Speeding offence advice 15 September 2022 at 10:18PM in Motoring 16 replies 1.2K views

m17936

Dear members, I am a surgeon and I was called to attend a time critical patient who had got stabbed in the chest at the major trauma centre. When riding to the hospital I was caught at 66mph in a 40 mph road. I was the only one on the road, it was sunny and dry and I needed to get to the hospital to save the patient. My licence is clean as I never speed except, sadly, on this occasion.  I got a letter from the police asking to identify the driver. What is the best course of action in this situation? And the likely outcome. Many thanks. I regret deeply speeding, even if it was to save a man. 

MX5huggy

Reply to identify yourself. Then wait for the likely court summons. You’re not going to get a course offered or the simple 3 points and £100 fine. Decide if you want to employ a lawyer to help you or just go in being contrite with your mitigation on your own. https://www.evo.co.uk/advice/18773/uk-speeding-fines-2022-what-are-the-latest-penalties-for-drivers?amp

TadleyBaggie

The Magistrates Guideline for sentencing has this as a personal mitigation:

• Genuine emergency established

So unless you could persuade the police to drop the prosecution, it will almost certainly require you to take it to court, plead guilty and offer the above as mitigation.

TooManyPoints

There is a statutory exemption to the speeding legislation contained in s.87 of the Road Traffic Offfenders' Act. It says this:

87Exemption of fire brigade, ambulance and police vehicles from speed limits.

(1)]No statutory provision imposing a speed limit on motor vehicles shall apply to any vehicle on an occasion when it is being used for fire and rescue authority], for ambulance purposes or police purposes, if the observance of that provision would be likely to hinder the use of the vehicle for the purpose for which it is being used on that occasion.

Section 19 of the Road Safety Act 2006 contains a similar provision.

There was a government consultation a few years ago which discussed expanding the range of vehicle use eligible for speed limit exemption (to include things like paramedics, blood transfusion, bomb disposal) but I don't know the outcome.

You will almost certainly need the help of a specialist motoring lawyer to persuade the court that your vehicle was being used for "ambulance purposes" or that some other exemption should apply (and you will need evidence to show the events that you explained here). The problem is that in law an ambulance is defined as a vehicle "designed for the transport of sick or injured people to a place for medical treatment" and unless there has been an extension following the consultation it will probably be a big ask to get a court to acquit you.

If that isn't a possibility, Magistrates have the discretion to find that there are "Special Reasons not to Endorse or Disqualify" and this may have a better chance. This means you must plead guilty but persuade the court that those reasons exist. Again a lawyer will probably be better placed to put this to the court. It may be worth an initial consultation to establish the likelihood of success with either strategy as, for that speed, you are looking at six points and a hefty fine.

ChesterDog

m17936 said:

...stabbed in the chest at the major trauma centre. 

Well if it's going to happen somewhere...

cooldude255220

TooManyPoints said:

There is a statutory exemption to the speeding legislation contained in s.87 of the Road Traffic Offfenders' Act. It says this:

87Exemption of fire brigade, ambulance and police vehicles from speed limits.

(1)]No statutory provision imposing a speed limit on motor vehicles shall apply to any vehicle on an occasion when it is being used for fire and rescue authority], for ambulance purposes or police purposes, if the observance of that provision would be likely to hinder the use of the vehicle for the purpose for which it is being used on that occasion.

Section 19 of the Road Safety Act 2006 contains a similar provision.

There was a government consultation a few years ago which discussed expanding the range of vehicle use eligible for speed limit exemption (to include things like paramedics, blood transfusion, bomb disposal) but I don't know the outcome.

You will almost certainly need the help of a specialist motoring lawyer to persuade the court that your vehicle was being used for "ambulance purposes" or that some other exemption should apply (and you will need evidence to show the events that you explained here). The problem is that in law an ambulance is defined as a vehicle "designed for the transport of sick or injured people to a place for medical treatment" and unless there has been an extension following the consultation it will probably be a big ask to get a court to acquit you.

If that isn't a possibility, Magistrates have the discretion to find that there are "Special Reasons not to Endorse or Disqualify" and this may have a better chance. This means you must plead guilty but persuade the court that those reasons exist. Again a lawyer will probably be better placed to put this to the court. It may be worth an initial consultation to establish the likelihood of success with either strategy as, for that speed, you are looking at six points and a hefty fine.

The Deregulation Act 2015 amended the legislation to include an exemption for a vehicle which "is being used for the purpose of providing a response to an emergency at the request of an NHS ambulance service" (which is, in England, defined as "an NHS trust or NHS foundation trust established under the National Health Service Act 2006 which has a function of providing ambulance services"). Whether or not the OP was providing a response at the request of an NHS ambulance service (rather than, for example, a hospital trust, is another question).

TooManyPoints

The Deregulation Act 2015 amended the legislation to include an exemption for a vehicle which "is being used for the purpose of providing a response to an emergency at the request of an NHS ambulance service"...

Thanks for that - I must keep up!

I note there is still a strong reference to "ambulance services". It is not entirely clear from the OP but I get the idea that the patient was already at a hospital (or place of treatment) and so would not have required an "ambulance service". It would be handy if the OP was to come back and let us know what he thinks of the comments so far.

user1977

I wouldn't interpret "medical staff travelling to their place of work" as being any part of an "ambulance service". If the law had intended those types of journeys also to be exempt if sufficiently urgent, I'd expect something more specific to have been put into legislation.

TooManyPoints

I wouldn't interpret "medical staff travelling to their place of work" as being any part of an "ambulance service".

No, nor would I. But the legislation doesn't seem to require the vehicle to be used as part of an ambulance service. It makes an exception for a vehicle being driven "....for the purpose of providing a response to an emergency at the request of an NHS ambulance service”;

I still think it's a stretch, nonetheless, as I cannot imagine an ambulance serve requesting a response for an emergency where the patient is already at a hospital.

user1977

TooManyPoints said:

I wouldn't interpret "medical staff travelling to their place of work" as being any part of an "ambulance service".

No, nor would I. But the legislation doesn't seem to require the vehicle to be used as part of an ambulance service. It makes an exception for a vehicle being driven "....for the purpose of providing a response to an emergency at the request of an NHS ambulance service”;

I still think it's a stretch, nonetheless, as I cannot imagine an ambulance serve requesting a response for an emergency where the patient is already at a hospital.

Yes, it would probably cover a doctor (or other staff) attending as a first responder to the scene of an incident.

lisyloo

I would suggest checking your home insurance as to whether you have legal cover.
then next check the detail to see if it cover motoring offences.
if it does give them a call and speak to a professional.

I would check both motoring and home.