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shooter28

Traffic ticket- Failure to signal

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they charge you regardless. i got popped in mapleshade a few years back. i'd forgotten to renew my dl. they got me with alprs. no biggie. cop let me and my friend switch seats, friend drove the rest of the way home. ticketed me of course. paid the fine, etc. got a notice from my insurance company that i had to pay more. it was in the ballpark of 500/year for 3 years. plus the states surcharge of 100 bucks a year. for 3 years. i hadn't been ticketed for anything in over 20 years till that.

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What is this surcharge you guys keep talking about? 

 

I know now if you plead to unsafe, there are no points and the surcharge is like $250 for that. Also, it’s a rolling 5 years. So when you get one unsafe, it’s 5 years after that. 

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Small update:

So I talked my my insurance rep and when they pulled my driving record, they had the violation still listed as a turn signal violation. I called the DMV and they have the violation listed as unsafe operation. So just my luck, insurance happen to run a check on me during the week between getting the ticket and the court date. 

I'm now waiting for the DMV to send me the abstract which I then have to forward to insurance. For whatever reason, the insurance people cant re-run my record. The rep did note that unsafe operation is a violation that can cause a premium increase, but it shouldnt be as much. 

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1 hour ago, shooter28 said:

Small update:

So I talked my my insurance rep and when they pulled my driving record, they had the violation still listed as a turn signal violation. I called the DMV and they have the violation listed as unsafe operation. So just my luck, insurance happen to run a check on me during the week between getting the ticket and the court date. 

I'm now waiting for the DMV to send me the abstract which I then have to forward to insurance. For whatever reason, the insurance people cant re-run my record. The rep did note that unsafe operation is a violation that can cause a premium increase, but it shouldnt be as much. 

I had a silimar issue when getting on the insurance for one of my past jobs in NJ. I was rear ended a few years before and they had it listed that I was at fault, I sent a copy of the police report and they straightened it out. 

Only surcharge I ever had was because I gathered 10 points on my licenses in my first 2 years of driving, got put on drivers probation, then got caught doing 84 in a 55. My licenses was suspended for a while and I had a $600 surcharge for 3 years if I remember correctly. 

All were speeding tickets. Yes I had a lead foot

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2 minutes ago, fishnut said:

I had a silimar issue when getting on the insurance for one of my past jobs in NJ. I was rear ended a few years before and they had it listed that I was at fault, I sent a copy of the police report and they straightened it out. 

What the heck did they think, you backed into someone doing 45 MPH!  

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On 5/11/2018 at 0:01 PM, T Bill said:

You vs the trooper in court, good luck with that.  Cheapest way out, if your driving record is clean, see the prosecutor before court and ask to plead guilty to unsafe operation of motor vehicle.  NO points, no insurance surcharge, just $335 out of pocket and keep your record clean for next two years.  NJ's greatest MV scam.  Otherwise see what the points will cost you on insurance and lawyer's fees.

Moral of the story, don't ride the left lane, and don't pass cops.

Doesn't always work out as you expect. Had the exact same situation, pleaded it down to unsafe operation. Paid about $425 and walked out happy. A month later I notice a surcharge on my insurance. Even though the state does not give you points, the insurance company is allowed to still charge a surcharge for a pleaded down violation. It does depend on your insurance if they will apply the surcharge or not.

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Laser Jammer Ticket

I received a traffic violation ticket just before Christmas.  It was from a Virginia State Trooper in Accomac, VA and was for using my laser jammers to jam his vehicle speed detection laser gun.  The irony was that I was not speeding and was only traveling two (2) mph over the posted speed limit of 55 mph.

Several days before Christmas, my wife and I were both driving our respective cars from NJ down to NC to our vacation house where we were planning on hosting the extended family for Christmas.  We had too much stuff, luggage, Christmas presents, food, etc., to all fit in one car, hence the need to take two cars. We take the route through DE, to Route 13 that goes north-south along the eastern shore of MD and VA, to the Chesapeake Bay-Bridge Tunnel to Norfolk, VA, then down to the Outer Banks of NC.  Having done this trip countless times over the past 25 years, I am very aware of the locations of the usual speed traps and slow down accordingly. 

