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Speeding
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Drivers are under ever greater pressure from new driving legislation and increased monitoring from speed cameras and CCTV. Even the most careful driver can find themselves facing legal situations, often where the charge is questionable or unfair.
Penalty points resulting in speeding offences can increase
your insurance premium considerably.
Fill in our free no obligation enquiry form and let a
solicitor advice you of the possible options available
to you in relation to your speeding offence.
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In all allegations of speeding (except those
alleged on motorways) a person cannot be convicted solely
based upon the evidence of one person’s opinion
However, the police now employ a number of different speed
detection devices to capture speeding motorists and therefore,
the vast majority of cases are now dependent on the accuracy
of readings provided by such devices.
Devices now available to the police include, fixed radar
speed detection devices (speed cameras), hand held radar
guns, hand held laser guns, electric trip wire equipment
and ‘vascar’ devices (devices installed in police vehicles
that enable a police officer to calculate a vehicle’s speed
over a set distance).
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Despite the vast array of devices available
to the police, the police are only permitted to use devices
approved by the Secretary of State. In addition, each device
must be operated in accordance with its manufacturer’s instructions
and in accordance with police guidelines (the ACPO Guidelines).
These guidelines provide strict rules concerning the calibration
of speed detection devices and their proper usage.
The majority of speeding cases are now dealt with under
the fixed penalty scheme where a driver is offered a fixed
number of penalty points and a fine if he admits that he
was speeding. Where a driver accepts a fixed penalty, he
will generally not have the opportunity to check whether
the device was used correctly.
The widespread use of the fixed penalty scheme therefore
means that in the vast majority of cases, the police are
not challenged about the correctness of the procedures they
have followed. As such, where a driver wishes to challenge
the speed alleged, it will be necessary to go to court so
that the evidence of the police can be properly contested.
Drivers may also have a defence to an allegation of speeding
where they drove at speed in circumstances of ‘necessity’
or ‘duress’. Such a defence may be established when a driver
drove at speed in an emergency situation and where he feared
that he was in peril of serious injury or death if he did
not drive at speed.
Speeding offences are punishable by way of a fine and 3-6
penalty points or discretionary disqualification. The Court
will determine how many penalty points to impose or whether
to impose disqualification depending upon how far over the
speed limit the vehicle was being driven at.
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