An outraged spectator dialled 999 today – to complain that the Queen was not wearing a seatbelt.
The un-named member of the public dialled the emergency number after watching the Queen and Prince Charles from the Palace of Westminster on TV.
The caller complained to West Yorkshire Police that neither the reigning monarch or her son were wearing seat restraints as they travelled in a Royal Bentley.
The news coincides with new research that finds one in four motorists have driven their car without wearing a seatbelt.
According to Accident Advice Helpline a large percentage of drivers flout the law by refusing to buckle up, usually to drive short distances to local shops or around areas where they live.
Moving their car from the road to the driveway, or parking in a car park are also occasions when drivers either choose to ignore the law, or forget to wear their seatbelt.
Although driving without a seatbelt is against the law, a reigning monarch cannot be found guilty of it.
British courts are established on her behalf and the Queen cannot be a defendant in one – as it would mean she was prosecuting herself.
The Queen is also the only person in the UK who is permitted to drive without a licence and is not obliged to have registration plates on her vehicles.
For ordinary motorists, the fine for not wearing a seatbelt can be up to £500.
But staff from West Yorkshire Police were more concerned about the unnecessary 999 call.
West Yorkshire Contact Centre tweeted: “999 call received reporting that the Queen isn’t wearing a seatbelt” with the hashtags #not999 and #notevenwestyorkshire.
A spokesperson from West Yorkshire Police said: “Each call often takes minutes to deal with as our Customer Contact Centre staff have to clarify the situation – it might not sound like much but if someone is trying to get through to report a genuine life or death emergency then a minute is a very long time to wait.”
