Dear All,
Back in June, the government gave police the “power” to seize your car or bike at the roadside on the spot, with no warning or due process.
And predictably, they’re already abusing it!
I was sent a video this week of a lady being pulled over on her motorcycle by a man dressed in black, seeking to steal her bike.
The video shows him walking up and introducing himself with a self-righteous and aggressive “What’s that riding about?”
The lady had been filtering through traffic safely (and completely legally) overtaking a few slow moving cars, which he agreed he had “no issue” with…
But — according to the storm trooper — “combined with everything else” he deemed her to be anti-social, and said “I’m gonna be taking the bike.”
Note, not “your” bike, but “the” bike…
She responded “but I haven’t done anything illegal?” to which he robotically explained:
“Under section 59 of the police reform act 2002, as amended this year, I can seize the bike”.
When she asked what he thought she had actually done wrong, he replied extremely vaguely, mentioning “revving past people”.
He admitted he wasn’t able to get a speed reading because he “couldn’t get close enough” to her.
But that didn’t matter, because he had to go above the speed limit to catch up with her, which was — in his words — “conclusive proof” that she’d been speeding!
In the words of comedian Bill Hicks, this guy was clearly “not… a physics major!” *(ref :-)
When she pointed out that she hadn’t “revved” at all — as she explained, her bike automatically rev matches on every gear change — his response was: “I disagree. No, no, no.”
However, it was all on camera!
When she pointed out the 360 degree camera on the front of her bike, the threat to “seize” (steal) her bike was suddenly forgotten…
Clearly, he was caught lying, which the video I saw of her riding proved.
After a few more minutes of mindless mumbling, and trying to justify his lies, he concluded with “I’ll leave it as a bit of a warning for today”, then left.
He went from categorically stating he was “seizing” her bike, to a warning the moment he realised she had everything on film.
So what is Section 59 of the Police Reform Act 2002, “as amended this year”?
Section 59 lets a police officer take your vehicle on the spot if THEY decide it’s being used in a way that could cause “alarm, distress or annoyance”.
Until this summer, they had to issue a warning first, and could only legally steal your vehicle if they stopped you again within 12 months.
However, on 29th June 2026 that warning requirement was scrapped, which is the ‘amended this year’ part.
They’ve also cut the time before they can sell your vehicle from 14 days to just 7 days.
So, predictably, this is how the new power is being used — on a lady doing nothing illegal or dangerous, just because a policeman didn’t like the fact that she wasn’t showing him due deference by overtaking slow moving traffic in his presence.
But, thankfully, bullies like this often back down once they realise they’ve been caught in a lie.
I’m not really a great fan of dashcams to be honest. There’s something a bit dystopian about having to record every journey you make for my liking.
But with the “police” now able to steal your vehicle on the spot, based on nothing more than their personal gripe, sadly, it does seem prudent to record everything :-(
As the lady in the video put it: “Thank God for my Insta360!”
I’d be very interested to hear Members’ thoughts on these new police powers — let me know in the comments below!
All the best,
Adam
If we were not a police state before, we are now.
I am going to get a dashcam and I will be warning the Caterham and Lotus 7 club to do the same. There are too many woke flakes out there who would claim to be alarmed by any colour that isn’t beige.
Unbelievable .
I bet 100% that this “officer of the law” has “seized” 10s if not 100s of cars / motorcycles within his illustrious career.
How can these unfortunate people have their dishonest situation reviewed. Yes I guess that they cannot. Surely this “officer of the law” should be accountable, particularly with this strong evidence.
And the police wonder why people don’t trust them
Not all police are bad by any means and many do wonderful work, but so called officers like this bring the whole force into disrepute. They need proper training and should have to provide video evidence of the ‘crime’ before being allowed to seize any vehicle. I would advise all drivers to use a dash cam or something like a go pro for their own safety, either after an accident or to help protect from ‘storm trooper’ police officers.
I couldn’t agree more. This incident was outrageous. Rather than being dissaplined for this outrageous illegal use of the law he will probably get a promotion. And they wonder why there is no respect for them anymore!
I couldn’t agree more. This incident was outrageous. Rather than being dissaplined for this outrageous illegal use of the law he will probably get a promotion. And they wonder why there is no respect for them anymore!
I hope the motorcyclist made a formal complaint and sent the video footage to the police “service” responsible for the region this ridiculous incident took place in. This is a total waste of everybody’s time.
The Police will mark their own homework, as they do.
Just another waste of time and public money.
Remember, “You will own nothing, and be happy”
The Police have lost the support of the public, due to behaviour like this. And before anyone comes at me saying “it’s not all of them” yes, this is true. However it is ALWAYS them, isn’t it?
As can be clearly seen in this video, the following quote has never been so apt:
“ It is dangerous to be right in matters on which the established authorities are wrong.
Voltaire “
As a 68 year old motorcyclist who uses his bike to commute, I am now going to have to invest in one of these cameras .when I bought the bike it had aftermarket exhausts on it which are louder than the standard ones . I find this helps make other drivers aware that I am there . I also regularly see a ford Mustang which is much louder than my bike . How many drivers are now going to have their vehicles seized ?
I think the previous comments have said it all. I’m a 73 yr old motorcyclist and wonder when I will get stopped on my 20 bhp bike. We used to live in Great Britain. Now it’s just Britain
Just another quick cash making law.
So if a police officer stops you,and is having a bad day. To make him/her feel better they abuse the power they have and take your ride. This is wrong. And is it theft of your goods if proven to be a wrong decision.
The police officer needs to be prosecuted. In Redcar last week a road block was checking people’s car tyres and 3 cars were actually impounded on the spot. A very helpful guy in a nearby supermarket car park was warning people to avoid that route. Imagine having your car impounded after filling it up with shopping. The police state marches on. Abuse of police power seems to be quite normal in Redcar and Cleveland.
Hi Adam, like the Officer in question, words fail me: this is insanity.
My MP is Sarah Sackman, a Barrister and Minister of State at the Ministry of Justice, so I gather.
I’ve forwarded your account of what the lady motorcyclist had to put up with, to Sarah’s Parliamentary Office, with questions 1: What does she make of this insanity?
2: What advice does she have for innocent, law-abiding motorists who find themselves in this situation?
If I get a coherent response (and if I don’t), I’ll keep you posted.
Regards, Norman