I think I'm going to get penalty points and a fine.

[Mark T]

On my way back from the MPH show I got caught going through a red light although I believe it wasn't really my fault. At the time the traffic was very heavy and the road had a 50mph limit. As I approached the light it began turning amber. As I was doing around 40mph and was very close to the lights I thought it would be better to go through rather than getting rear ended by the tail gating tosser behind me. I know that as I went through the light it was on amber. I remember seeing the flash after I went through but I was hoping it wasn't me.

I've been driving for 6 years, never had points before and generally drive in a safe manner.

I really want to appeal but I know that I'll end up losing, getting three points and a fine anyway then have to pay court costs for the appeal.

I'm expecting three points and a sixty pound fine.

Anyone on GTP ever got out of receiving penalty points?

 

[Pyrelli]

I haven't got out of any points (or done anything to get any) myself but a friend of mine was caught speeding but they let her pay to go on a course instead of receiving the points. I forget how much it was she paid, but it was pretty much the equivalent of the fine plus a bit more I think.

Pyrelli

Edit: "Speed awareness course (£90 and no points instead of £60 fine and points)"

 

[Race Idiot]

That sucks, I doubt you'd get an appeal though unfortunately. I realy hate how some people drive these days LETS ALL SIT ON THE SODDING BRAKES AS CLOSE AS POSSIBLE TO EACH OTHER AND NEVER SIGNAL.

I haven't got out of any points (or done anything to get any) myself but a friend of mine was caught speeding but they let her pay to go on a course instead of receiving the points. I forget how much it was she paid, but it was pretty much the equivalent of the fine plus a bit more I think.

Pyrelli

Edit: "Speed awareness course (£90 instead of £60 fine)"

That sounds like a v good idea.

 

[daan]

You could claim that you've never really been right after that blow to the head.

 

[DustDriver]

And lose his license all together

 

[Sureboss]

You could claim that you've never really been right after that blow to the head.

Famine Pucked him.

If the camera got you, would it show the car close behind you?

 

[Mark T]

You could claim that you've never really been right after that blow to the head.

👍

And lose his license all together

👎

I haven't got out of any points (or done anything to get any) myself but a friend of mine was caught speeding but they let her pay to go on a course instead of receiving the points. I forget how much it was she paid, but it was pretty much the equivalent of the fine plus a bit more I think.

Pyrelli

Edit: "Speed awareness course (£90 and no points instead of £60 fine and points)"

I think that course only applies to speeding motorists unfortunately otherwise I would have tried to sign up for it.

Famine Pucked him.

If the camera got you, would it show the car close behind you?

Possibly. The letter said that photographic evidence can be used if an appeal is put in place. I think I have the right to see the photograph if I remember correctly. I'll have to look into it.

 

[kikie]

How long do you have to be without a penalty to lose the points?

 

[Mark T]

How long do you have to be without a penalty to lose the points?

I think they remain on your license for four years. Luckily my insurance is covered through my company so it's not going to cost me anymore.

 

[Robin]

I have a real bad habit of jumping lights as they are turning amber to red, sometimes they even reach red but im going too fast to safely stop and have a person rear end me as you said, I always live in fear of getting caught, not by speed cameras because there arnt any where I commute but from mobile units or unmarked cars (the tell tale sign is lights hidden behind the grille and the driver wearing a white shirt).

The law states that amber is not go, its STOP...... period! So I guess there is really no way to appeal unless it was very specific circumstances, if you could prove a person was tailgating you at speed you may have a case for safety reasons but thats about it..

The again you may not even recieve the fine, you know the way royal mail is these days!

Robin

 

[Mark T]

I have a real bad habit of jumping lights as they are turning amber to red, sometimes they even reach red but im going too fast to safely stop and have a person rear end me as you said, I always live in fear of getting caught, not by speed cameras because there arnt any where I commute but from mobile units or unmarked cars (the tell tale sign is lights hidden behind the grille and the driver wearing a white shirt).

The law states that amber is not go, its STOP...... period! So I guess there is really no way to appeal unless it was very specific circumstances, if you could prove a person was tailgating you at speed you may have a case for safety reasons but thats about it..

The again you may not even recieve the fine, you know the way royal mail is these days!

Robin

I'm pretty sure I'm going to get a fine and three points. In normal conditions I would have stopped upon turning from green to amber, but because of the car behind being so close and the fact the lights changed just as I was going over I feel it was a bit unfair. I have a feeling that the car behind me actually increased speed when he saw the lights beginning to change as if he was trying to force me to speed up. I can't remember if he stopped or went over the lights aswell.

