Worst-offending speeding motorists face higher fines
LEADING ROAD safety campaigners have welcomed the introduction of tougher punishments for the most serious speeding offences from today.
Drivers caught at speeds excessively above legal limits will now face higher penalties in England and Wales.
Under new guidelines for magistrates, fines for motorists caught doing 51mph in a 30mph zone or 101mph on a motorway will start from 150 per cent of their weekly income, rather than the previous level of 100 per cent.
AA president Edmund King described the changes as “an effective way to penalise offenders”.
The Sentencing Council said the move aims to ensure there is a “clear increase in fine level as the seriousness of offending increases”.
It follows responses to a consultation arguing previous guidelines did not properly take into account the increase in potential harm that can result as speed above the limit rises.
Some 244 people were killed in crashes when a driver was breaking the speed limit on Britain’s roads in 2015. Mr King said there is “no sensible reason” for excessive speeding, adding: “It is only right that these extreme offenders are punished severely.”
RAC Foundation director, Steve Gooding, said while the new measures “underline how seriously the courts take speeding offences”, the limit on fines means there is not a “level playing field”.
He also questioned whether police officers have enough resources to ensure the tougher punishments have an impact on road safety. The number of fulltime roads policing officers in England and Wales – excluding London – fell by 27 per cent between 2010 and 2015.
The maximum fines allowed by law remain the same, so speeding drivers cannot be fined more than £1,000 unless the offence takes place on a motorway, where the limit is £2,500.
Gary Rae, campaigns director for the Huddersfield-based road safety charity, Brake, said: “Toughening the fines and penalties for speeding is long overdue. I hope that magistrates ensure the new sentences are consistently applied.”