Police Spot Road Check!

There are not many speed cameras in Spain, unlike in the UK, but there is a much higher number of police checks where they flag you down and check your documents and that your car is ok. So far, having been in Spain almost 2 years I have avoided being stopped when I have been driving. We have been stopped once when Neil was driving for a breath test, that was within a week or 2 of moving here and a couple of weeks ago I was in my neighbour’s car with them when were stopped for a paperwork check but today was the first time I have been in my car, on my own and stopped.

I was on my way to my Spanish class this morning when I saw them at the junction of the country road with the motorway. Very often they are on the slip road coming off the motorway but because a lot of the locals use the minor roads, mainly to avoid police checks every now and again they place themselves on the local roads.

I saw them well in advance and so it was no surprise when they flagged me down. There were 2 Guardia and as one was talking to me the other was giving the car a little look over. I was in Brian as Neil had gone to golf in the big car, and I was fairly comfortable that everything was in order but as this was the first time I had been stopped I was aware there may be something I wasn’t aware of.

Firstly he asked me for my ID and I gave him my drivers licence. Then he asked for the documents for the car and I handed him the little folder where everything is kept, insurance, registration documentation, receipt for road tax (you do not display a tax disc on your screen here, as in the UK however, there is a sticker on the screen confirming when the next MOT is due), the receipt for when I purchased it was in there – lots of bits of paper for him to look at.

He took his time looking through it all, occasionally going behind the car to speak to the other officer and as he checked each document he passed it back to me. At one point he made a comment about how much paperwork there is connected to a car in Spain, but I just replied that there was plenty of paperwork in the UK as well. After he’d gone through everything he simply told me that everything was perfect and that I could continue on my way.

I was surprised I had not felt at all anxious but I was feeling very calm. It was good to know that everything is alright with the documents, I know I will not have to worry about being stopped in the future.

Strangely enough I have often felt nervous about being stopped when I was out driving on my own, but when it finally happened I didn’t feel nervous at all.