What are the Rules on Speeding Bookings?

Q.

I was booked for speeding 39mph in a 30mph zone. I received a summons with a choice of a £60 fine or paying £75 and attending a half day safety lecture given by a company from Wales. I paid the £60.

In all this weeks local papers it states motorist caught speeding given option of "No fine or points if agreeable to a 15 minute safety lecture by the patrolman".

Why the discrimination?

A.

If you are booked for speeding, you are usually sent a Notice of Intended Prosecution within a fortnight of the booking. This is sent to the registered owner of the vehicle that was caught speeding, and requires you to either confirm that you were the driver that committed the speeding offence, or to name the person who did. If you were driving at the time of the speeding offence, you can be offered a conditional offer of a fixed penalty. If you pay this fixed penalty, you will not have to go to court.

How Much Will a Fixed Penalty Cost Me?

This will usually amount to a maximum of £60, along with three penalty points on your driving licence. However, if you already have a significant number of penalty points on your licence, you will be summoned to court instead of being offered a conditional offer of a fixed penalty. If your case goes to court, you can be given three to six penalty points on your licence and a discretionary driving ban. The court also reserves the right to impose a fine that is higher than was originally given.

Are There Any Alternatives to a Fixed Penalty?

In some cases, you may offered the opportunity to attend a driving awareness course or workshop, if the police decide that this should be the case. These speed awareness courses are designed to teach drivers the errors of their ways to try to stop them from repeatedly offending, and can replace the speeding fine and penalty points. In most cases, places on these courses will only be offered to drivers who have been caught exceeding the speed limit but not by a significant margin. The course is not free, and will usually cost you between £60 and £100 to attend. Although this is basically the same amount of money as a speeding fine, you will be able to avoid having penalty points on your licence, which can also help with your insurance premiums.

Attending driving awareness courses can be a good alternative to accepting a £60 fine and three penalty points on your licence, especially as this helps to keep your insurance premiums lower. However, not all drivers caught speeding are automatically offered this, as much depends on how far over the speed limit you were when caught.