You could also ask what kind of shopping do people put INSIDE their door panels but we've seen border guards (admittedly not on a Swiss border but on a crossing over to Dover) doing just that. If they want to strip your car down to its undies I think they don't need much say-so.
Why does the age of the driver matter?
Real Radar detectors have been illegal in france for at least 15 years.
However gps based units are allowed.
In CH all forms of detector are illegal.
In fact, there are systems that are legal in France. Before the laws in France changed to make those radar warners illegal there was already a device called "Coyote". After the laws changed, the working of those devices has also been changed in order to comply with the new laws. They will no longer indicate the exact position of a radar trap but rather "danger zones". So I dont want to speculate but this person could have assumed that the device also complies with Swiss law. Either way he did remove it, so he was not planning to do anything sneaky. Dura lex sed lex.
Ok I am confused, for a change ! Can I use my TomTom in France and Switzerland , if I turn the speed camera detector off ? Or do I have to buy another TomTom that does not have that facility ???
In Switzerland Hans-Ueli shoulders his semi automatic riffle, walks to the local shooting range, scores a good result, eats Bratwurst and drinks Beer at the Schützenhaus, walks home, gets asked how he did. Next day you can read in the local newspaper: "Hans-Ueli did great at the Feldschiessen. He was one of the very few to win the Stapfermedallie this year"
In U.K. you would read the following in the Daily Mail "SAS gets head shot achievement. Would be terrorist stopped in Wockingham uppon Avon"
Differences in culture I guess
Yes, in Switzerland you can walk around with a semi automatic weapon and drink beer, but owning a radar detector is illegal....
A radar detector has only one purpose - to lower the chance to get caught when breaking the law. That's why they are outlawed in many European countries: there is simply no use for them that does not involve breaking laws - if you do not speed do you simply not need one. I have been repeatedly posting against the obsessive fines for very low speeding as all those 1km tickets we keep on reading about here - but I'd put the fines for people who show the planning and intention to speed even higher. If you have it installed in a hidden place tells me that you are likely even aware that they are outlawed...
Well, it is effectively using a device to facilitate a form of tax evasion. So you can understand why this would be considered by the governent as far more serious than, well, just about anything else really
I was being sarcastic. Sorry if you failed to spot that. My point was that every time something to do with speeding or fines is mentioned on this forum, out come all the self righteous comments. That is the drama I find amusing.
So you think prison is a better option for punishment - or no speeding laws at all?
I'm confused as to what you would propose for speeding offences if it wasn't a fine.
(I don't see it as a tax but as a punishment for breaking a law).
In most countries I'd agree - but in Switzerland with it's specific federal taxation system are conveniently placed speed traps a welcomed source of income for the local Gemeinde. Simply put - the cameras are not standing where the accidents happen but where people are likely to be caught. Ideally people who are not locals as they might complain with the major, so tourists spots and transit routes are ideal.
I see them at the entrances to villages, in tunnels and I see mobile ones at pedestrian crossings where BMW drivers seem to have an inability to stop.
I also see mobile ones in my street (30Kph zone) after complaining to the Police that people are driving fat too fast down there.
I obviously see it differently to you.
Like in England, a points build up system with associated fine. Once the points reach a predetermined level then you're banned from driving for a period of time.
Basically here in Switzerland you can drive like an idiot all the time, and unless you really overdo it the only thing you have to do is pay the fines at the end of the month.
It's good for the government really. Why ban drivers when they're adding to the coffers.
Stereotyping drivers of one make of car is kind of immature really. Are you the drama queen?
I'd go for no speeding laws at all, as it used to be.
Tom
Yes, we apparently see it very differently. I never received a single speeding ticket in Germany or the Netherlands where I lived and drove a lot before for a decade. In Switzerland did I suddenly receive them more or less regularly while driving extra carefully. Usually was it 40CHF for driving 1-4km too fast. The only one for 120 for 10km too fast was on the way to the Saentis, the visitors parking place of it. I was on a country road where I wondered "Why the heck to they keep on changing the speed limit for 10km up and down all the time"? Just to get into the tourist trap a second later. I bet the village can lower the tax based on the amount of tourists they catch.
Actually, before that it was like this:
So you were speeding (and thus breaking the law) in Germany and the Netherlands but were never caught but you're complaining because you were caught in Switzerland.
Although of a different severity of crime, that's like a paedophile complaining about being locked up in the U.K. for his crimes but stating, "Well it was alright when I lived in Belgium."
Not sure I get your point.
Really ????