81mph in 50mph - speed camera van - advice please?
Discussion
Alfa159Ti said:
Hi guys,
I got snapped by a speed camera van on Snake Pass the other day.
When I spotted it the only thing I could think of was 'bang to rights' - it was on a long straight coming downhill and I was speeding, simple as that. It is a blanket 50mph zone all along Snake Pass but unfortunately I didn't pay that much heed on the long straight. I thought I was doing about 75mph when it snapped me.
The summons that has arrived today however says I was doing 81mph and is a notice of intending prosecution issuing a court summons.
I was expecting a ticket and would not have contested it as I was in the wrong, but now wonder if I should maybe take some legal advice as this looks serious.
I have a clean license and rely on being able to drive in order to operate my business.
Can anyone give me any advice please?
You got a "NIP issuing a court summons". Course you did. I got snapped by a speed camera van on Snake Pass the other day.
When I spotted it the only thing I could think of was 'bang to rights' - it was on a long straight coming downhill and I was speeding, simple as that. It is a blanket 50mph zone all along Snake Pass but unfortunately I didn't pay that much heed on the long straight. I thought I was doing about 75mph when it snapped me.
The summons that has arrived today however says I was doing 81mph and is a notice of intending prosecution issuing a court summons.
I was expecting a ticket and would not have contested it as I was in the wrong, but now wonder if I should maybe take some legal advice as this looks serious.
I have a clean license and rely on being able to drive in order to operate my business.
Can anyone give me any advice please?
Oh look half term started today.
Got very similar 80 in a 50 during an overtake on a clear straight over 3 years ago.
Turned up suited and booted, explained I needed the car for work, to run the kids to various activities etc.
Judge asked if anyone else could drive me to the sites I needed for work, I explained this wasn't viable as only I visited sites alone.
After deliberating was told I was very lucky not to be banned, the judge only sympathised with me as he he used to work in a similar industry and understood the need for own transport. Also told me the plea about needing the car for family kids etc was irrelevant.
Hefty fine and slowed down big style ever since. Good luck.
Turned up suited and booted, explained I needed the car for work, to run the kids to various activities etc.
Judge asked if anyone else could drive me to the sites I needed for work, I explained this wasn't viable as only I visited sites alone.
After deliberating was told I was very lucky not to be banned, the judge only sympathised with me as he he used to work in a similar industry and understood the need for own transport. Also told me the plea about needing the car for family kids etc was irrelevant.
Hefty fine and slowed down big style ever since. Good luck.
Jezzerh said:
Just out of interest, where was the van parked up? Asking for a friend who uses that road quite a lot and thinks the 50 limit is a joke. :-)
The only time i've seen one is on the Reservoir side heading west, before it gets twisty. But i've heard they pop up everywhere, usually Sheffield side. In fact I came over that way yesterday, in a rental Ibiza that struggled to even do 50. I only ever upped it to 70 on well sighted stretches. No scamera vans in sight. Simple answer is stick to 50. It's a b
k ache, but it's better than being in the OPs situation.OP - I know this doesn't help now, but, are you semi-local to the area? If so, you should know that this is scamera van heaven. Unfortunately this is true as it's very tempting to press on.
medieval said:
citizensm1th said:
Is it wrong to hope the op gets a ban?
There but for the grace of God I would imagine for quite a lot of us..........kingzackerly, this place gets more like mumsnet everyday !PistonHeads, speed matters (unless you're a
, then the posted speed limit matters)!22Rgt said:
Going suited and booted will make fk all difference and is way OTT for a simple speeding offence. Just admit guilt, no need to hang your head in shame or turn on the water works or other theatricals, this sort of bullst will not act to go in your favour as its so see through and would imagine magistrates get very tired of seeing it..