 

[kikie]

In some countries, Austria is one of them, the green light starts to blink a few times before the light turns amber, as a warning.

 

[Mark T]

In some countries, Austria is one of them, the green light starts to blink a few times before the light turns amber, as a warning.

Thailand has a countdown system on the lights warning you as to when the lights are going to change. In theory it's a good idea, but then it could encourage some people to drive faster in order to get through the lights.

 

[Robin]

Thailand has a countdown system on the lights warning you as to when the lights are going to change. In theory it's a good idea, but then it could encourage some people to drive faster in order to get through the lights.

I think thats a brilliant idea, especially when you come round a corner and see a green light ahead and you don't know how long its been green for..... so you speed up and starting thinking, please don't change!! then just as you get really close it starts to change!!! If I saw it had like 5 seconds left on the clock I would know that im not going to make it and slow down...

Robin

 

[Keef]

You'll have to stick with advice from your English countrymen, Mark T. Here in America the fine weighs about 50% on what the Judge had for breakfast. Stomach cramps mean he's not going to stand any crap. If he's feeling giddy and you graduated from the same high school as him you'll get off without much damage.

The thing I hate about all these cameras you guys have is that there's no officer to determine whether your "offense" is ridiculous or not. I've ran a red light by about 5 seconds before, but that was because I was behind a semi truck and couldn't see an thing. An officer would undoubtedly have let me go without a ticket.

 

[Robin]

Yeah UK speed cameras are really snap happy!

There were even cases of people going slightly slower than the speed limit and getting fined

Also a major fault a while ago caused hundreds of drivers to receive speeding tickets and points off their license for no reason on a stretch of motorway, the camera was taking pictures of every car that went past!!

Robin

 

[TheCracker]

Have you recieved any conformation in post? - a lot of cameras will flash but not actually be loaded with any film.

 

[FoolKiller]

You'll have to stick with advice from your English countrymen, Mark T. Here in America the fine weighs about 50% on what the Judge had for breakfast. Stomach cramps mean he's not going to stand any crap. If he's feeling giddy and you graduated from the same high school as him you'll get off without much damage.

Depends on the state. In Kentucky when you get a ticket they hand you an information sheet with the violation codes and the set fine for each.

Of course, we also allow you to attend traffic school as often as once a year to avoid having points added. I have gotten a number of speeding tickets but no points and I have been in class with quite a few people who ran lights or didn't completely stop at a sign. Heck I even got to do traffic school for speeding in a work zone.

To do traffic school you have to pay the court costs and plead guilty, but no points go on your license and your insurance never finds out. Considering you can set it all up by mail, online, or at the clerks office it saves the courts a ton of time and money, as I am paying without going, and the annoyance of taking the course makes me not want to speed for at least a year.

 

[Keef]

So how do fines and penalty points work in England? A 60 Pound fine isn't that bad. That'd be about $120, which, I suppose, would be worthy of doing at least 20 over the limit here, but it wouldn't break the bank. So how about the points?

 

[Robin]

So how do fines and penalty points work in England? A 60 Pound fine isn't that bad. That'd be about $120, which, I suppose, would be worthy of doing at least 20 over the limit here, but it wouldn't break the bank. So how about the points?

I don't know the exactly how the system works (someone else will know) but its the points that hurt, not the fine!

Robin

 

[Pyrelli]

I'm pretty sure in the first couple of years after passing you have 6 points on your license, a speeding/running through lights offence is 3 points off your license and a £60 fine.

After this period (2 years) you get 12 points; if you're caught doing 100mph then it's an automatic ban however long you've been driving.

If you lose your license within the 2 years after passing, you have to do the whole process again from the bottom.

But as Robin says, it's the points that hurt especially with the premium on the insurance.

Pyrelli

If you want to know about the points have a look at this website about points, though I don't know enough to say if it's all true.

 

[Mark T]

Have you recieved any conformation in post? - a lot of cameras will flash but not actually be loaded with any film.

Well the car is actually registered to my partner and my company pays the insurance premium. The letter from the Met went to her and said the vehicle had been caught passing a red light. The letter states that she must inform them who was driving if she wasn't. It also mentions photographic evidence.

I'm guessing once she has confirmed who was driving they will issue an official fine to that person (me). I might phone them and request a copy of the photo so that I can see if any car is behind me at the time.

