First Time Speeding Ticket Help Needed!!

lucid2008

You would think no one has ever gone over the speed limit or had a lapse in concentration in their life.

Crabman

Hi graemewh, I've moved your thread to the Motoring Board for a better response

You will find helpful info on: www.Pepipoo.com

Hi, Martin’s asked me to post this in these circumstances: I’ve asked Board Guides to move threads if they’ll receive a better response elsewhere (please see this rule) so this post/thread has been moved to another board, where it should get more replies. If you have any questions about this policy please email [EMAIL="abuse@moneysavingexpert.com"]abuse@moneysavingexpert.com[/EMAIL].

Moon_Boi

Mikeyorks wrote: »

Having been caught, over the years, by a police car hidden behind a bush adjacent to a Mway overhead bridge / by a policeman lurking behind a parked (civilian) car and - last year - by a policeman standing behind a garden wall in a little village in the Highlands

Filthy PIGS!!!

Hintza

Crabman wrote: »

Hi graemewh, I've moved your thread to the Motoring Board for a better response

Translation:-

You won't get slagged off quite as much.

See the holier than though brigade have been busy on this one.

gregory77

graemewh wrote: »

I have recieved a letter stating I was caught by a LASTEC camera doing 39 in a 30mph zone, i know the area of te road and it doesnt have a fixed camera and there wasnt a visible camera present, I am not sure what to do as its my first speeding penalty and I am 100% sure I didnt seeany policeman holding a camera

If you want to avoid to pay you can declare that you were not the driver. Give the address of a friend abroad they will send them the penalty and there wont be any follow up if not paid nor points taken

bargepole

gregory77 wrote: »

If you want to avoid to pay you can declare that you were not the driver. Give the address of a friend abroad they will send them the penalty and there wont be any follow up if not paid nor points taken

Only follow this advice if you have a liking for porridge, and are adept at picking up soap with your toes. This is Perverting The Course Of Justice, and will carry a far stiffer penalty than any motoring offence.

You have received a NIP, together with a form requiring you to nominate the driver. You have 28 days to return it, use them all. In the meantime, write to the camera office, requesting photos to "assist with identification of the driver".

If you get some, post them up on the forums at pepipoo, and we can tell you if there's anything wrong with the "ping" and whether it's worth fighting.

Oh, and to all the self-righteous brigade saying "don't speed and you won't get a ticket" - complete rubbish, look at how our public servants tried to stitch this bloke up: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/motoring/article-1122042/Motorist-beats-98mph-speeding-charge--buying-car-proving-manage-speed-85mph.html

Gordon861

First question
What is the date of the offence ?

Second question
What is the date of the letter ?

The police have 14 days after the offence takes place to issue a 'Notice of Intended Prosecution' (NIP), or make a reasonable attempt to do so. If they fail to do this they cannot prosecute you for the offence. The NIP must be in writing or verbally at the time they stop you.

Back to general speeding is bad/good arguement.
Speeding is an easy offence to prosecute as it is totally yes/no and it's often hard to dispute 'real' evidence, it's also made easier by the fact that you can gather the evidence remotely and covertly so you have a better chance of catching people.

The 40mph outside a school arguement is always bought up by the people in favour of more cameras, but I would argue that the offence then shouldn't be speeding it should be Dangerous Driving for which they could give you a much stiffer penalty. The problem is that Dangerous Driving actually takes a lot more work to prosecute and is a more subjective offense rather than a straight yes/no in most cases. Much easier to hit them for speeding and get another prosecution.

No one can argue that the roads have become more dangerous in the last 20years and the general quality of driving has gone down. You also can't argue that the vehicle testing proceedures and driving tests have become better. So with better testing/training the roads should be getting better not worse. The big difference today is that there are a lot less Traffic Police on the road per normal member of the public than there used to be, and the ones that are there are often looking for speeders, seatbelts etc. Or playing 'The Sweeney' on Police Stop!

Throbbe

Gordon861 wrote: »

No one can argue that the roads have become more dangerous in the last 20years and the general quality of driving has gone down. You also can't argue that the vehicle testing proceedures and driving tests have become better. So with better testing/training the roads should be getting better not worse. The big difference today is that there are a lot less Traffic Police on the road per normal member of the public than there used to be, and the ones that are there are often looking for speeders, seatbelts etc. Or playing 'The Sweeney' on Police Stop!

