I saw a news item about people careering through flooded Gloucestershire on jetskis, intimidating people and in one case leading to a confrontation.
It set me wondering about the legal status of jetskis on a flooded road. Clearly responsible use of a motor boat in a flood is acceptable and probably nobody even gives any thought to its legal status. But presumably a jetski on a flooded road is an untaxed, uninsured motor vehicle that doesn't comply with Construction and Use regulations and so tearaways could be prosecuted under motoring laws and receive penalty points on their licences.
|
.."on a flooded road..."
That could be the nub of it - is it on the road or floating above it?
If you flew a microlight past a speed camera; are you speeding if you aren't on the road?
|
|
i always take my number plates of of my microlight if i think i may encounter speed cameras!!
|
i always take my number plates of of my microlight if i think i may encounter speed cameras!!
You could just follow the current fashion and hang a bicycle over the plate instead....
|
|
|
|
|
You just hope they encounter a kerbstone or similar just below the surface...
|
You just hope they encounter a kerbstone or similar just below the surface...
On a flooded road, there must be a significant chance of hitting a 4-hundredweight blown manhole cover.
Now one of those could make a serious mess of a Jetski....
|
Why do you want people who have found a way to enjoy flooded roads to come to grief?
Mean sods.
|
>>>Clearly responsible use of a motor boat in a flood is acceptable and probably nobody even gives any thought to its legal status.<<<
So why would a Responsibly handled Jetski be any different?. The only reason this has hit "the headlines" is because of the idiots driving them! these same "idiots" could have been in the motor boats, - would they then (the motor boats) still have been acceptable?.
These are probably the one and same "idiots" that can now now longer use thier cars, and have found yet another way to continue being complete baseball caps!
|
|
|
My children irresponsibly enjoy sledging on our road in the rare winters when it snows. I suppose that should be banned too. No registration, insurance, construction and use regulations, no seat belts, or daft cycle helmets looking like aliens with bananas on their heads.
Good luck to them all.
|
Sometimes people run along roads. They're particularly irresponsible as they don't even have anything constructed so the police cannot get them under construction and use.
|
|
|
My children irresponsibly enjoy sledging on our road in the rare winters when it snows.
If its not motorised then there's no case to answer to.
I can imagine these jet skis being a real nuisance if the wakes creep into peoples houses and wet furniture perched neatly an inch or two from the water on breeze blocks. This would be a particular problem if your drive slopes down into the road, as it will act like a beach.
--------------
Mike Farrow
|
|
|
|
Mean sods.
Guilty as charged. I've also helped various friends desperately sandbagging to keep floods out of their houses.
In such a situation, you really appreciate the lunatics that cause huge waves - just for fun.
|
Guilty as charged. lunatics that cause huge waves - just for fun.
Sorry Screwloose. Obviously not you. Hadn't taken in that aspect.
|
|
I wonder. If the flood is caused by a tidal river which has burst its banks, are these vessels subject to maritime law? The rule of the road is the opposite way round for shipping, I believe. Do any of our lawyers have a view? ;-)
|
are these vessels subject to maritime law?
I wondered that too, but there was a case (someone killed in a crash between 2 jetski's) where it was held that they're not 'vessels' and therefore not subject to maritime law. IIRC the case went (may not have got there yet) to appeal.
There are byelaws in many places that restrict their use (Conwy Marina, for example).
|
Ah - Googling reveals it was the appeal that made the decison, and it was upheld by the House of Lords:
www.hcmm.org.uk/news_detail.asp?NewsID=35
"Jet Ski not a ship- official
22 March 2006
The House of Lords have now ruled in the case of R v Goodwin that a Jet Ski is not a ship under the Merchant Shipping Act, 1995. This judgement quashed Mark Goodwin?s conviction for 6 months for breaches of this Act. Goodwin was in charge of a Jet Ski when it collided with a stationery Jet Ski resulting in serious injuries to another person."
|
|
I don't wish anyone to be hurt on these jetskis and if they were being used sensibly and slowly in the flood I'm sure nobody would have minded and the legality would been blind-eyed. But the video showed total recklessness of a fat guy in swimming trunks careering not only along what was presumably a road but across peoples' flooded front gardens.
|
Not only reckless - but fat too. That settles it....
|
|
|
|
