The government has issued its latest crackdown on speeding in Britain. You might not know but these new measures have been in force since April so if you’ve been caught since then, there’s a chance you’ve already felt the brunt of this change.
If you’ve ever been fined for speeding before, you’ll know that fines are generally based off of your weekly income. Up until April, the most you could be fined for speeding was 100% of your weekly income. This was capped at £1000 on regular roads and £2500 on motorways. Since April, though, the percentage of your weekly income you could be fined has been increased to 150%. However, the caps have remained the same at £1000 and £2500 for regular roads and motorways respectively.
This increase only applies to serious cases of speeding, though. The government has defined what a serious case of speeding is:
- 20mph Limit; driving 41mph or faster.
- 30mph Limit; driving 51mph or faster.
- 40mph Limit; driving 66mph or faster.
- 50mph Limit; driving 76mph or faster.
- 60mph Limit; driving 91mph or faster.
- 70mph Limit; driving 101mph or faster.
This doesn’t mean that you can’t face an increased fine if you’re below these levels, though! A judge will take into account a variety of other factors when deciding upon a fine. These include the location of the speeding, reasons behind the infraction, and possible impairments on the driver’s behalf. Ultimately, if a judge believes that the guidelines prevent a correct sentence from being given, they can rule outside the guidelines. This will only be done in extreme cases, though.
The government are concerned that road casualty numbers have remained virtually unchanged year-on-year since 2011. They’re keen to see a reduction in road casualties due to speeding and it’s understandable to believe that an increase in punishment for serious offenders could be an effective deterrent.
With around 25,000 people being killed or seriously injured between September 2015 and September 2016, it’s clearly an issue that needs to be tackled and this fine increase can only serve to increase realisation of that. For more information on how speeding can affect those around you, please consult the government’s road safety information organisation ‘THINK!’ (http://think.direct.gov.uk/).
