Police Radar Warning Device

Sir,

I wonder if we may use your editorial columns to make a statement about our Police Radar Warning Devices which have caused so much comment recently.

No doubt your readers will be aware that we developed this device when police radar was first introduced into this country. This warning was achieved very effectively by an electronic technique and the prototype units were then exhibited some two years ago on our stand at the International Motor Show at Earls Court. Much newspaper publicity was given to this device of ours, and we saw from the comments of the various national “dailies” that some authorities had frowned on its use.

The general idea was that this should be line-produced in our electronics division and sold via our trade channels, but in view of the comments referred to above we decided to quietly drop the idea until some definite statement was made. This has now been done by the Post Office in announcing that they will take action against anyone using the device.

As we are the only organisation in this country to produce anything of this nature and because for the last two years we have been deluged with approximately fifty letters per week asking for a supply of these units, we thought it best in everyone’s interests to make a clear statement of the position.

We are sorry, therefore, that we are not putting this equipment into production.

VERNON H. FARTHING., B.ENG., A.M.INST.E.(Electronics), A.M.I.MECH.E., A.M.I.E.E., A.M.I.MAR.E., A.F.INST.PET., Managing Director,

p.p. Performance Equipment Co. Ltd.

Birkenhead.

(Clearly the Police authorities are not concerned with anything that enables citizens to keep within the Law or which keeps them out of the Courts. They are only interested in standing by while the Law is broken, often inadvertently, and then bringing a prosecution. We have heard that there may be other means of detecting radar speed-recording apparatus but this is something better discussed between motorists than published in the public prints ! – ED.)