Garda Checking Car Tax in Car Park

Well it was stated on Prime Time that the Gardai were asked to contribute but declined to do so. No mention was made regarding the minister!

It was quite a disturbing programme to watch, particularly for people with children.
 
What now, we have to borrow millions every day to keep this country running and people are upset that an arm of our government is actually trying to enforce a law that brings in money to the state that needs it so desperately?

Would the Gardaí better be used to protect the old lady that bb12 is worried about, sure, but for that we need money too, don’t we.
 
in a way you cant really blame the cops....if i were giving the choice of tracking down the muggers of the old lady,or writeing up a few car reg numbers for no tax...ect. i would probably choose the latter myself!
 
Who is this old lady that is supposedly getting mugged?

Did anyone report the crime?

I'm sure if it had been reported then the guards would prioritise their work appropriately.

Is there any evidence to the contrary?
 
callybags said:
who is this old lady that is supposedly getting mugged?

Did anyone report the crime?

I'm sure if it had been reported then the guards would prioritise their work appropriately.

Is there any evidence to the contrary?
Click to expand...

+1
 
They are of course doing their job, but seeing that the car park is not designated a chargeable parking area like the rest of the the town, I assumed it was a private parking area.
 
roker said:
They are of course doing their job, but seeing that the car park is not designated a chargeable parking area like the rest of the the town, I assumed it was a private parking area.
Click to expand...

It's a public place
 
The problem with this is Gardai aren't supposed to be like clamp happy private car park attendants. I see it as a bit demeaning for them and a further sign that the good relationship Irish Gardai have always had with the public is changing.

Stopping a car while the driver is available means that problems such as a tax disc in the post, delayed, accidentally stuck behind an old one, car turns out to be a clone etc. can all be discovered and dealt with.

While fine if someone has a disk more than a couple months out of date then sympathy would be low, my guess is that in practice out of tax cars will tend to be only a few weeks out. Unless someone never pays car tax there's no benefit to not paying as you always have to pay the tax since it was last taxed.

Using car parks means the driver gets no chance to justify themselves also the Garda will probably use the car registration database as the fine address, so anyone who's moved and not updated their address since buying their car isn't going to receive the fine.

Unless they attach a notice to the car on the spot - which I don't think they do - then the evildoer has no way of knowing a fine is due. The fines often get misdirected, the summons will eventually find it's way.

So it's much more likely to turn into a summons with all the expense and time wasting of a court appearance. Chances are quite high that any money brought in via fines will be lost many times over with the wasting of workers time in the courtroom.

Also there's an official period, 9 days or something where drivers can have an out of date disc. There's no guarantee a garda in a carpark to use this leniency as many will expect people who receive a fine out of the blue to just pay it regardless of valid excuses.
 
There is zero grace so once the tax expires you're un-taxed. The 1 month grace mentioned on the renewal form refers exclusively to paying arrears. If you pay the tax within the month following expiry you won't be charged arrears
 
There is a grace period, if not in theory, its certainly applied in practice. I would be one of those people that lets their car tax slip from time to time. Before anyone goes mad, I pay my arrears

According to the Gardai that have stopped me (several times I might add) they can take the car off you once you have gone over 3 months. You can also pay your arrears, up to 3 months on line.

The last Garda that stopped me when my car was well over due its tax told me to get it taxed straight away as I would only be getting hassle from people like him if I didn't. It was a really nice approach particularly as they had a lifting lorry on the side of the road and could easily have taken it. Little gestures like this imo make for excellent Garda / Public relations. I was actually so impressed that I have made an extra effort since to keep it taxed up to date since.

Moral of the story, be nice to the Gardai and they will, in my experience be nice back to you. They have a very difficult job to do. Giving out tickets in car parks (and I do understand it is a public place) will only increase the amount of bad feeling towards them.

Where abouts was this car park located OP?
 
Once your tax is out 60 days, you will be walking home.

Pay your dues people and quit moaning.
 

The Gardai have access to the car tax database and so know who has/hasnt paid their tax regardless of whether the disc is on display.

Even so, its an offence not to display tax a tax disc even if your tax is up to date.
 
in that case i guess its only a matter of time before some pen pushing bright spark amendes it down to 30 days.
 
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