Drones are great because they can fly, and attach a camera to it and you will be able to get some pretty nice photos and videos that you would not have been able to otherwise. Unfortunately not everyone is too happy about the freedom that drone owners are having at the moment, and over in the UK, one drone owner was recently slapped with a fine.
Nigel Wilson has admitted to nine breaches to taking videos over football grounds and tourist attractions in 2014. Accused by Scotland Yard of flying the drone and failing to maintain direct visual contact, he was slapped with a fine of £1,800 and has since been banned from flying or buying a drone for the next two years.
According to the judge, it wasn’t so much a privacy issue but a safety one as the drone flew over crowded areas, where if it had fallen and from such a great height, it could have seriously injured someone.
According to District Judge Quentin Purdy, “At each and every one of these places an accident could have occurred simply by a gust of wind or something of that nature taking it out of your control. In each and every case you knew what you were doing. Several times you were warned by police, who seized drones from you, and on numerous occasions by people posting on your YouTube channel. It was the height of arrogance in terms of public safety.”
This isn’t the first time drone owners have come in contact with the law. Over in the US, drone owners have been accused of interfering with firefighters and their work, so much so that firefighters are now legally allowed to ground drones in the event that they deem them to be in the way.