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Speeding car insurance customers to face Road Safety Support in court

24/05/07

Car insurance customers who challenge fines handed out by automatic speed cameras in court will soon find themselves facing a panel of police experts dedicated to refuting "loophole" defences.

Police frequently claim that high proportions of the speed cameras cases that go to court are "spurious", with drivers claiming unreasonably that signs were concealed, that cameras were not working properly etc.

Frequently, police forces do not contest these cases in court because they lack the time or money, or because they are unable to prove the facts contested. Thousands of tickets have been written off on "technicalities", police claim.

The new team, Road Safety Support, has been set up by the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) as a not-for-profit company.

It is staffed by lawyers and other employees on secondment from the Crown Prosecution Service.

Meredydd Hughes, chief constable of South Yorkshire Police and ACPO's head of road policing, said: "We are going to demonstrate that spurious cases get a slap. This team will defend the integrity of enforcement equipment and help us win high-profile cases."

Pointing to lawyers such as celebrity attorney Nick Freeman, better known as "Mr Loophole", Mr Hughes went on: "I respect competent lawyers who go through the evidence on behalf of their client. My job is to make sure the prosecution case is as robust as the defence."

Earlier this month, car insurance companies began to acknowledge that endorsements handed down by speed cameras were not a realistic indicator of the risk posed by a driver.

Some companies have already begun to discount points on drivers' licences in setting car insurance premiums.