Got Caught doing 40mph...

[Rack]

I don't want to start a debate about taking responsability, etc etc.... but here goes

I got caught doing 40mph in a 30mph zone by a speed camera... hmphh... and guess what, on the exact day I sold the car! I was getting it washed ffs, had to get back to work, just following traffic... I mean 30mph on a dual carriage way is a joke! I hate these 'speed limits for peak hours'... so nobody tell me that I would have killed a child, they would have been dead to get that far down a dual carriageway anyway.

anyway, I've since found out if I'd been caught doing 39 that I would get a comparitable slap on the wrist, which I think is a joke. Is the camera that accurate? My speedo certainly isn't...

I am a safe driver normally, I have taken a couple of driving courses over the years. My first speeding offence in 6years of driving. I guess I have to take the brunt, but is there any point in contesting? Could I get it down to 2points?

Help please!

[Agent]

I don’t know if its even possible, but if you can obtain a copy of the photos, it’s a easy task to work out your speed by comparing the two, provided they have time stamps on them.

Otherwise, don’t cameras have to be calibrated every X months / years with a certificate? – don’t really know. You’ll need to wait for some input off someone else.

[Swafe]

Cameras are more accurate than speedos, speedos are generally + about 2/3 mph depending on make, if it says you was doing 40, you was probably doing 37, camera has +10%, so the cut off will be about 33mph (Or 35-36 on your speedo).

Althought it may not have been school time, and there were no kids about to justify the 30 limit instead of the normal 40, I doubt very much the police will let you off with the points, the speed limits are set in stone almost and they cant change for 1 person to another, you forgot about how fast you was going, next time you could have forgot it was coming out of school time, and knocked poor little timmy over, contest it if you may, but the government, as always, are arses that grab your money

[shiato storm]

data protections act means you can request and get the images. There is a clause somewhere that if 'they' fail to show sufficient evidence of your speed at the time of alledged offence they cannot issue a fine.
i agree its crap they impose a speed limit on what would essentially be the most danergous place for a child to go playing. any child that does play there deserves to get run over for being so bloody stupid! any their parents too...

demand evidence, by law they cannot with hold that. and it must be legitimate, not a slip of paper 'saying' it. the point about camera calibration is also worth noting. how likely is it they 'nudged' the calibration so anyone in you position is stung full fine rather than a cautionary warning. there must also be a discrepancy between the speedo in your car and that of the calibration on the camera. but be aware the well versed saying 'ignorance is not an excuse'...just so you know. hope it all goes ok

[shiato storm]

but the government, as always, are arses that grab your money

well, its not that they're going to go around grabbing arses are they? no, they let loads of them into the country willi-nilly and let them off for serious offences. but thats another matter entirely...

[badass]

Nice bunch of responses from people that really dont have a clue what he should do
Head to www.pepipoo.com and take to people that actually know what they are talking about and are either legally qualified or have gotten several people off speeding tickets.
Shiato storm - they only have to show you the evidence if you decide to not take the fixed penalty and risk a higher fine and court costs on top of that.
This comes from a person who has fought the system twice and has scored 1-1

[Swafe]

well, its not that they're going to go around grabbing arses are they? no, they let loads of them into the country willi-nilly and let them off for serious offences. but thats another matter entirely...

But they make money from cameras, and they dont make money from locking up murderers

If they fined murderers 20K as well as putting them in jail, damn, the world would be a better place.

[Rack]

Hmmm.... OK, looks like I'll have to get the photo's, see what's happening.

BTW it was a speed camera, not the police (surprise surprise).

Thanks for the advice.

[5lab]

But they make money from cameras, and they dont make money from locking up murderers

If they fined murderers 20K as well as putting them in jail, damn, the world would be a better place.

the total profit from speed cameras is chicken feed on the grand scheme of things..

speed cameras *are not* 100% accurate - due to discrepancies in wind speed etc, they can not be - but this is part of the reason behind 10% +3mph - at the very least you were probably doing 32mph which is still illegal. some counties may offer you a course rather than points, but it depends..

[Koolpc]

You could chop the Speed camera down and sell it on Ebay to help with the fine!! lol

I have had 2 fines in a year!!! Really peeved but i was speeding so it is my own doing! 10mph is still speeding. I hate speed cameras but i think that if they are placed in areas where children go to school etc then that is a good thing. To put them out in the wilds where only sheep cross the road is pathetic!!

[5lab]

You could chop the Speed camera down and sell it on Ebay to help with the fine!! lol

I have had 2 fines in a year!!! Really peeved but i was speeding so it is my own doing! 10mph is still speeding. I hate speed cameras but i think that if they are placed in areas where children go to school etc then that is a good thing. To put them out in the wilds where only sheep cross the road is pathetic!!

speed cameras are apparently only put places where accidents causing fatalities have happened in the last 3 (i think) years.. they're not just positioned randomly (i'm pretty sure this is the case)

if you hit a sheep at 60, i recon you'd be lucky to come out unscathed

[Koolpc]

Well, where i live the cameras are everywhere!! I think they should be given contraceptives!! They are breeding like mad!! lol

[Rack]

Here we go...

Thing is that it's not speeding ALONE that kills, it's speeding and driving stupidly, driving tired, drunk, etc etc... You don't get killed by speeding, you get killed speeding and overtaking around a blind corner, or just speeding around a blind corner, or across intersections. It doesn't take into account the situation. People who speed near schools, busy pedestrian areas, in parkinglots are asking for it. But a dual carriageway during offpeak is not the same.

Beleive me there are quite a few speed cameras on nice flat long dual carriageways, not to prevent deaths (which rarely occur in front-bumper to rear-bumper accidents on dual carriageways) but to prevent traffic jams. They put 30mph zones on dual carriageways because there's accidents there often because of stopped traffic during peak hour.

True some are in good spots, but not all. And it's never a valid replacement for traffic police, which have been cut dramatically in the last 20 years.

I would have felt a lot better being pulled over by the police, getting told off, and getting a fine. Then at least they have a chance to asses the situation. But getting a letter in the post 2 weeks later feels... ugh

[Butuz]

Just take it on the chin, like a man.

At the end of the day if you failed to notice the 8ft high bright yellow flashy box at the side of the road you were speeding on, its no one's fault but your own?

Butuz

[schmunk]

Just take it on the chin, like a man.

Butuz

Agreed.

You broke the law, you got caught. Accept your punishment. Don't do it again.


Of course you could always grow a moustache, tell them you're a Policeman and that you were 'testing the capabilities of the vehicle'

[Rack]

Of course you could always grow a moustache, tell them you're a Policeman and that you were 'testing the capabilities of the vehicle'

LOL

Yeah, I know, I'm about to post off my info, I'm not looking for an easy way out of the fine, just thought the 6 points is a bit harsh, when if I was doing 39mph I would get 2 points only; seems absolutely rediculous.