Cont: Luton Airport Car Park Fire III

[Jack by the hedge]

Plenty of people expressed scepticism. The general consensus seems to be it was an Evoque. The thing about the numberplate could just be that the guy simply copied the video from instagram and thought he'd make a good guess as to what the numberplate read, cross-referencing it to DVLA. Problem is, look what happened in the case of the Australian mall knifer, someone erroneously identified the perp as completely the wrong person by trying to match google images to the media pictures coming out. I really don't understand why Foster Zygote, catsmate and Smart Cooky are absolutely convinced that the estimated numberplate is correct when none of them are able to provide a proper citation.

The number plate is the dog which did not bark in the night time.

For how long was the wrong man thought to be the mall knifer? Was it months? No, it was a few hours. People who knew he was alive, well and innocent kicked up a storm.

Anyone can check the proposed number plate and see that it is a valid registration on a current vehicle. Aside from people 'expressing skepticism' has anyone expressed surprise that their number plate, (or a friend's or neighbour's or one they just see around town) has been claimed to be the one that started the fire?

Why the silence?

 

[catsmate]

It is well-known ....

Wallpaper words.

 

[Mojo]

Wallpaper words.

Like "Now that is scientific fact."

 

[Vixen]

Irrelevant. The proper term is still "trustee." A blind trust involves a trustee who manages an interest for a beneficiary while not disclosing the composition of the aggregated interest or the transactions involved. Those are the proper terms, even in the UK. Terms related to company governance are not relevant.



Agreed. He could have not reported it at all. This undermines your accusation that he must be hiding something.



You still don't seem to understand what a blind trust is.



Begging the question.



In the meantime, Sunak has taken steps himself to attain greater transparency. He could have not reported the blind trust at all. As Phiwum frequently notes, you don't seem to understand when evidence argues against your claims.

I hesitate to use the term 'Trustee' in respect of Sunak's blind interests as for me the word has a specific legal meaning. I doubt very much Sunak set up any such legal Trustee arrangements in any UK court as the UK has no jurisdiction over companies registered in the Cayman Islands. Sunak's Cabinet Office also refuses to confirm the name of his imaginary US trustee so it is obvious it is not a formal trustee arrangement, it is just on Sunak's say so to avoid declaring his interests in the parliamentary registers of interest.

 

[Vixen]

I don't recall any of them saying the reported license plate is correct. Do you have some citations of this?

As I said, the second video isn't particularly relevant. I'd wager that it's legitimate, just because it's so similar to the first video and while (publicly available) AI can do a lot, I don't think it can match a scene so well. I could be wrong about the capabilities of AI, but I doubt it.

But none of that matters. Our central question is not "Which car was it?" but rather "Was it an EV or hybrid?" Now, for this question, I'd say the relevant information comes from the fire investigators. Already, they have unequivocally stated that it is not a hybrid or EV.

You don't trust official press releases? Fine. You said you'd wait for the final report. Shouldn't you be withholding judgment rather than giving a toss about this video?

I am pretty sure they insisted it was a 2104 Range Rover Sport. It could well be the front view video is genuine (although one has to ask how come only a handful of anonymous X/twitter accounts, some opened on the day with zero followers). But I doubt anyone was able to decipher the number plate to be able to confidently claim it is a specific car which can be looked up on DVLA. If this is the case, how come none of the press has followed up on it, as it did with the Romanian lady's video?

You have to distinguish between a press release and a PR release. Public relations are rife and a lot of people cannot recognise the difference between news and PR. For example, half the stories in the papers are simply PR 'press releases' by agents of various 'celebrities' who are paid to keep their clients in the news by firing off tidbits of what their client is up to these days to keep them in the public eye. Likewise some politicians and various products use this method of PR dressed up as 'news'. AFAIAA Andrew Hopkinson has only had one press conference and only one press release proper. The rest is just hack Phil Page filling up news space and presenting old wine in new bottles.

 

[Vixen]

The number plate is the dog which did not bark in the night time.

For how long was the wrong man thought to be the mall knifer? Was it months? No, it was a few hours. People who knew he was alive, well and innocent kicked up a storm.

Anyone can check the proposed number plate and see that it is a valid registration on a current vehicle. Aside from people 'expressing skepticism' has anyone expressed surprise that their number plate, (or a friend's or neighbour's or one they just see around town) has been claimed to be the one that started the fire?

Why the silence?

AFAIAA the MOT expired Jan 2024. Has there been an update on DVLA by anyone of the latest MOT? It could be lying around in a junk yard or SORN for all we know.

 

[erwinl]

AFAIAA the MOT expired Jan 2024. Has there been an update on DVLA by anyone of the latest MOT? It could be lying around in a junk yard or SORN for all we know.

The MOT of a car burned in October 2023 is not renewed in January 2024?!

How much more suspicious can you get?!

 

[Jack by the hedge]

AFAIAA the MOT expired Jan 2024. Has there been an update on DVLA by anyone of the latest MOT? It could be lying around in a junk yard or SORN for all we know.

It could indeed be lying in a junkyard, along with a thousand other burned cars.
If it was SORN* that status would be shown.

Someone remind us what the claimed number plate was, please.

