There is a lot on here about speed cameras and I apologise for starting a new thread, but I really want to know what your experience is.

There have been threads about speeding and what made me think is the mobile camera on Parkway. I was on-call in Rotheram last night, coming home to have dinner at around 9pm and this van is out there. Traffic is not bad at this time of the day and I think 50mph is too slow. I didn't get flashed, but some did. I think it's unfair. Anyway I don't want to dispute whether mobile cameras are good or bad...

I want to know if anyone has any speeding ticket experience. I worked in Newport, Wales before and a colleague of mine adviced (after I just paid my first and only fine) that I should have just kept quite. Put the letters in the shredder, that is. He said because they are sent normal Royal Mail, there's no proof you ever received any. He said in case it goes as far as going to Court, you have to say that you never received any letters. But he said it would never get that far, and after 6 months of quiet you have nothing to worry about.

Does anyone have any experience about this? Does anyone know of anyone who has experience?

It's deeply shrouded in urban mythology, so I'd also be interested to know if anyone has first-hand experience of getting off. However, I suspect we'll get a lot of stories about my someone my auntie's friend's husband used to work with.

I had a ticket once, and I just paid it.

Prolly not the only one to say it, speed limits are there for a reason, and not for individuals to just decide its too slow - you speed and get caught then you should pay the fine and be honest.

Its dishonest people that ruin it for the rest of us.

This is the only thing you need:
http://www.pepipoo.com

whatever anyone else says is almost always going to be pure speculation and what they've 'heard'.

better to pay up.
if u ignore it and they up the fine they can request the local constabulary check your licence against address.
they don't have to prove receipt of the letter in court by the way.

I had a letter which I replied to, but my reply got lost in the post. It went to court - I tried to get them to cancel the hearing by paying the fine beforehand, but they said that once a hearing has been applied for then it has to go ahead. So my case actually did end up in court.

Fortunately, the accepted my excuse that the cheque got "lost in the post", and I only ended up paying the £60 fine, but if I had not followed it up so eagerly before the hearing date then they'd have charged me costs as well.

I got a speeding ticket (on the Parkway with the mobile camera) and just paid up.

Someone later told me that, because I was overtaking at the time, I could have got off ?

Arguing the point (unless you are certain you are in the right) only serves to increase stress, waste time and money IMHO

Originally posted by Hels
I got a speeding ticket (on the Parkway with the mobile camera) and just paid up.

Someone later told me that, because I was overtaking at the time, I could have got off ?

Arguing the point (unless you are certain you are in the right) only serves to increase stress, waste time and money IMHO

Overtaking will not get you off... you shouldnt overtake if it means going over the speed limit.

Prolly not the only one to say it, speed limits are there for a reason, and not for individuals to just decide its too slow - you speed and get caught then you should pay the fine and be honest.

Its dishonest people that ruin it for the rest of us


I had two till now,never accepted them .

I once got caught doing 49 in a 40 zone years ago. A copper pulled me over and gave me the biggest b*llocking I've ever had in my life.

I felt like a five year old and it had a far longer lasting impression that a small fine and three points ever would and I have watched my speed like a hawk ever since.

I was once driving alongside a bus which decided to move over into my lane as he wanted to turn right. I had a choice - get trashed by the bus, or move ahead of it. I moved ahead - and got caught by a mobile speed camera.

I wrote in, and explained the circumstances. I got a standard letter back stating that they saw no reason to pervert the natural course of justice. A fine and 3 points on my licence (my only 3 points).

So, next time you see a bus moving over into your lane stand your ground and stay within the speed limit. If the bus drives you off the road you will have the satisfaction of knowing that it was their fault, and the natural course of justice will see right prevail.

the natural course of justice. That's rich.

I heard earlier, that someones mothers friend, twice removed, by marriage. 'Got off' by writing back on receiving the forms and requesting the photo's (as is an option on the forms) because the car was shared and they couldn't say who had been driving.
They never heard back, the whole thing just went away!

Originally posted by SupraSteve
This is the only thing you need:
http://www.pepipoo.com

whatever anyone else says is almost always going to be pure speculation and what they've 'heard'.

Thanks, I found this link very interesting. I spent the whole afternoon reading forum post and other links.

I don't want to dispute the opinion of "speed limits are there for a purpose" but I'd urge everyone to have a look at the Association of British Drivers' website. (http://www.abd.org.uk/) Speed cameras failed to have any effect on fatalities and are there to generate income. The example on the Parkway is typical for that. There's no safety reason for limiting the speed to 50mph, especially at quite times. I'm far from being an anarchist and especially from being dishonest. And I do not think people who run these websites and fight their convictions aren't either.

MrH - if a bus starts pulling into your lane rather than speed up - why not slow down. Give the bus the right of way? That way you do not break the speed limit and you do not end up having a crash. Cars behind you will also be forced to slow down.

Do not see a problem.