Erm, on the 'more dangerous' point I would argue actually. http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/statistics/datatablespublications/accidents/casualtiesgbar/roadcasualtiesgreatbritain20071

Road casualties are generally falling in numbers, against a growth in car use.

Now whether that's a function of speed enforcement, safer cars or in fact a large number of factors is open to debate.

lovethymini

MaximumImpact wrote: »

That comment has quite angered me...My OH is a traffic officer and he doesnt see this as an easy way of not doing his job. Perhaps you would like to do his job??? I have lost count of the number of times that he has come home, quiet and subdued because he has had to knock on someones door and give them news that has destroyed their world.

You have absolutely no idea what a traffic officer does do you??? And I bet you wouldnt have the guts to do it either??

Could you pick up body parts off of a road, could you come home and pretend that it hasn't affected you and then go in the next day and do it all over again????

Speed tickets are the least of their worries and the smallest part of their job. So get your facts right before you make sweeping statements.

Ask a traffic officer, ambulance tech, paramedic, fire officer, what they have seen as a result of speeding rather than some know it all on a speeding forum and then try doing a day in their shoes. If you cant or wouldnt, then slow down or at least be prepared to take the consequences if you get caught.

Please accept my apologies, Maximum Impact. My opinion was not intended to offend and I have rephrased accordingly.
Incidently, I do know what a traffic officer does.
I also read up on statistics of road casualties and feel frustrated at the obsession that our nanny state has with speeding, and the way the media dramatises it.
If you read my post you will see that I am not a "reckless speeder", I merely think that speed limits need to be reviewed as road uses and users change through the years.
Oh, and most of the reckless drivers that I see on the roads are the "harmless sort" who've never broken a speed limit in their lives but rarely use their mirrors, have various distractions in their cars such as mobile phones and satnavs, make-up, or simply don't know how to position themselves correctly. I've lost count of the number of times I've seen a driver plodding down the road completely oblivious to the flashing blue lights tearing up behind them needing to get past. I've lost count of the number of times someone has pulled out onto my lane on the motorway because they didn't check their blind spot.

I think your OH is doing a tremendous job and I have a lot of respect for that.

Enfieldian

MaximumImpact wrote: »

That comment has quite angered me...My OH is a traffic officer and he doesnt see this as an easy way of not doing his job. Perhaps you would like to do his job??? I have lost count of the number of times that he has come home, quiet and subdued because he has had to knock on someones door and give them news that has destroyed their world.

You have absolutely no idea what a traffic officer does do you??? And I bet you wouldnt have the guts to do it either??

Could you pick up body parts off of a road, could you come home and pretend that it hasn't affected you and then go in the next day and do it all over again????

Speed tickets are the least of their worries and the smallest part of their job. So get your facts right before you make sweeping statements.

Ask a traffic officer, ambulance tech, paramedic, fire officer, what they have seen as a result of speeding rather than some know it all on a speeding forum and then try doing a day in their shoes. If you cant or wouldnt, then slow down or at least be prepared to take the consequences if you get caught.

I can appreciate that the police may require dedicated, trained drivers for pursuits etc, but it is what they do to fill in the time between that annoys people.

I have recently seen a number of "speed traps" set up in unusual places, around corners, in dips in the road etc, manned by 4 or 5 white capped traffic officers, regular local PCs and PCSOs. The general impression is that they are just on a revenue raising exercise as the site is usually there for one day and gone the next.

All police officers have to serve their first two years in uniform, on the beat, preventing and persuing crime. This is what we, the public who pay their wages, want to see more of. Those that join solely with the intention of graduating into traffic divisions are usually speed obsessed tyrants. They are not known as "Black Rats" for nothing.

As for picking up body parts, surely your OH knew this was going to form part of the job before he applied for the transfer? I don't think that should fall to the police to take care of but one assumes that a coroner is not always available in time.

The current impression of the police in this country is that if your car is stolen or broken into, they do not want to know however if you dare to drive it yourself, over the speed limit, they will be all over you.