I know that radar detectors are illegal in the state of Virginia.  I always stop at a location, either in MD or NC, prior to entering VA, to remove my windshield-mounted ESCORT MAX 360c radar/laser detector and connected ESCORT M1 dash cam combo.  When I have that radar/laser detector mounted and activated, I also usually also have opened the Escort Live app on my iPhone to coordinate the GPS features and communicate with other users to get alerts of LEO locations ahead.  As required by VA law, I store it in the far back of my SUV, unconnected to any power source and inaccessible to me the driver.  I did that routine this time as well.  At the same time, I usually also turn off the laser jammers.  This time though, stupid me, I forgot to flip the on/off switch concealed under the dashboard of my separate, stealth, laser jammers, recessed mounted in the front grill of the SUV.

My enjoyable drive on a bright sunny day, not speeding at all, listening to an audio book playing through the vehicle’s audio system, was interrupted by the repeated chirping sound, accompanied by a digitized audio voice warning of “laser detected”.  At that moment, I realized that I had forgotten to turn off the laser jammers and instinctively reached down to flip the switch off.  I did this and a moment later passed the gray colored Ford Crown Vic VA State Trooper parked on the right side of the road. I glanced at my speed and realized with much relief that I was not speeding at that moment.  I had two vehicles behind me, including my wife in her car.  I could see in my rear-view mirror that the VA State Trooper was pulling out onto the roadway in pursuit of “someone”, hoping it was not me.  I, along with the two other cars behind me were in the right lane of this one-way, two-lane highway, (Rt. 13).  The Trooper sped up and was tailing me in the left lane at my 7:00 o’clock position.  He then pulled in behind me and turned on his flashing blue lights and we both pulled over to the side of the road in a safe spot.  (FYI, on this trip, I had none of my firearms in my vehicle so that was not going to be an issue….).

My wife pulled over in her car as well and parked behind him.  He got out of his car and went over to my wife, who introduced herself as such.  The Trooper barked at her to not park behind him and to pull up in front of me, which she did, which rattled her a bit.  The Trooper came up to me, as I was following the proper procedure of having both hands on the steering wheel where he could see them, having already lowered my driver’s side window.  He asked for the usual “License and registration please….”, which I gave him.  He then followed by saying:  “I have good news and bad news for you….  The good news is that your laser jammers are working as designed.  The bad news is that they are illegal to us in Virginia….”  I responded that I new from the posted signs at the state line that radar detectors were illegal in VA, but was unaware that laser jammers were also illegal in VA.  (I know, I know… ignorance of the law is no defense….. but I was just being honest with him.)
I told him that I was not speeding and he unsurprisingly responded: “How would I know, you were jamming my laser gun…..).  At this point, another VA State Trooper with his blue lights flashing, pulled up behind the first Troopers car and joined him at my window.  I asked the Trooper how he knew that it was me and not the other cars jamming his laser, since we were all close together.  He said he just guessed that it was me since I had the “nicest” car with the widest tires.  The other Trooper went up to the front of my SUV, bent down and located the two recessed laser jammers and then retrieved his digital SLR camera and started to photograph them for evidence.  The first Trooper went back to his car and wrote a VA Uniform Summons for me “operate vehicle w/ laser jammers”, a violation of VA Law Section 46.2-1079.  I asked what the monetary fine was for that offense and he, nor his partner said that they knew.  I subsequently called the appropriate General District Court in Accomac, VA and learned that the fine is $101, but that no points are issued to your driving record.  Once I was back in NJ, I wrote a check and mailed it to the Accomac courthouse, along with a copy of my signed/dated summons.  I also contacted the NJ Commission of Motor Vehicles and was told that since laser detection and/or jamming is NOT illegal in New Jersey, that no points would be added to my driving record.

