, do have some decorum,
When debating on the TDO Forum.

for the same money he makes you can call me owt you want

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Of all the things ive lost, i miss my mind the most

maybe not.............................

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Of all the things ive lost, i miss my mind the most

I've been present at a Limo VOSA/Council/Police check where two limos were overweight with just the driver in.

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IDFIMH

Again, do you mean overwight for the tyre rating or for the type of MOT that they had?

At nottingham city council testing station, the tyres are the first thing they check if they are the wrong rating the car fails.

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Grandad,

With the driver in tthe driving seat.

There is something on the chassis which says maximum weight. Or so the VOSA man said.

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IDFIMH

Mine have 2 plates on. The manufactures plate which gives all the weights and ratings of the original vehicle and then the coachbuilders plates giving the uprated weights and ratings. You are not allowed to remove the original plate but it is possible that the person who was inspecting the vehicle and the driver who was driving the vehicle were looking at the wrong plate. The original plate is inside the drivers door and the coachbuilders plate is often inside one of the rear doors. On the '98 to '02 towncars the tyres should have a load rating of 107T which I think has a load rating of 925 kg per tyre. These tryres are not available at your normal trye suppliers in this country and have to come from a specialist importer such as Sintons. The nearest tyre with the right sort of load rating is actually a transit van tyre but they have a bigger profile so are not much use. Everything else that I have seen would make the limo heavier than the tyre ratings.

So in my opinion either the wrong plate was looked at or the owner had fitted the wrong tyres.

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Grandad,

There's probably something on the 'log book' - V5 too & in this age of technology VOSA can probably connect to the DVLA computer to check the MGW, AND do it all from the roadside.

_________________
Kind regards,

Brummie Cabbie.

Type a message, post your news,
Disagree with other members' views;
But please, do have some decorum,
When debating on the TDO Forum.

I have just checked the registration documents for my limos under section "G" mass in service. There are no entries at all.

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Grandad,