Dragon

I've had three now. Just got to accept that if you go over the speed limit & get caught then tough t*tty.

Unless you're a copper of course!!

Originally posted by willman
they don't have to prove receipt of the letter in court by the way.

Soooo, if you get caught speeding on camera, and they send out the letter, and it actually does get lost in the post, what then?

You will get in to even more trouble because of the postal services incompetence?

Originally posted by Dragon
MrH - if a bus starts pulling into your lane rather than speed up - why not slow down. Give the bus the right of way? That way you do not break the speed limit and you do not end up having a crash. Cars behind you will also be forced to slow down.

Do not see a problem.

Dragon

If a big double decker bus suddenly pulls out into your lane and there no lane to the right of you and you are towards the front end of the bus then you may have no option but to speed up. Especially if there are cars behind you. So there may be times when speeding is necessary.

Originally posted by whotookindy
There have been threads about speeding and what made me think is the mobile camera on Parkway. I was on-call in Rotheram last night, coming home to have dinner at around 9pm and this van is out there. Traffic is not bad at this time of the day and I think 50mph is too slow.
I saw the mobile camera there today. And then, about 100m further on, I saw some bunches of flowers laid on the grass verge by the side of the road. Seems somebody wasn't going too slow.

Originally posted by Jamie
Soooo, if you get caught speeding on camera, and they send out the letter, and it actually does get lost in the post, what then?

You will get in to even more trouble because of the postal services incompetence?
No, you do like I did, explain what happened in your defence and if you get a decent judge (which most are) then you'll be let off with the fine alone, so you'll be no worse off than if you'd paid on receipt of the letter, except that it'll cost tax payers a lot more money but that's OK because they can always recoup it with a few more speed cameras.

Originally posted by DanSumption
I saw the mobile camera there today. And then, about 100m further on, I saw some bunches of flowers laid on the grass verge by the side of the road. Seems somebody wasn't going too slow.

I've no doubt that there are people who drive way above the speed limit. And I do agree, that they should be stopped for dangerous driving (this including excessive speeding and other ways of dangerous driving). But if someone did say 60mph on that stretch of road (50mph limit) at 8-9 in the evening, attracting 3 point and £60 fine, that is hardly dangerous driving. Putting a mobile camera up there is clearly money making or stealth taxing! Don't you agree?

Originally posted by whotookindy
Putting a mobile camera up there is clearly money making or stealth taxing! Don't you agree?
Not entirely. I agree that 60mph at that time of day probably isn't dangerous (although I saw the camera there at around 5pm, I don't know whether it is still there at 8-9pm or whether they are catching people doing 60mph). But I also think that the limits have to be set somewhere, and that with current technology it's not practical to vary them throughout the day.

More than a money-making scheme, I think the increasing prevalence of cameras is a large-scale re-education scheme which will take quite some time to take effect, but which ought to eventually make people realise that they can't speed with impunity anywhere. I don't think that the current bright yellow, easily spotted cameras are a good way of going about it, but unfortunately they are something that the driving lobby seem to have forced upon us. Nor am I a big fan of the one size fits all points/fine system, I think infringements like the one you mention should attract one or two points only, but major infringements should lead to near or total ban.

And for the record, I have been "done" myself three times in the last five years, all for what I consider relatively minor infringements (one of which was indeed doing 62 in a 50mph zone - through roadworks on the M1, at 4am, when I had three lanes to myself for a couple of miles in either direction). But the re-education is working, albeit slowly, and I pay a lot more attention to speed limits now.

When I got done 3 years ago, I was told to send off a cheque for more than the fine was i.e. £65. Apparently they send you a refund for the difference and they can't process the points part until the fine has been balanced. If you don't bank the cheque they can't put the points on your licence!!

I didn't try it - I'm a wuss!!

Originally posted by Jamie
Soooo, if you get caught speeding on camera, and they send out the letter, and it actually does get lost in the post, what then?

You will get in to even more trouble because of the postal services incompetence?

u normally get more than one letter so u will be contacted before the court date. so u could argue the loss of the letter if the first time they contacted u was for court.

Originally posted by spyro2000
If a big double decker bus suddenly pulls out into your lane and there no lane to the right of you and you are towards the front end of the bus then you may have no option but to speed up. Especially if there are cars behind you. So there may be times when speeding is necessary.

in your particular scenario it would not be relevant to have speed camera where buses park/stop.
u can also debate your phot if the evidence has more than one vehicle in sight.
ie 3 lane motorway all passing the camera at the same time.

Originally posted by rebekahmc
When I got done 3 years ago, I was told to send off a cheque for more than the fine was i.e. £65. Apparently they send you a refund for the difference and they can't process the points part until the fine has been balanced. If you don't bank the cheque they can't put the points on your licence!!

I didn't try it - I'm a wuss!!

This is yet another 'urban myth' I'm afraid. See the website I posted a link to early in this thread - it has the facts, everything else is hearsay IMHO. HTH. :)