Mr Loophole cases inspire drivers to seek their day in court
Celebrity acquittals may give wrong message, legal experts caution
RECORD numbers of drivers caught speeding or using mobile phones are opting to face trial instead of taking on-the-spot penalties.
Home Office figures showed a 43per cent rise in motorists going to court over the past four years.
It is thought the success of celebrities such as David Beckham and Jimmy Carr in beating road traffic charges is convincing other drivers that they also might be able to get off.
However, legal experts warned the chances of beating such charges was extremely slim and by opting for court, drivers could be making things worse for themselves.
Beckham, the former England football captain, was recorded driving at 59mph in a 40mph zone in a borrowed Bentley.
However Nick Freeman, his lawyer, who is known as Mr Loophole, successfully argued that the papers had been served too late.
Carr, the comedian and television host, also used the services of Mr Freeman to escape a conviction when he was caught using his phone. The lawyer convinced magistrates he had not been using his phone to make a call, but to dictate a joke.
According to the Home Office data, the number of motorists facing court action was 342,000 in 2017, up from 240,000 in 2013.
At the same time, the number of fixed penalty notices issued by the police for motoring offences declined by 19 per cent from 1,201,000 to 969,000.
In April 2017, the penalty for using a mobile phone while driving was increased from three to six points.
This is also thought to be a factor behind the sharp rise in the number of people trying to challenge motoring prosecutions.
Peter Dodd, a partner at Nockolds law firm, said that despite the high-profile cases, it was not always wise to opt to go to court.
He said: “The police do not have any discretion but people don’t like the police acting as judge and jury, which is what these on-thespot punishments represent.
“As police have been given powers to impose harsher penalties, a greater proportion of motorists want to challenge those decisions.
“But this idea of being able to get off on a technicality is a bit of a myth and by going to court, you risk making things much worse.
“Magistrates can apply unlimited fines linked to your income and you will also be liable for court costs.”
Mr Dodd added that many motorists wrongly believed that the registered owner of a vehicle could avoid a fine if they did not identify who was driving at the time.
He said: “There is a persistent urban myth that a driving fine or penalty can be avoided if the owner ... does not identify the driver. We see a large number of cases which could have been avoided if the keeper had named the driver.
“For the sake of a fine in the hundreds … drivers are risking thousands of pounds in fines and costs in a magistrates’ court plus six points on their licence.”