I saw on the news last night that it's now compulsory to carry 2 breathalysers in your car when in France. If you dot as get stopped its an instant fine. 1 is not enough as if you get stopped and made to use it then you no longer have one to use. Also didn't realise that the rule for high vis jackets meant they had to be within reach of each person in the vehicle, I thought you just had to carry them. Apparently all this is to make French roads safer, sounds like a load of old tosh to me.
The rules are designed to allow the Gendarmes to extract the maximum fines possible out of unsuspecting Ros-beefs.
Halfords do twin packs of French approved breth tests for about £5. I bought mine a few months ago ready for the summer.
You only need to carry one unused breathalyser, however the idea is that if you think you may be over the limit you check yourself before driving and if you use it you haven’t got an unused one. You will not be stopped and made to use it and there is not an instant fine (yet) for not having one, the €11 fine will not be levied until 1st November. You won’t have the pleasure of seeing Ricky but if you are lucky enough to be visiting France don’t leave it until you are here to purchase the breathalyser. Although they are only about €1 each they are difficult to find with most supermarkets, service stations and Feu Vert (similar to Halfords) out of stock. The breathalyser must be NF (Norme Française) approved - and there lies the controversy concerning the new law. The law was pushed through by the Sarkozy government under pressure from a road safety group, I-Test - whose president is a senior executive with the No1 manufacturer of breath testing equipment, Contralco.
we have no police around here ,but I did see a police car about a year ago ,I think he was lost... ;D
