To be prosecuted or not?

warwicktiger

My friend had an accicident last week. The policeman on scene said there may be a prosecution for driving without due car and attention,

Is there a time limit for the police to notify intention to prosecute and how do they do it please?

Aretnap

There's no requirement for a written notice of intended prosecution if he was warned at the time of the incident that he might be prosecuted (a "verbal NIP"), or for that matter if the allegation involved an accident. In order to prosecute him they would have to lay information with the court within 6 months of the alleged offence; it can be a few weeks after that before an actual summons arrives. They would sometimes want to interview him before prosecuting, but if he was spoken to at the scene that might not be necessary. So he could be in for long wait. In the meantime it would be a good idea for him to write down everything he can remember about the accident and keep it in a safe place, just in case he needs it in a few months.

Strider590

There's no time limit, they have 6 months to do the paperwork (but you won't know anything about this), but they can summon to court any time as long as they don't miss that window.

In practice though if you hear nothing within 6 months, nothing will happen.

warwicktiger

Thanks for the replies. She is in for a long anxious wait.