MILLIONS of pounds in fines may be refunded after a landmark ruling found several speed limits on Hampshire's roads are not legally enforceable.
Experts say a judge's decision opens the door to thousands of motorists to claim their money back, but that could be just the tip of the iceberg.
District Judge Philip Gillibrand dismissed the last of 14 test cases against motorists allegedly caught speeding along the A27 in and around Fareham.
He ruled that simple errors in the way signs were positioned meant the speed limits essentially had no backing in law.
Legal experts who uncovered the failings say they have seen the same mistakes time and time again across the county, which they described as 'a signing disaster zone'.
The judge urgently called on the county council to put right the signs across Hampshire to avoid future cases being thrown out in the same way.
But Hampshire's Safer Roads Partnership insisted that despite the judge's ruling, it believes the signs are fine and refused to rule out continuing to issue penalties in the effected areas.
The expert witness whose report uncovered the signage deficiencies blasted the statement as 'amazing'.
Former traffic cop Richard Bentley said: “How can they say that when the judge has made a ruling? All they are trying to do is damage limitation. They should just pay the money back to everyone they have fined illegally.”
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