GCM

Come and Meet Us! GCM Live Event & Car Meet | 7th October 🚗

We spend most of our time talking to you from behind a camera, so on 7th October we’re doing something a little different.

We’re heading to The Steamer Coffee House & Kitchen, just outside Cullompton in Willand, for a full evening of cars, conversation and road safety.

🚗 Car meet & car clubs
🎤 Live Q&A panel
👋 Come and meet us in person
🏁 Our Focus RS with its brand-new wrap
🏍️ BMW M1000RR & motorcycle expertise
🔧 Paul Cowland talking cars and modifications
🚔 Road safety specialists
☕ Food & coffee

We’ll also have a specialist joining us to answer your questions around drink and drug driving, alongside plenty of opportunity to ask questions about cars, bikes, modifications and road safety.

🐕 We’ll also be raising money to support retired police/service dogs.

When working police dogs retire, they go on to live with families and handlers who can face significant costs caring for them in later life. Part of the purpose of this event is to help support those people and the dogs that have spent their lives working.

📅 7th October
📍 The Steamer Coffee House & Kitchen, Willand
🎟️ Tickets must be purchased in advance
🚗 Tickets are per car, NOT per person

You can even submit a question for our panel when booking.

We don’t get to do events like this very often. Come down, bring the car, have a coffee and spend the evening with us.

Hopefully we’ll see loads of you there on the 7th! 👊

Your Child’s Illegal E-Bike/Scooter Could Put Points on YOUR Licence

Parents, this is something you need to know.

We’re still seeing children and teenagers using privately owned e-scooters and non-compliant electric bikes on public roads.

If the machine is legally classed as a motor vehicle, insurance and other road-traffic requirements apply. And it isn’t necessarily only the person riding it who needs to think about the consequences: the Road Traffic Act specifically prohibits causing or permitting another person to use an uninsured motor vehicle on a road or other public place.

A compliant EAPC is different and can legally be used subject to the relevant rules.

Before buying one for your child, understand what it legally is and where it can actually be used.

Police Eyesight Test: Could You Read This Number Plate From 20 Metres?

When was the last time you actually tested your eyesight?

We recreate the roadside eyesight test with Sgt Owen Messenger and see what happens when I try it with and without my glasses.

It might seem like a simple number plate test, but poor eyesight behind the wheel can have devastating consequences.

👀 Could you read a number plate from 20 metres?

What Do You Wish You’d Been Taught Before Driving Alone?

Drivers aged 17 to 24 are often classed as vulnerable road users. Confidence can grow quickly, but real experience takes time.

So we want to hear from you.

If you’re a younger driver, what still confuses you on the road? What did your driving lessons or test not properly prepare you for?

And if you’ve been driving for years, what do you wish you’d known when you first passed?

Leave your advice in the comments. Something you share could genuinely help a new driver avoid making the same mistake.

After 20+ Years in Policing, These Are the Scenes Sgt Owen Messenger Can Never Forget

This is the first episode of In Their Own Words. A brand-new GCM series giving a voice to the people working to reduce death and serious injury on our roads.

For more than 20 years, Sgt Owen Messenger has attended some of the most devastating collisions in Devon & Cornwall. In this conversation, he opens up about the side of policing that rarely makes it onto social media.

We talk about:

The fatal collisions he'll never forget.

Knocking on families' doors with life-changing news.

The emotional impact of road policing.

Why casualty reduction has become his life's work.

What every driver needs to understand about the consequences of one bad decision.

A huge thank you to National Accident Helpline for supporting the first four episodes of In Their Own Words, and to Owen for speaking so openly.

If this episode makes you think differently about driving, please share it. It could genuinely save a life.

Race the Track. Not the Road.

What Happens When You Press THIS in a Fire Engine? 🚨

Norfolk Fire & Rescue Service let me climb into the driver’s seat, start the fire engine and test its blue lights, sirens and horns.

It’s something I’ve wanted to do for years, and it sounded even better than I expected.

Filmed with full permission from Norfolk Fire & Rescue Service.

“Speed has never killed anyone. Suddenly becoming stationary, that’s what gets you.”

One of Jeremy Clarkson’s most famous quotes.

But is he actually right? Sgt Owen Messenger gives his take.

Our full film exploring speed cameras, enforcement and the technology behind them is out now.

Police Seized This E-Bike. Can You Spot Why?

It has no functioning pedals or chain and is powered entirely by the throttle. That’s before you even get to the ineffective brakes, dangerous tyre, loose battery and dodgy wiring.

It might look like an ordinary e-bike from a distance, but this one was neither legal nor safe to use on the road.

How much do you think it’ll cost the taxpayer if the rider of this bike crashes and seriously injures themselves or somebody else?

Will your insurance pay you out for the damage caused to your car if it crashes into you?

Are converted e-bikes, e-scooters and e-motorbikes used in crime?

There are many other hidden gems that often lie behind what looks like a simple seizure of a bike. Things aren’t always as straightforward as they seem.