Cameras bring boom in fines

Report claims nearly third of UK drivers fined; blames cameras

NEARLY one in three drivers are handed fines each year, as police and local authorities increase the use of cameras to catch offending motorists.

Of the 40 million drivers in the UK, 12 million are fined annually says a new RAC Foundation report. At eight million, parking fines make up the majority of penalties, although local authorities hand out 2.5 million for box junction and bus lane violations as well. A further one million speed and red light camera tickets were issued in the same 12-month period, along with 500,000 for late licensing and a lack of insurance.

The study cites the growing use of cameras as a reason for the large number of fines issued. In 2011, 52 per cent of fixed-penalty notices were camera detected. This rose to 74 per cent in 2015, while private parking fines have risen three-fold since 2012 to 4.71 million thanks to the growing adoption of ANPR cameras.

Dr Adam Snow, a criminologist at Liverpool Hope University and the author of the report, said the use of cameras is likely to grow as police forces face diminishing budgets and staff levels. Previous research found road police numbers have fallen by nearly a third in the past decade.

RAC Foundation director Steve Gooding said: “Automatic enforcement must be viewed by the public as proportionate. While wrongdoing should be punished and not excused, a decline in frontline policing risks an imbalanced approach to enforcement. Millions of motorists are being caught by camera, often for arguably minor misdemeanours, while more serious and harmful behaviour goes undetected.”

The National Police Chiefs’ Council said fines were issued to “deter dangerous and illegal driving behaviours”.

“In 2015, 74 per cent of fixed-penalty notices were camera detected”