[Big Arnold]

Police forces across Britain fine just 125 drivers A YEAR for leaving engines running to de-ice windscreens - despite claims that they'll be fined £40
We asked all police forces in England and Wales how many fines they'd issued

On frosty and snowy mornings I'm sure that the police have better things to do than search the streets for idling cars.

[bluebellnutter]

I didn't even realise it was illegal

[Boiler]

I didn't even realise it was illegal

I only recently learned it was. I wish they'd nick van drivers for it.

[Daley Mayle]

I remember stories in The Mail where people expressed surprise that on a frosty morn they had left their very expensive car idling on the drive, returned inside to finish their breakfast and when they emerged to take Tarquin and Tabitha to prep school some ne'er-do-well had driven off with it.

Laugh? I had to change my trousers.

[MisterMuncher]

The bonus feature there is that their insurer would have told them to FRO.

[Boiler]

The bonus feature there is that their insurer would have told them to FRO.

Contributory negligence.

[Andy McDandy]

So let me get this straight, they sent off a FOI request to these police forces, and presumably if they'd been issuing thousands, that would be police wasting time and picking on poor harassed motorists to line their pockets. But they haven't been very zealous at all, and that's police not doing their jobs properly?

Shades of the Alan Partridge interview with the racist old woman* there.

*Brief summary: she gets ticketed by a (black) traffic warden for just going over the time limit, so persuades him to overlook it and tear the ticket up; then reports him and has him fired for not doing his job properly.