*SORN, for non-UK readers is a Statutory Off-Road Notification. Nowadays we're required to tick a box to declare a car's not being used on the road if we don't intend to pay its annual VED 'road tax'. Very simple system I used when my old car was being restored.

 

[Jack by the hedge]

You have to distinguish between a press release and a PR release.

The primary source for Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service press releases (or indeed PR releases) would be Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service, rather than any newspaper which reported them.

Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service say it was a diesel car in a press release, helpfully listed under "Press Releases" on their website, which is copywrite Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service.

That allows us to distinguish the information as being an official Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service press release without a shadow of doubt.

 

[smartcooky]

Someone remind us what the claimed number plate was, please

E10 EFL


Here is the video in question


I downloaded the video and ran it through Scene Detection in Adobe After Effects. I couldn't see any obvious cut points or edits, or any distortions which are some of the hallmarks of a faked video. Also, the camera is actually moving, so someone faking this would need to have done some motion tracking with the substituted car, and that makes it even more unlikely to be faked video. If this is a different car superimposed over an original, it is an excellent job, because there is no sign of the greenscreen edge around the car on any frame.

If it is faked, it has been done by someone with professional skills, and beyond my ability to detect.

I have put a download link below to the video in my Dropbox if anyone would like to download it themselves and have a crack at it, maybe using Adobe Premiere, DaVinci Resolve or Final Cut Pro, none of which I have

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/1o0q...Fire.mp4?rlkey=n1e0ibecbd8uqao2q67pqjefw&dl=1
‎
‎

 

[Cosmic Yak]

E10 EFL

Electric Fire Lithium?

 

[GlennB]

E10 EFL

That car is a diesel Land Rover, taxed and MOT'd until Nov this year, fwiw.

 

[smartcooky]

That car is a diesel Land Rover, taxed and MOT'd until Nov this year, fwiw.

The Luton Airport fore was October 2023.

How long is the Tax and MOT for a 10 year old vehicle - 12 months?

 

[zooterkin]

That car is a diesel Land Rover, taxed and MOT'd until Nov this year, fwiw.

That does throw doubt on that being the correct number plate, since fixing the car ready for an MOT on 10/11/23, when it passed, after the state the car in the video was in on 23/10/23 would have been a bit of a challenge!

 

[GlennB]

The Luton Airport fore was October 2023.

How long is the Tax and MOT for a 10 year old vehicle - 12 months?

MOT is 12 months but tax can be either 6 or 12. As zooterkin says, it seems very unlikely to be the car in the video/photo.

 

[Wudang]

That does throw doubt on that being the correct number plate, since fixing the car ready for an MOT on 10/11/23, when it passed, after the state the car in the video was in on 23/10/23 would have been a bit of a challenge!

You can get an MOT up to a month (minus a day) before it runs out and keep the same renewal date.

From https://www.gov.uk/getting-an-mot

 

[Jack by the hedge]

The Luton Airport fore was October 2023.

How long is the Tax and MOT for a 10 year old vehicle - 12 months?

Tax can be paid for 6 or 12 months ahead, clearly 12 in this case, and MOT is annual. Obviously a car that burned to a crisp in October '23 could not then have passed an MOT inspection in November.

<edit> MOT is valid until 9th November. So as Wudang points out, the car might have had its inspection immediately before the fire. Indeed checking the history, it did.

The car was inspected in January each year from 2020 to 2023, but then inspected again on 10th October 2023. I wonder why it was inspected before the current MOT expired.

 

[smartcooky]

Tax can be paid for 6 or 12 months ahead, clearly 12 in this case, and MOT is annual. Obviously a car that burned to a crisp in October '23 could not then have passed an MOT inspection in November.

<edit> MOT is valid until 9th November. So as Wudang points out, the car might have had its inspection immediately before the fire. Indeed checking the history, it did.

The car was inspected in January each year from 2020 to 2023, but then inspected again on 10th October 2023. I wonder why it was inspected before the current MOT expired.

Not sure how your MOTs work, but in this country our equivalent is the WOF (Warrant of Fitness)

Any vehicle registered for the first time after 2000 has a WOF every year. The only times a WOF would be required outside its scheduled due date would be...

1. If it was to be sold, any vehicle being sold must have a WOF no older than one month.

2. If it has major work such as lowered suspension or a modified exhaust system.

3. If it has had a minor accident in which the airbags were deployed and needed replacement.

The other thing is that if the owner was going away on holiday, he may have wanted to get the MOT done early so it wasn't expired on his return. That is what I would do.

 

[Jack by the hedge]

Not sure how your MOTs work, but...

So far as I know there's no statutory requirement for a test any more often than annually (after 3 years old).

But an insurance company might require a fresh MOT on a car that's had significant repair work done, as a condition for their covering it.

 

[zooterkin]

Tax can be paid for 6 or 12 months ahead, clearly 12 in this case, and MOT is annual. Obviously a car that burned to a crisp in October '23 could not then have passed an MOT inspection in November.

<edit> MOT is valid until 9th November. So as Wudang points out, the car might have had its inspection immediately before the fire. Indeed checking the history, it did.

The car was inspected in January each year from 2020 to 2023, but then inspected again on 10th October 2023. I wonder why it was inspected before the current MOT expired.

I see Date tested:10 November 2023 at https://www.check-mot.service.gov.uk/results?registration=E10+EFL&checkRecalls=true