Fixed penalty notice and 3 points for driving without a rear bumper

[Lulu87]

Once again thanks for all your responses., i took the picture at the spot i was stopped by the officer , i'm sorry it is not much clearer. I think the 1 thing really sticking out is the exhaust pipe which would be sticking out even with the bumper on. Edjama i would take on your advice soon as i get home from work tonight, i'll be seeing a mot tester. All will now depend on their verdict. Kiki i was unable to investigate the bump as i was on the a13 which is a very busy carraigeway and i was nowhere near a hardshoulder even if i was daring enough to stop the car and come out. The bumper's unretrievable i'm afraid which is another big dent to my wallet. Alll the more reason why i'm hoping to fight this. Thank you all so much, i'll keep you updated with my progress.

[green_and_mean]

Personally I would contest it as the vehicle is not in a dangerous condition, the fact that the bumper is missing does not mean it is likely to cause someone harm, hitting anyone with a car will cause them harm. There was a case Gray vs CPS regading the same legislation but considered carrying passengers in a dangerous manner, that stated what would happen in an accident was not relevant:

 

The Court decided that that was insufficient to constitute the offence under this particular subsection because there would be a risk of injury to any passenger in the back of the van, indeed more of a risk to one sitting facing the front than to one lying across from the floor if there was an accident. The point of this section was not to consider danger if there was an accident because it must be recognised that there is, in such circumstances, inevitable danger to passengers. The question is whether there is a danger in the circumstances in which the vehicle was being driven at the material time.

 

The Police/CPS would have to prove that beyond all reasonable doubt that driving your vehicle in the condition it was in a normal manner was likely to cause someone harm, something I think they would be hard pushed to do.

[Lulu87]

This is really good information, i will definitely look into the case you've mentioned. Wow thank you so much, i didn't expect this much help and advice, i really am grateful to everyone and will be keeping you updated with all progress.