Loud Music

[DJ B4VVY]

The other day, I was in the car with my brother going into town playing loud music in the car and we saw a few people getting stop searched so he put the music down and we were just talking about it amongst ourselves and we got stopped for playing loud music by a cop in an unmarked car well we didn't actually get stopped but it was at the traffic lights, and he told me to wind the window down and said "Why did you put the volume down when you went past those cops?" and my brother just said that we were talking and the cop started getting really aggressive and was shouting at us and said "No, you put it down because you knew what you were doing was illegal" I swear he was getting really aggressive and said that he would give us a warning and if you get a second one, the car will be taken away etc. but we weren't getting cheeky with him or anything and because the traffic lights went green and people didn't know it was a cop in the car, they started horning and he turned around and shouted "SHUT UP!" what a wanker, we even apologised and he just shouted "SORRY IS NOT GOOD ENOUGH" I swear he was proper on one the nobhead.

Anyways I was just wondering if they have to actually measure the decibels for them to give you a warning or whatever because our system is just a standard one, it's not like we have subs or anything. I know it was loud but it can't have been that loud because we were talking over it.

Does anyone know?

[Zero]

It depends on the policeman issuing it really. You'd probably be done for breach of peace or something stupid like that.

[Voodookid]

yes its illegal to play music loud in a public place, exactly the same as if you where at home and playing music loud. no doubt your neighbors would complain and the police have the right to take away your audio equipment, its public nuisance.

[Bandar]

It's not against the law.

Only if your music is way to loud and causes distraction and hazards AND if its after a certain time.

U sure he was a cop? Sounds like a prank to me!

[Scrooge]

a friend of mine got his car taken away nd his head unit removed, fined 80 quid on the spot.

[mani]

he doesnt have to measure anything to give you a warning

if it was to be persued in courts then they'd need evidence of the loudness

alternatively they would probably test it at a later date and use it as retrospective evidence

we have neighbours and they play that trance music loud and i've had to go to them once to turn it down at 3am. next time i just feel like calling the frikkin police.

[DJ B4VVY]

Originally Posted by Zero It depends on the policeman issuing it really. You'd probably be done for breach of peace or something stupid like that.

It's not like it was in a quiet place though.

Originally Posted by Bandar It's not against the law. Only if your music is way to loud and causes distraction and hazards AND if its after a certain time. U sure he was a cop? Sounds like a prank to me!

Yea he had a uniform and quoted Section 59 which I looked up and it's something similar to an ASBO. And like I said, it's just a bog standard system, we don't have subs or anything so it can't go THAT loud!

Originally Posted by Scrooge a friend of mine got his car taken away nd his head unit removed, fined 80 quid on the spot.

Yea he said if we get 2 warnings, they would take the car away

Originally Posted by mani he doesnt have to measure anything to give you a warning if it was to be persued in courts then they'd need evidence of the loudness alternatively they would probably test it at a later date and use it as retrospective evidence we have neighbours and they play that trance music loud and i've had to go to them once to turn it down at 3am. next time i just feel like calling the frikkin police.

Don't they even need evidence to give you a warning? What if we turned around and said that we didn't have music on, wouldn't he need evidence to prove we did?

[zoned]

where did ya get pulled over?

i've noticed quite a lot of stops by police recently, probs clampin down on it

[DJ B4VVY]

We didn't get pulled over, we were stopped at the traffic lights at Jacob's Well roundabout and he stopped in the next lane and told me to put my window down and was shouting at us from the next lane and when the lights went green everyone was horning because they just thought 2 people from cars were stood at the lights chatting away lol. He was well aggressive though he probably got out of the wrong side of the bed or something lol

[mindstate]

he was just taking his frustration out on you......probably someone before u pissed him off...so he unleashed his fury to the first person he saw...

[zoned]

Originally Posted by DJ B4VVY We didn't get pulled over, we were stopped at the traffic lights at Jacob's Well roundabout and he stopped in the next lane and told me to put my window down and was shouting at us from the next lane and when the lights went green everyone was horning because they just thought 2 people from cars were stood at the lights chatting away lol. He was well aggressive though he probably got out of the wrong side of the bed or something lol

ah right...don't see how people would get disturbed by loud music there anyway, it's mainly cars cars and cars =s

[DJ B4VVY]

Exactly and it's in the town centre as well!

[StyLeZ]

who was driving u or your brother?? and i had noo idea you could get fined with playing your music loud to a certain point...i see so many people on the roads do it who dont give a toss!

[Ritz_Crackers]

From Yahoo Answers:

If nobody can hear it, or the loudness is not unreasonable, that is fine. If it is causing annoyance, then yes it is illegal.

Technically, using a car radio at night (after 9pm) is illegal. Section 62 of the Control of Pollution Act 1974 prohibits the use of a loudspeaker in a street.

62. Noise in streets.— (1) Subject to the provisions of this section, a loudspeaker in a street shall not be operated—
(a)between the hours of nine in the evening and eight in the following morning, for any purpose;
(b)At any other time, for the purpose of advertising any entertainment, trade or business;
and any person who operates or permits the operation of a loudspeaker in contravention of this subsection shall be guilty of an offence against this Part of this Act.
(C) Crown Copyright

*correction - subsection 2 goes on to exclude loudspeakers installed within a vehicle. I based this guess on an article by Labour MP for Cannock Chase, Tony Wright from March 2007, who also seemed to have overlooked the provision in the next subsection to exclude speakers in cars.

The Environmental Protection Act 1990 seems to offer some hope at first glance, but specifies noise nuisance must not come from an UNATTENDED vehicle.

But the Noise and Statutory Nuisance Act 1993 seems to amend the previous 2 acts, and cover noise in a street.

The Police Reform Act 2002 allows police to seize a vehicle "causing alarm, distress or annoyance" to the public, such as by playing loud music.
Source(s):

http://www.statutelaw.gov.uk/content.asp...

[mani]

no not really

plus u dont know what he had in his car

if say he's got a camera, chances are he's done a check on the vehicle long before he got out to talk to u - maybe he was following u to see if you'd speed up after the police check area

again chances are that there was a camera and he'd be recorded sayin right lets see why they turned the music down.

but the most likely chances are - he was just an asshole.

stylez - oh yeah if you repeat offend they can take away ur system too and u'd get fuck all.