Are they Legal?
A judgement of the Queens Bench Divisional Court dated 27th January 1998 makes it clear that the use of Radar Detectors is not unlawful as has hitherto been claimed by some. In the past a few prosecutions have been brought by claiming the use of radar detectors was contrary to section 5(b)(i) of the Wireless Telegraphy Act 1949 as amended by section 3 of the Post Office Act 1969. However the Acts refer to the interception of wireless communications for the purpose of obtaining information as to the content, sender or addressee of any message. The Court concluded that the radar transmission was not communicating a 'message' and therefore equipment designed to detect the presence of the transmission could not decode any such message.
It was further stated that section 1(1) of the Act, which requires a licence for the reception of radio signals, has been superseded by the Wireless Telegraphy Apparatus (Receivers)(Exemption) Regulations (SI 1989 No123) which exempts radar detectors and similar equipment from the need for such licences.

This judgement has not been tested in Scotland. Although the likelihood is that a positive outcome would be the result of any future test case.

European countries which have outlawed camera detectors, include France, Belgium, Greece, Austria, Turkey, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Ireland and Norway. In Luxembourg the maximum penalty is a prison sentence of between eight days and three years. The Republic of Ireland also deals harshly with offenders and a six-month prison sentence is possible.

Most police officers don't know they are legal so watch out!
I had an e-mail regarding Radar Detectors. It seams that there are still quite a few police officers that still think they are illegal.

The e-mail went as follows....

" I have just been relieved of my day old five hundred and fifty-pound radar detector by my local constabulary. It is mine for which I have proof of purchase and it is not involved in any other crime. Are the police allowed to do this. I have printed of the part of the wireless and telegraphy act that relates to radar detectors, given it to the constable who's got it yet it all seems to fall on deaf years. What can I do?"

My answer....

It is NOT against the law to own a unit.... you can go back an claim it back...

"Quote the following....

A judgement of the Queens Bench Divisional Court dated 29th January 1998 makes it clear that the use of Radar Detectors is not unlawful as has hitherto been claimed by some. In the past a few prosecutions have been brought by claiming the use of radar detectors was contrary to section 5(b)(I) of the Wireless Telegraphy Act 1949 as amended by section 3 of the Post Office Act 1969. However the Acts refer to the interception of wireless communications for the purpose of obtaining information as to the content, sender or addressee of any message. The Court concluded that the radar transmission was not communicating a 'message' and therefore equipment designed to detect the presence of the transmission could not decode any such message. It was further stated that section 1(1) of the Act, which requires a licence for the reception of radio signals, has been superseded by the Wireless Telegraphy Apparatus (Receivers)(Exemption) Regulations (SI 1989 No123) which exempts radar detectors and similar equipment from the need for such licences.

Good Luck and let me know how you got on... but stand your ground...."

The reply....

"Thanks Steve, did the trick had my valentine one returned, no apology though. Too much to hope for! Thanks again"

What do they detect?
Worldwide there ten sets of frequencies used for speed monitoring. In the UK only to radar frequencies used, K band and Ku band (in a very limited way). Coverage of other frequencies other than these bands will cause the detector to false alarm, devices such as traffic lights supermarket doors, mobile phones and transmitters often operate on the X band.

All will detect radar, to different levels, some give detection ranges of as little at 0 metres for a Gatso Camera right up to 350 metres, depending on which make and model you buy.
Some will detect Laser from 1 mile to 3 miles.
Some will and some wont detect Mini-Gatso.
All can detect Muniquip from 1 mile to 3 miles.

Most false warnings will be on the 'X' band.

Gatso's on the K band ... give more of a problem, the radar used is quite weak, since Gatso Cameras also face away from you the radar beam is going away from you as well, so your detector is relying on a reflected signal making Gatso's are harder to detect. However a good detector will give you a warning.

The Ku band is little used at the moment in the UK, but they do use it in Northern Ireland, and some parts of Europe

Where do they go in your car?
Nearly all are attached to the windscreen by suckers on a mounting bracket and run either off the cigarette lighter or on their own power supply. Its important to note that Heated windscreens and heat reflective windscreens will effect the range of some units. This can be overcome by fitting remote detectors, these have a remote radar sensing head and IR. unit, that fit in the grill of the vehicle. A control unit sits inside the car.
Standard units should be mounted on the windscreen in a position that gives them a clear view ahead. But in a position that is not easily seen from the outside, even though they are now not illegal, by having one you can easily provoke some coppers.

Some offer a 360 degree Laser cover. Now this is not possible in reality, since there are all sorts of objects in the way like pillars, headrests etc. The laser side of the detection is not always going to give you a warning since laser scatter is very low and if you get a warning, you most likely have been nicked.

What is SWS?
SWS or Safety Warning System is starting to feature on more radar/laser detectors. Manufacturers of the detectors designed the system as a way of combating the bad image of radar detectors. SWS is currently being installed in police cars all over the US. When a police car is attending a roadside accident the SWS transmitter is switched on. Owners of radar detectors received a warning in advance of a dangerous situation. The new generation of smart SWS detectors use text messages and sometimes voice messages as well.

Radar detectors such as the Bel 990 offer nearly 70 text and voice messages ranging from, accident ahead, school crossing ahead, ice on road, moose crossing and so on. Currently SWS is only used in some parts of America and Canada. Germany has recently been granted a licence for its use, plans are now in the advanced stages and SWS can be expected to be in use by 2001. A British company is also currently in discussions with the manufacturer to bring SWS to the UK.

SWS is without doubt one of the best safety features for a driver to have fitted in his car, and the sooner it's use becomes worldwide the better.

What is VG-2
The "Interceptor VG-2"is a microwave Receiver used by some police forces to detect signals radiated by the local oscillator of a radar detector, in simple terms it's a "Radar Detector Detector" VG-2 is only used in a small number of countries such as the USA, Canada, France and Switzerland. Most new radar detectors have anti VG-2 features. Bel-tronics call theirs Shadow Technology"