You truly are a weapons grade bellend. Why don't you just fk all difference and is way OTT for a simple speeding offence. Just admit guilt, no need to hang your head in shame or turn on the water works or other theatricals, this sort of bullst will not act to go in your favour as its so see through and would imagine magistrates get very tired of seeing it..k off to www.waltermitty.com instead?Osinjak said:
You truly are a weapons grade bellend. Why don't you just fk off to www.waltermitty.com instead?
Careful, he's a rectal insertion specialist! k off to www.waltermitty.com instead?Alfa159Ti said:
Hi guys,
I got snapped by a speed camera van on Snake Pass the other day.
When I spotted it the only thing I could think of was 'bang to rights' - it was on a long straight coming downhill and I was speeding, simple as that. It is a blanket 50mph zone all along Snake Pass but unfortunately I didn't pay that much heed on the long straight. I thought I was doing about 75mph when it snapped me.
The summons that has arrived today however says I was doing 81mph and is a notice of intending prosecution issuing a court summons.
I was expecting a ticket and would not have contested it as I was in the wrong, but now wonder if I should maybe take some legal advice as this looks serious.
I have a clean license and rely on being able to drive in order to operate my business.
Can anyone give me any advice please?
The highlighted part points out the problem you have if you take it to court to contest it: You were not paying attention and do not really know the speed you were doing, but you do know you were speeding for that section of road.I got snapped by a speed camera van on Snake Pass the other day.
When I spotted it the only thing I could think of was 'bang to rights' - it was on a long straight coming downhill and I was speeding, simple as that. It is a blanket 50mph zone all along Snake Pass but unfortunately I didn't pay that much heed on the long straight. I thought I was doing about 75mph when it snapped me.
The summons that has arrived today however says I was doing 81mph and is a notice of intending prosecution issuing a court summons.
I was expecting a ticket and would not have contested it as I was in the wrong, but now wonder if I should maybe take some legal advice as this looks serious.
I have a clean license and rely on being able to drive in order to operate my business.
Can anyone give me any advice please?
They have a speed measuring device that shows your speed, you seem to have: "I think I was going slower than that".
Unless you can show that their device was faulty/inaccurate/misreading, how can you contest it?
allergictocheese said:
I don't expect everyone who receives official paperwork to name it correctly every time. It's an innocuous mistake as far as I can see and certainly not something to jump up and down about.
You have to ignore Loon, his user name is very apt. Apparently he's leaving these shores soon, one can only hope it's to somewhere that doesn't have internet access.IIRC there's some comment on the NIP about being summonsed although their wording varies a bit in different force areas.
James2593 said:
The only time i've seen one is on the Reservoir side heading west, before it gets twisty. But i've heard they pop up everywhere, usually Sheffield side.
I share the curiosity regarding the the location of this camera tooFrom Ladybower into Sheff Ive seen them in several places but they are much rarer on the Derbyshire stretch
There are hard points at the reservoir looking at people crossing the bridge at Ashopton and another as mentioned at the tail of the reservoir just before the twisty bit
I have surprisingly never seen on in the "wilderness" which is odd as the stretch down from the Doctors Gate to the parking at Birchin Clough would be a major money spinner
Best of luck OP
And RIP benign policing and the NSL on the Snake Pass
LoonR1 said:
Come on people. Read his post. He received a court summons a couple of days after the offence. Apparently it's a court summons with a NIP.
Can nobody see the problem there?
I have no idea how these things work Loon, but I am going to take a wild guess and say that he spouting bCan nobody see the problem there?
ks perhaps?So what we've got is someone who's received a summons and a NIP within a few days of an offence committed on a stretch of road that no local has ever seen a camera van on, although there are many other places where the camera van frequents nearby.
And all this at half term.
Oh and sorry to disappoint sheepshanks I've had a month or so at my place abroad and I'm back now. I'm a cynic, but this story is very fishy.
And all this at half term.
Oh and sorry to disappoint sheepshanks I've had a month or so at my place abroad and I'm back now. I'm a cynic, but this story is very fishy.
It can't happen as you described it OP, they need to identify/confirm who was driving first, then they write and tell you that you have been a bad bad boi and your speed was too high for a FPN. You then wait for a trip to see the Mags. It can take months not days!