Of course, I could not help myself and commented to both Troopers that VA should revise and update their road signage at the state line, to be clearer by saying something along the lines of “Use of any electronic devices to discover or impede LEO speed detection is illegal”.  They both laughed said that VA is too cheap to invest in updated signs.  They asked me what the little camera is for in the front center of my SUV’s grill.  I explained that is to read roadside speed limit signs and immediately show that speed on the BMW head-up display on the lower inside of my windshield.  They then asked why my wife was driving a separate car and not with me.  I looked at them and grinned and said that “after many years, we both have learned that part of the success of a marriage includes separate bathrooms and separate cars….”  They chuckled and said that in the future to make sure that I turn off my laser jammers before I enter VA, since some LEO’s may even try to remove them from my vehicle and confiscate them.  I ensured they that I would do so, and off we went.

Well, after the fact, I researched the current law on laser jamming in the U.S.  I knew before that jamming radar has been outlawed federally in the U.S. but that jamming laser had not been specifically addressed and was, for the most part legal, except for states that had begun to enact laws and regulate against it.  I learned that now, those states outlawing laser jamming include Virginia, as well as AL, CA, IL, MN, OK, NE, SC, TN, TX, UT and the District of Columbia.  Also, most of the eastern provinces of Canada also ban laser jamming.  I kicked myself for being so ignorant for not staying current on state laws, like I am on CCW in states that I travel through.

My laser jammers, Blinder HP-905 Compacts, were the state-of-the-art devices when I purchased them and had them installed in my vehicle in 2016.  But like any electronic technology, it is always a tit-for-tat, incremental advancement by a number of manufacturers, for both speed detection laser guns and corresponding laser jammers.  There are now speed detection laser guns, made by Dragon Eye Technology, using next generation software, that render most current laser jammers useless.  So this counter measure may become less desirable, as well as effective, especially considering the cost and changing state traffic laws.

So my lesson from this experience is to keep abreast of the traffic laws of the states where you drive and drive through.  Also, only spend the money and use these “counter measures” at your discretion and risk, but do not relay on them as an end-all panacea.  They are just additional tools, where legal, to help alert you of probably LEO’s around you that are monitoring traffic speed and to remind you to drive within a reasonable speed range, taking into account a number of variable factors, including the posted speed limit, traffic volume, type of neighborhood, environment, time of day / light level, and weather / road conditions.

AVB-AMG

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I run a V1 everywhere but Virginia.

When traveling outside of commuting I run WAZE.

"Police Reported Ahead", sometimes before,  but most times after the V1 Alerts.  

While rare, it does happen that I get an Alert without a Waze notification but if I had to chose one or the other, it'd be WAZE simply because it alerts everywhere to every cop running whatever they run.

 

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26 minutes ago, Malsua said:

When traveling outside of commuting I run WAZE.

@Malsua:

I have also been using WAZE while driving through VA, but probably due to the same brain fart on this last trip, did not open up that App on my iPhone.  Shame on me....
BTW, if your vehicle has Apple CarPlay, you can run WAZE on it and it will show its screen information on your car's built in computer screen.

AVB-AMG

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17 hours ago, Fred2 said:

I'd rather get a radar detector ticket than a speeding ticket, so I keep mine on in VA.

@Fred2:

You should be aware that some State Troopers are now using so-called Radar Detector Detectors made by Spectre ELITE to see which drivers are using radar detectors.  Running your Radar Detector in VA is taking a big risk....  Also, in some cases, it has been reported that the LEO's may confiscate your windshield mounted radar detector as evidence.  You are taking a big risk with your radar detector active while driving in VA.

AVB-AMG

 

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So your system knows the posted speed limit (both dynamically via cameras and many map/GPS list them) and an integrated laser/radar detector/jammer. Would be relatively straightforward to only have the detector activate and hammer emit when driving over the speed limit. Could also set EMCON based on state since that doesn’t change often. 

