News4 mins ago
Unfair Notice Of Intended Prosecution
Asking for a friend, who was driving up the motorway at 1:48 AM in the early hours of Saturday morning, at 70mph. As you might imagine, the motorway was empty and she was in the inside lane. A Gatso speed camera appeared showing 40 mph across all four lanes, and an electronic picture showing queues ahead. Seeing far ahead, she saw no queue as yet. She took off her accelerator and did not slam her brakes, as there were cars behind her, also on the inside lane.
A flash appeared and she thought "What the ...???" She checked her speedo and it was just over 50mph (because she had taken off the accelerator). Literally half a mile later, another electronic sign showed end of restriction (the "0" symbol). She had not seen any cars ahead in that time - there was no queue.
(As I said, "Seeing far ahead, she saw no queue as yet." In fact there was nobody ahead at all, because if there had been, my friend would have seen their flash, and braked herself"! As no doubt the drivers behind did, thanks to her misfortune.)
Today she received a "Notice of Intended Prosecution" showing that she was caught doing 52mph in a 40mph zone at 1:48 AM on Saturday. This seems ridiculous. What should she do?
Answers
pay it, do the course if you can, there is no defence.Auto nicking systems have no judgement. In the days before the cameras a plod could use his judgement and unless he was jobsworth of the week he would have not bothered in this case. An automated system has no such judgement.If you fight it then it will just cost more, the offence is clear.
11:22 Wed 10th Jul 2024
we are now over 100, the answer I gave at no 2 was
"pay it, do the course if you can, there is no defence.
Auto nicking systems have no judgement. In the days before the cameras a plod could use his judgement and unless he was jobsworth of the week he would have not bothered in this case. An automated system has no such judgement.
If you fight it then it will just cost more, the offence is clear."
I am amazed there has been so much waffle since then.
// I don't think you get the option of taking the course.//
Yes - you don't always get the option. I was fined/points doing 56 after missing a 40 sign on the M42. No mention was made of the course.
The sign I missed must have been immediately after leaving the M6(toll) toll booth. The congestion that triggered the 40 limit had cleared before I reached it.
"When the speed limit is broken by a lot I don't think you get the option of taking the course. It's automatically points and a fine."
Courses are normally offered up to (Limit + 10% + 9mph) naomi. A driver can only do one course in three years (with the dates of the offences being used to calculate that period). Dorset police do not participate in the National Driver Offender Retraining Scheme (NDORS) but instead run their own scheme (don't know why). So a driver can do two courses in three years if one of them is committed in Dorset. Courses are not offered at all in Scotland.
Beyond those speeds a Fixed Penalty (£100 and 3 points) is offered, but only up to a certain speed. My table below gives the details (which will hopefully put this thread and the rest of us put out of our misery).
Enforcement begins at:
24mph (20mph limit)
35mph (30)
46mph (40)
57mph (50)
68mph (60)
79mph (70)
Courses are offered for speeds between:
24-31mph (20 mph limit)
35-42mph (30)
46-53mph (40)
57-64mph (50)
68-75mph (60)
79-86mph (70)
Fixed Penalties (£100 and 3 points) are offered for speeds between:
32-34mph (20)
43-49mph (30)
54-65mph (40)
65-75mph (50)
76-85mph (60)
87-95mph (70)
Beyond those speeds prosecution in court takes place. The maximum penalty for speeding is a fine of £1,000, or £2,500 if on a motorway. Fines are income related and the maximum suggested in the guidance is 1.5 week's net income (subject to the statutory maximums, above). If a defendant enters an early guilty plea he is entitled to a one third discount off the fine. Offenders also pay a surcharge of 40% of the fine and prosecution costs (usually around £90 with a guilty plea and around £650 if convicted following a trial). The court will also impose between three and six points or impose a disqualification for a period as it sees fit.
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