Intented prosecution - Exceed 50mph Motorway temp restriction (Roadworks) -ACD
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Hi
Caution: Long post.
Sorting out my mail from the last 2 weeks, just noticed that among lots of letters and cards, I've received:
A Notice of Intented prosecution - Exceed 50mph Motorway temporary restriction (Roadworks) - ACD at 3:57 am on 05/08/2010.
Recorded speed is 61mph on the M1 between junctions 11 and 10 (south)
I may have oversped and overlooked a camera at this spot but the circumstances were:
I had to visit Birmingham on 04/08/10 evening as my mother had an urge to see her sister who was due to depart to US on 05/08. I was due to return back home (Basildon, Essex) in the morning of 05/08.
I got a call in the middle of night from my 9 months pregnant wife (I know it was not wise to leave her in the first place but took a chance) that she is feeling lots of pains and needs to go to hospital (who won't send an ambulance). She also had my 4 year old daughter at home who needed to be taken care of, so my wife was in great difficulty.
So I set off from Birmingham straight away (at about 2:45am) in the night to be with my wife (in Basildon) ASAP. The motorways were nearly empty at this time of night.
My friend in the meantime took my wife to hospital and by the time I reached Basildon hospital (just before 5 am), my wife was already admitted (all proofs from hospital available).
The baby had some erratic heartbeats, but with wonderful support at the hospital, the baby was born in the wee hours of 08/08/10.
I spoke to Bedfordshire police and they claim they cannot revoke the ticket. They want me to confirm the driver plus give my intention of the 3 options:
1. £60 and 3 penalty points (NO WAY!!).
2. Speed awareness course (£67), no points
3. Court procedure: Plead mitigation circumstances to court.
What do you think is my best option here? I tried to explain to the call centre operator but she was not willing to listen. She said go to court who may decrease or even increase the penalty but the speed awareness course is only available now, and cannot be opted later on! Do I have a chance in courts? How much will it cost?
First time in my driving history of 15 years have I received something like this and have no idea how to deal with it.
Any constructive comments from experience as well as any law experts' comments are most welcome.
Many thanks in advance..
Caution: Long post.
Sorting out my mail from the last 2 weeks, just noticed that among lots of letters and cards, I've received:
A Notice of Intented prosecution - Exceed 50mph Motorway temporary restriction (Roadworks) - ACD at 3:57 am on 05/08/2010.
Recorded speed is 61mph on the M1 between junctions 11 and 10 (south)
I may have oversped and overlooked a camera at this spot but the circumstances were:
I had to visit Birmingham on 04/08/10 evening as my mother had an urge to see her sister who was due to depart to US on 05/08. I was due to return back home (Basildon, Essex) in the morning of 05/08.
I got a call in the middle of night from my 9 months pregnant wife (I know it was not wise to leave her in the first place but took a chance) that she is feeling lots of pains and needs to go to hospital (who won't send an ambulance). She also had my 4 year old daughter at home who needed to be taken care of, so my wife was in great difficulty.
So I set off from Birmingham straight away (at about 2:45am) in the night to be with my wife (in Basildon) ASAP. The motorways were nearly empty at this time of night.
My friend in the meantime took my wife to hospital and by the time I reached Basildon hospital (just before 5 am), my wife was already admitted (all proofs from hospital available).
The baby had some erratic heartbeats, but with wonderful support at the hospital, the baby was born in the wee hours of 08/08/10.
I spoke to Bedfordshire police and they claim they cannot revoke the ticket. They want me to confirm the driver plus give my intention of the 3 options:
1. £60 and 3 penalty points (NO WAY!!).
2. Speed awareness course (£67), no points
3. Court procedure: Plead mitigation circumstances to court.
What do you think is my best option here? I tried to explain to the call centre operator but she was not willing to listen. She said go to court who may decrease or even increase the penalty but the speed awareness course is only available now, and cannot be opted later on! Do I have a chance in courts? How much will it cost?
First time in my driving history of 15 years have I received something like this and have no idea how to deal with it.
Any constructive comments from experience as well as any law experts' comments are most welcome.
Many thanks in advance..
0
Comments
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Option 2.......0
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Speed awareness course.
You'd only get away with the pregnancy thing if your wife was with you in the car, and you were driving her to the hospital.0 -
Either take the points or do the course. By your own admission you were speeding through the roadworks. That it was 4am makes no difference and a judge is not going to let you off a speeding ticket because your wife was in hospital. If you were conveying her to hospital you might have a case, but you weren't.0
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Magistrates court is a bit of a lottery but you are right that the call centre are just civil servants and thus can't deviate from procedure. Only the court can decide if your mitigating circumstances are acceptable.
The lowest risk option is to take the speed awareness course. the only real downside is that you can only do on once every 3 years so if you get another speeding ticket, perhaps one without mitigating circumstances, then you'll have to take the fine+points option.
No-one can really advise you what to do as it's entirely up to you if you are prepared to take the risk. Only thing I will say is it will be in a court local to where the "offence" was comitted, so you should weigh up any travel and accomodation costs that you wont recover against the cost of the course which can usually be taken locally (check the course offer. It varies)
edit: Also nice to hear that they wont send out an ambulance for a pregnancy now. They wouldn't send one out for me either when I had been sick for 3 weeks and developed tachycardia. I ended up having to drive myself which was bloody dangerous. turned out I had a blood borne infection and was on an antibiotic drip in hospital for 3 days, then another 2 weeks in hospital due to complications.
And then they had the cheek to moan that my car was poorly parked and left there for 2 weeks.0 -
You have the choice of taking a day off, taking the Speed awareness course and carrying on with life.
Or take a day off, repeat your excuse for breaking the law to some old magistrate who has heard more excuses for breaking the law than you can imagine and might have heartburn from lunch.
Depends on how lucky you think you are.
The speed awareness course is actually useful in reviewing some of the things you may have forgotten since you passed your driving test. Speaking from experience here.0 -
This site should also auto filter on "self-obsessed and judgemental people".
I was NOT wrong and under similar circumstances, would do the SAME THING AGAIN!!0 -
You broke the law, you sped through roadworks. You were in the wrong.
The roadworkers are protected as they work so close to the road, whilst you may not have caused an accident I live close enough to see the delays everyday from the others who do.
If you were not in the wrong, take the day in Court. I bet you don't.0 -
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