Ironically he didn’t know it was your car until after he pulled you over and actively looked.  Probably could have played more ignorant “What’s a laser jammer?  Wow, that’s a thing?”  Maybe could have avoided him looking. Once they took pictures I guess it’s all over (unless you claim their part of the 360 cameras). 

My MIL got a two speeding tickets within a half-mike of each other. One was a camera system that she didn’t even realize she hit. The other was a state trooper. Two tickets for the same “event”. 

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16 hours ago, voyager9 said:

Ironically he didn’t know it was your car until after he pulled you over and actively looked.  Probably could have played more ignorant “What’s a laser jammer?  Wow, that’s a thing?”  Maybe could have avoided him looking. Once they took pictures I guess it’s all over (unless you claim their part of the 360 cameras). 

@voyager9

At this point, I figured why lie about it.  I was guilty of forgetting to turn them off before entering VA.  The stupid irony was that I was not speeding, something that I told the Trooper.

BTW, the Trooper does not have to be all that smart to look closely at the front grill of the car to eventually spot the location of each recessed laser jammer.  Unlike remote radar detectors, (that I had in my previous AMG), that can be mounted behind the car's front grill, in order to be fully effective the laser jammers must not have any obstructions in front of them.  The further recessed they are the narrower their "cone" of jamming the laser becomes.... 

AVB-AMG

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16 minutes ago, voyager9 said:

So your system knows the posted speed limit (both dynamically via cameras and many map/GPS list them) and an integrated laser/radar detector/jammer. Would be relatively straightforward to only have the detector activate and hammer emit when driving over the speed limit. Could also set EMCON based on state since that doesn’t change often. 

@voyager9:

While what you suggest may be possible and could work fine, it is way beyond my electronics expertise and something that I would not go to the trouble, let alone expense on modifying on my car, especially since it is a leased vehicle.  Also, if what you suggest is done to the vehicle and their are any subsequent issues affecting any of the other electronics in the car, that modification may invalidate the manufacturer's warranty, an expensive roll of the dice on these higher end vehicles.

AVB-AMG

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@AVB-AMG interesting story.  VA has always been death on writing tickets as we all know.  My first experience driving through VA was in 1969 headed down to Fort Jackson, SC in my Austin Healey. I managed to stay out of trouble.

I have a strategy I've used for years that's kept me out of trobule.  

 

 

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11 minutes ago, AVB-AMG said:

@voyager9:

While what you suggest may be possible and could work fine, it is way beyond my electronics expertise and something that I would not go to the trouble, let alone expense on modifying on my car, especially since it is a leased vehicle.

AVB-AMG

Yeah. It would just be a cool project.

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30 minutes ago, AVB-AMG said:

You should be aware that some State Troopers are now using so-called Radar Detector Detectors made by Spectre ELITE to see which drivers are using radar detectors.  Running your Radar Detector in VA is taking a big risk....

They've been doing that for a long time, even some of the locals have it. When I lived down there in the late 1990s, I got nailed with my radar detector, which wasn't visible when looking into the car.

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14 minutes ago, GRIZ said:

@AVB-AMG interesting story.  VA has always been death on writing tickets as we all know.  My first experience driving through VA was in 1969 headed down to Fort Jackson, SC in my Austin Healey. I managed to stay out of trouble.

I have a strategy I've used for years that's kept me out of trobule. 

@GRIZ:

Driving your Austin Healey must have been fun but I bet your back and body were a wreck at the end of each day of driving such a long distance.

Ok, other than driving at or close to the posted speed limit, what is your strategy?

AVB-AMG

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weirdly, i've never had trouble going through va. i generally just cruise rt95 though. anywhere near richmond, you can't get to the speed limit anyway......once clear, i just hang in the right lane about 5-8mph over the limit......virtually every other vehicle on the road is passing me at that point, so i know i'm not getting nailed.

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