but actually drives it to Liverpool, that will be a taking. The conveyance need not have anyone in it at the time of the taking; merely being a conveyance is sufficient. A conveyance To be a conveyance, the vehicle must have been constructed or adapted to carry a driver (and others, depending on the design) whether by land, water or air (so it includes a hovercraft). Pedal cycles are excluded from section 12(1), but are covered by section 12(5) with reduced penalties, except for one constructed or adapted only for use under the control of a person not carried in or on it. Without the consent of the owner If the vehicle is taken with the owner's knowledge, the owner has consented. But apparent consent can be ignored if obtained by a deception, e.g. giving a false identity when hiring a car. This overlaps with the section 15 offence of obtaining property or services by deception. Taking by force may be robbery when the defendant did not intend the victim to recover the vehicle at all or so seriously damaged it that such conduct amounts to a theft (see section 6). If the evidence is insufficient for theft, the alternative charges are aggravated vehicle taking or blackmail under section 21. Note that section 12(7) protects the interests of people hiring or buying under a hire purchase agreement by deeming them to be the owner for the purposes of section 12. Mens rea The defendant must know that the vehicle has been taken without the owner's consent, and that the accused has either driven the vehicle or been a passenger. Statutory defence This is a statutory version of the so-called claim of right defence which represents an exception to the general rule that ignorantia juris non excusat, i.e. a limited mistake of law defence. Thus, section 12(6) allows a defence where the defendant believes that he has the lawful authority to do it or that he would have the owner's consent if the owner knew of his doing it and the circumstances of it. So, for example, if a vehicle was moved a short distance because it was causing an obstruction, those moving it might reasonably believe that they have lawful authority to remove the obstruction. Attempt Because section 12 is a summary only offence, there can be no attempt, so anticipatory acts are an offence of vehicle interference contrary to