I was done for 86mph in a 50mph limit about 10 years ago. 1 trip to see the Beak after about 6 months (I self represented) and i was in the hole for 5 points & £1000. I wasn't creative enough with showing how my weekly income was spent...........
Be careful OP they might have your pocket money away, remember pick n' mix and grot mags are all legitimate weekly outgoings don't forget to include them on your means statement.
I was done for 86mph in a 50mph limit about 10 years ago. 1 trip to see the Beak after about 6 months (I self represented) and i was in the hole for 5 points & £1000. I wasn't creative enough with showing how my weekly income was spent...........
Be careful OP they might have your pocket money away, remember pick n' mix and grot mags are all legitimate weekly outgoings don't forget to include them on your means statement.
Edited by shep1001 on Saturday 14th February 14:33
Thanks for your interest everyone.
Its interesting to see how it is perceived by others and I even understand the perspective of a few posting some rather severe responses. I too realise this looks bad. 81mph in a 50mph zone is well over the speed limit and sounds outrageous on the face of it.
Whilst we all have lapses of judgement, I consider myself to be someone who usually drives to the conditions and has consideration for other road users and I think this can be supported by my (until now) clean license and max NCB.
Anyone who knows Snake Pass will likely be familiar with the section of road I am talking about - with the reservoir behind you, the road straightens out, up to a little rise, after which it is downhill, long, straight and well sighted for about a mile. Its the best sighted stretch on the entire pass and one of the few areas where it would technically be possible to exceed 50mph as the rest of the road is so winding.
If I was unaware of exactly how fast I was going, it was because I was concentrating on the road, not my speedo, as I would hope any other driver does when driving on the open road.
However, the circumstances don't change the fact that I was caught exceeding the speed limit significantly. Hopefully the fact that it was an open road (and not for example, a built up residential area) will be taken into account, but I am in the hands of the legal system and the judge now.
Whatever the outcome of this event, I hope this post will serve as a reminder to all to take care. It is all too easy to get overly accustomed to a capable car and a familiar road and in this case it has landed me in trouble.
The camera van by the way was parked in the tree line in the lay-by on the left of the road, making it pretty much hidden from view. Despite the speed camera signs it is the first time I have ever seen one on Snake Pass.
I will add to this post as the situation develops in the hope that others can learn from my experience and in this case, poor-judgement.
Its interesting to see how it is perceived by others and I even understand the perspective of a few posting some rather severe responses. I too realise this looks bad. 81mph in a 50mph zone is well over the speed limit and sounds outrageous on the face of it.
Whilst we all have lapses of judgement, I consider myself to be someone who usually drives to the conditions and has consideration for other road users and I think this can be supported by my (until now) clean license and max NCB.
Anyone who knows Snake Pass will likely be familiar with the section of road I am talking about - with the reservoir behind you, the road straightens out, up to a little rise, after which it is downhill, long, straight and well sighted for about a mile. Its the best sighted stretch on the entire pass and one of the few areas where it would technically be possible to exceed 50mph as the rest of the road is so winding.
If I was unaware of exactly how fast I was going, it was because I was concentrating on the road, not my speedo, as I would hope any other driver does when driving on the open road.
However, the circumstances don't change the fact that I was caught exceeding the speed limit significantly. Hopefully the fact that it was an open road (and not for example, a built up residential area) will be taken into account, but I am in the hands of the legal system and the judge now.
Whatever the outcome of this event, I hope this post will serve as a reminder to all to take care. It is all too easy to get overly accustomed to a capable car and a familiar road and in this case it has landed me in trouble.
The camera van by the way was parked in the tree line in the lay-by on the left of the road, making it pretty much hidden from view. Despite the speed camera signs it is the first time I have ever seen one on Snake Pass.
I will add to this post as the situation develops in the hope that others can learn from my experience and in this case, poor-judgement.
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