 

[Alfaholic]

So how do fines and penalty points work in England? A 60 Pound fine isn't that bad. That'd be about $120, which, I suppose, would be worthy of doing at least 20 over the limit here, but it wouldn't break the bank. So how about the points?

12 points is a ban. You lose your license for (I think) a year, though that decision may be down to a judge. Any speeding offence will give you 3 points minimum, but not maximum. If the points take 4 years to be removed from your license as mentioned earlier, it means you can only afford to get caught speeding once every year and a quarter, approximately. That's not particularly difficult. Most speeding fines come from cameras. Roads monitored with cameras have signs on them informing motorists. The cameras themselves generally are painted bright yellow and must be in clear sight. They are quite easy to avoid. You can get done by an unmarked car, but they're fairly easy to spot, as they would generally have been minding their own business until you fly past, then all of a sudden they start following you. Those, of course, have a person inside them who can make an intelligent decision about whether you were actually driving dangerously or not, and decide whether you need a fine or a warning. The worst ones seem to be the aptly named "Talivans" - white vans which park at the side of the road and point a speed reading hairdryer at you. They can usually read your speed as soon as you can see them, so you don't actually get much warning of where they are.

Also, in some counties, local residents (all pensioners apparently) are being armed with speed guns and have the power to have a warning notice sent to the car's registered keeper should they measure your speed at higher than the limit. This has resulted in a flood of motorists being told off for driving at 31mph in a 30 zone.

As for jumping the light: Wait for the communication in the mail, then request the picture. If the car that was tailgating you was visible, then it's probably worth appealing. If you have no evidence that you were being tailgated, it's probably not worth it as I would expect that most people will say that. Also, as for lights with warning modes, well, if Orange means STOP, and is not a warning of any form, then I don't know why they bother with it at all. The lights may as well go straight to red. I'd be surprised if you can be fined for crossing on orange. You'd have no chance if you were inches away from the intersection when it turned.

 

[Pyrelli]

...Also, in some counties, local residents (all pensioners apparently) are being armed with speed guns and have the power to have a warning notice sent to the car's registered keeper should they measure your speed at higher than the limit. This has resulted in a flood of motorists being told off for driving at 31mph in a 30 zone...

, I've seen some footage of people doing that on the t.v but I guess it could be an effective means of persuading people to keep within the limits.

Out of interest have you/anyone driven past one of the signs that displays your current speed..? In all honesty when I first saw one it simply took my attention away from the road instead of making me slow down.

Well the car is actually registered to my partner and my company pays the insurance premium. The letter from the Met went to her and said the vehicle had been caught passing a red light. The letter states that she must inform them who was driving if she wasn't. It also mentions photographic evidence.

I'm guessing once she has confirmed who was driving they will issue an official fine to that person (me). I might phone them and request a copy of the photo so that I can see if any car is behind me at the time.

Good luck with that and hope it all works out 👍

Pyrelli

 

[Keef]

Well Mark, I wish you luck. I'm heading off to court now...

 

[Race Idiot]

Out of interest have you/anyone driven past one of the signs that displays your current speed..? In all honesty when I first saw one it simply took my attention away from the road instead of making me slow down.

Some of those are annoying as hell, as they tend to still go off at 31 or 32.

keef i hope u go to jail and you have to share a cell with john and you both love each other v much

 

[Keef]

keef i hope u go to jail and you have to share a cell with john and you both love each other v much

I was racing in a parking lot. Woo. The officer said it's either 0 or 2 points, depending on...something, because it's private property. New laws = better than old ones.

 

[1X83Z]

Thailand has a countdown system on the lights warning you as to when the lights are going to change. In theory it's a good idea, but then it could encourage some people to drive faster in order to get through the lights.

Many intersections here in Atlanta and in Denver have crosswalk timers - the light turns yellow when the timer hits zero. This is a horrible idea - I am always accelerating hard if I see it's going to be close.

 

[Keef]

I now have 10 points on my license. Eleven is the limit before you get your license suspended at 12. Hmph.

 

[DustDriver]

Out of interest have you/anyone driven past one of the signs that displays your current speed..? In all honesty when I first saw one it simply took my attention away from the road instead of making me slow down.

There was one in our street ones. When i went past it with my 45kph scooter it said i was riding at 90kph
There was also a car in front of me going faster, but the sign said he was going at a speed of 60kph

And i hope they never implement the point system in our country.