driving licence question

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starlite68

Registered User
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i was stopped at a check point the other day,had everything on my windscreen..tax insurance ntc..however the garda asked to see my driveing licence,and when i told him i did not have it on me he got very irate and told he could summons me if he wanted,and to have it on me in future.i offered to produce it at my local station. could he have summonsed me?
 
Re: driveing licence question

Yes. All drivers must be carrying a valid driving licence when driving. Has been in the law for over a year now.
 
Re: driveing licence question

Yes, you are obliged to have your driving licence with you when driving.
 
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Re: driveing licence question

What is the penalty for not having it on you, apart from an upset Guard?
I would be worried about losing it.
Can you carry a photocopy?
 
Re: driveing licence question

yes,i would be afraid of loseing it too..thats why i dont bring it with me very often.i actually had it with me on the day i was stopped but i didnt want to hand to the garda...i thought it would be safer to produce it at my local station
 
Re: driveing licence question

What exactly do you use your driving licences for at home??

Do you carry a photocopy of your passport when going on holidays?

Why would you not want to hand your licence to a garda? is there some urban legend about bogus cops in bogus cars at bogus checkpoints knicking licenses? And whats the point in having it in your car but then not producing it?

(it should be credit card sized so you can keep it in your wallet but i imagine most people keep it in their car...)
 
You can get 1 point if you fail to produce, 3 if you fight the notice and are summonsed to court.

You don't get summonsed first, you get a penalty point and fine notice.
 
Re: driveing licence question

Stifster said:
What exactly do you use your driving licences for at home??
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Keep it at home in case I lose it - this was mentioned earlier. I dont want the hassle of getting a replacement (its a UK licence)

Stifster said:
Do you carry a photocopy of your passport when going on holidays?
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Yes - Always. I leave my original in the hotel safe.

Stifster said:
it should be credit card sized so you can keep it in your wallet but i imagine most people keep it in their car...)
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I would never leave it in the car in case the car got stolen or broken into.
 
Why on earth would you have it on you and not give it to the Garda? Mine is left in my car all the time!
 
the reason i didnt hand it over is because i was chatting to a retired garda some months ago,and he told me never to hand over my licence on the side of the road,always say you will produce it at the station. he didnt go into too much detail,but it seems there are a lot of codes and numbers on a licence that lets a garda gleen personal information about the holder.maybe its an urban myth....but better safe than sorry. i agree with you about the credit card size licences,its a good idea......but it think even more information can be stored in them!!!!
 
starlite68 said:
the reason i didnt hand it over is because i was chatting to a retired garda some months ago,and he told me never to hand over my licence on the side of the road,always say you will produce it at the station. he didnt go into too much detail,but it seems there are a lot of codes and numbers on a licence that lets a garda gleen personal information about the holder.maybe its an urban myth....but better safe than sorry. i agree with you about the credit card size licences,its a good idea......but it think even more information can be stored in them!!!!
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He doesn't know the law and is talking through his you know what.

conshine said:
Yes - Always. I leave my original in the hotel safe.
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and how many times have you gotten through passport control with a photocopy? A passport is for travelling, not when you have already arrived at your destination. A driving licence is for driving.

and what good is a photocopy of a passport?
 
Stifster said:
and how many times have you gotten through passport control with a photocopy? A passport is for travelling, not when you have already arrived at your destination. A driving licence is for driving.
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I dont live in a hotel - I only stay in them on business / holidays - I travel with my passport (original) to the airport, get on plane, go to hotel, lock my passport in the safe and carry the photocopy with me.
 
Conshine said:
So they would know where you live, your name and date of birth. They are then half way to stealing your identity!
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First of all, you should have your licence on you not just in your car... I know of one friend who was told this by a member of the Gardai on sourcing his licence from the drivers sun visor. Personally, I often jump between different cars so always carry on my person not in the car.

Yes, the Irish licence carries an address.

If someone has your car, they would probably/possibly be able to pick up this same information from numerous sources. (A check on Cartell.ie would probably give the registered owner, or stories on AAM suggest a call to the Shannon Vechicle Registration office with a query on the car you 'just bought' might even give the details of the current registered owner... although I've serious doubts over whether this does happen and if it does it certainly shouldn't be legal)

[While I don't carry my licence in my car, should someone steal it they probably have a 50/50 chance depending on what's sitting in the glove box any given day of being able to source exactly that information]
 
Conshine said:
Stifster said:
and how many times have you gotten through passport control with a photocopy? A passport is for travelling, not when you have already arrived at your destination. A driving licence is for driving.
I dont live in a hotel - I only stay in them on business / holidays - I travel with my passport (original) to the airport, get on plane, go to hotel, lock my passport in the safe and carry the photocopy with me.
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You seem to be misisng the point.

a) You suggested carrying a photocopy of your driving licence
conshine said:
Can you carry a photocopy?
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but you know well that you would not get through passport control using a photocopy so why would you get through a garda checkpoint (where they are legitimately entitled to ask you to produce your original) with a photocopy.

You could carry around a photocopy of your visa card too if you were worried about that getting stolen but when it came to buying stuff you might have some diffiulty.
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its not that easy to get a duplicate driveing licence...my brothers car was stolen and his licence was in it....got the car back..but not the licence, he said the amount of running around he had to do was unreal....getting forms singed going to the gaurds to get them stamped..ect back again to the tax office....and after all that he said still took quite some time to come through. a nightmare.....his words not mine.
 
If we had a credit card sized licence, like many other countries I imagine more people would carry the licence on them. I have mine in wallet at all times but my wife, who rarely would carry a handbag leaves her in her car. We have a photocopy of her licence in my car in case she is stopped when driving that but it's not ideal. I believe the EU is trying to harmonise licence style but its going to take something like 20 years apparently.
 
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