What to do if you get a Speeding Ticket

There are two different ways that you can be caught for speeding in the UK - either by a policeman pointing a speed gun at the side of the road, or by a speed camera.

All traffic offences in the UK require a Notice of Intended Prosecution (NIP) to be issued to allow a prosecution to proceed - meaning that if you are snapped by a camera, the NIP must be issued in writing and must be served within 14 days of the alleged offence. So if you think you've been 'flashed' by a camera, but three weeks passes from the incident and you've received nothing - you're pretty much home and dry.

However you won't have that luxury if you are stopped by a 'hairdryer' toting traffic police officer - he or she can issue you with a verbal NIP and this is considered sufficient by law.

What to do When the Ticket Arrives

If you've been snapped, the NIP should drop onto your doormat within 14 days of the camera recording the offence. This NIP will be issued to the registered keeper of the vehicle and will contain all the pertinent information needed regarding the time, date and location of the offence. The registered keeper has responsibility under the Road Traffic Act 1988 (section 172) to provide the authority with the name of the person driving the vehicle at the time that the offence took place, and will have to complete a driver information form which is included with the NIP.

In recent years, many registered keepers of vehicles involved in speeding offences have taken the 'playing dumb' route to escape speeding fines - claiming that they don't know who was driving the car at the time and requesting photographic evidence from the speed camera involved. As long as the registered keeper has taken reasonable steps to determine who it was, then this is often an end to the matter - especially if the camera has nothing that will stand up in court, and the ticket is often dropped.

However it doesn't always work and it's worth noting that car owners who cannot (or will not) identify the driver of the vehicle can face a fine of up to £1000 and 3 penalty points on their driving licence. Also important is to know that if you are the keeper of the car and you ignore the NIP, the fine can rise from the £60 initial fine for the offence right up to £1000. You can also expect to receive up to 6 points on your licence.

Depending on the circumstances surrounding the offence (how fast you were going is one of the biggest deciding factors), you may be eligible for a conditional offer of fixed penalty.

If you are offered a conditional offer, this means that you can accept that you committed the offence, and take the penalty, pay a fixed fine (usually in the region of around £60), agree to have your licence endorsed with 3 points, and that's an end to the matter. If you wish to do this, follow the steps outlined on the back on the NIP and be more careful next time!

Appealing Against the NIP

If you don't wish to accept the conditional offer and wish to fight the charge, then you can appeal against the charge. Each case is assessed solely on its own merit and you must appeal in writing, stating the reasons that you think the charge is inappropriate. The details of where to send your appeal will be on the back of the NIP.

At this point you should be aware that ignorance is not a defence in the eyes of the law, so saying that you 'didn't know the speed limit' won't wash and the ticket will stand. If you seriously want to appeal the ticket, then you still need to fill in the driver information form and send it back to the issuing party within 28 days. This is a legal requirement and you should do this regardless of the future action that you intend to pursue.

There are very strict guidelines about the positioning and location of speed cameras, and the signage that must be around them. If you feel that you were snapped by a camera that doesn't adhere to these regulations then you might have a case, and should put your issues in writing as described above. Make sure you do enough research first because if you take the issue to court and lose this can turn out to be far more costly than just accepting the consequences of your actions and paying the fine in the first place!

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